COUNCIL TAKES STEP TO PUSH ROAD TAX

The Cape Girardeau City Council will set up a road and bridge trust fund and ease the special assessment burden to property owners on residential streets.

The decisions came at a joint meeting Wednesday evening of the City Council and the Planning and Zoning Commission.

Both council members and commissioners said they hope the actions will help sell a half-cent transportation tax to the voters.

Voters will decide the fate of the five-year sales tax on Aug. 8. The tax would raise an estimated $17 million for road and bridge projects.

The council said:

-- Property owners will pay no more than $10 a front foot for the paving of their gravel streets and the city will pay the added cost in cases where concrete and curb and gutters are needed instead of an asphalt pavement.

-- Property owners won't be assessed any of the cost of expanding, widening or improving existing residential streets if they donate the right of way.

-- The city would pay the cost of paving streets for low-income residents who couldn't afford to pay special assessments.

The right-of-way donation policy doesn't apply to commercial streets although the council might consider such situations on a case-by-case basis, Spradling said.

Businesses always have been assessed for commercial street improvements, he explained.

Council members said they will formally vote on the policies and establish the trust fund at their July 24 meeting.

Commissioners had urged the council to establish a trust fund and set some policies regarding road and bridge projects prior to the election.

"The trust fund is a good idea," Spradling said.

Council members promised to place all of the transportation tax money in the trust fund, along with other revenue earmarked specifically for road and bridge projects. Those other revenues include special assessments and some motor fuel tax money.

The city would issue a public report on the trust fund twice a year. The report would disclose how much money went into the trust fund, how much was spent and for what projects, and donations of right of way.

The city has listed 20 road and bridge projects that would be funded with transportation tax dollars.

Commissioner R.J. McKinney said such reports could assure voters that the transportation tax dollars were being spent properly.

McKinney said the trust fund reports could make it easier to get voters to extend the tax at the end of five years.