Gahan elected mayor of Perryville; results split on sales taxes

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- For the first time in more than 20 years, Perryville voters elected a new mayor. Debbie Gahan won the five-person mayoral race by 175 votes over runner-up Marvin Ruehling, replacing Perryville's late mayor Robert Miget, who had held the position since 1984.

"This was a long fight," said Gahan after the unofficial results were tallied.

Gahan's plans for Perryville include spending more time with the members of the community, holding more town meetings where citizens feel welcome to voice their concerns and some prayer breakfasts.

"This is a faith-filled community," she said.

Over the past few months, Gahan, a part-time writer, columnist, artist and proofreader for the Republic-Monitor in Perryville, spent a lot of time immersing herself in learning what makes Perryville tick.

Now, she intends to use the information she's gathered about the city to keep it working "like the well-oiled machine it is, and continue the vision Bob Miget had," she said.

For the second time, Perry County voters rejected a sales tax proposal intended to fund repairs to the Perry County Jail security system, provide countywide animal control services and lend support to the sheriff's department in keeping employee pay competitive.

Last year, the sales tax initiative, a 3/8 cent sales tax that would go to jail repairs, failed by 42 votes.

This April, the proposal, a one quarter of 1 percent tax, was shot down by voters by 299 votes, according to unofficial results.

Security at the jail has been a major concern because of its age and the lack of money for improvements, Sheriff Gary Schaaf said previously.

County law enforcement also lost seven employees to other jurisdictions within the last year and a half due to higher wages at those departments, Schaaf said.

Schaaf could not be reached for comment on the outcome of the election.

The second proposal listed on the Perry County ballot, known as proposition B, a one-quarter of 1 percent sales tax to fund senior and teen services throughout the county, passed by 158 votes, according to unofficial results.

Several voters expressed emphatic support of proposition B at the Perryville precincts Tuesday afternoon.

"I feel that we can afford a quarter of a penny," said Rita Weber of Perryville.

Dorris Birkhouse of Perryville said she feels that supporting senior service programs, especially transportation, was "really important," but that she was uncertain about the imposition of two separate sales taxes.

"You have two of those, and that's a lot of sales tax," she said.

Now that the sales tax has passed, longer-range programs to aid teens and seniors can be explored, said Janette Klove with teen services. "We are so thankful that the people in the community saw the need for these programs to be there for their grandchildren, and they'll be their for my grandchildren, too," Klove said.

The Perry County Senior Resident center serves an average of 100 elderly, homebound residents per day, director Susan Foster said.

She said she is currently unable to reach all of the senior citizens in the county in need of food and care delivery services.

The sales tax, expected to bring in about $550,000 to be divided evenly with teen services, will not only allow senior services to continue but expand to include all Perry County seniors, Foster said.

bdicosmo@semissourian.com

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