A LOOK BACK AS ANOTHER YEAR PASSES; CONTROVERSY, CRISIS TOPPED NEWS IN 1995

Controversy and crisis were at the center of many of the most notable, local news stories in 1995.

It was a year of turmoil in the Cape Girardeau and Meadow Heights school districts, and the Mississippi River once again flooded homes and businesses.

A strip-tease bar prompted an outcry from some citizens and led the city of Cape Girardeau to regulate adult businesses.

The federal government searched for a site to build a new federal courthouse in downtown Cape, but by year's end, no decision had been reached.

Southeast Missouri State University's president resigned to take the job of Missouri's higher education commissioner, and the regents hired an interim president.

Cape voters finally approved a transportation sales tax.

Southeast Missouri Hospital's LifeBeat helicopter crashed in Southern Illinois, but miraculously all of the crew survived.

The tragedy of domestic violence also was in the news.

With 1996 just around the corner, we look back at the top 10 local news stories for 1995 as voted on by the Southeast Missourian news staff.

1. The Cape Girardeau Board of Education fired Superintendent Dr. Neyland Clark and his assistant, Dr. Tim Niggle, director of human resources.

The school board bought out their contracts in mid-December, culminating a year of controversy in the school district.

Clark's 4 1/2 years with the Cape schools were tumultuous ones.

A patron's six-month investigation into school finances uncovered questionable credit card charges, motel-room movies, alcohol, rental cars and meals. The financial problems were disclosed in February.

Three school board members resigned last spring, including two who were strong supporters of Clark.

Under a rarely used Missouri law and the school's policy, the county commission stepped in to name three new board members.

In the end, the new board concluded that the district couldn't move ahead with Clark at the helm.

2. The Mississippi River once again flooded homes and businesses in Cape Girardeau, Dutchtown and Commerce. The flooding reached near-record levels and forced evacuations.

For many flood-weary residents, it was a repeat of the 1993 flood.

In November, the Federal Emergency Management Agency approved plans to buy out property owners in flood-prone areas of Cape Girardeau and Commerce at a cost to the state and federal governments of nearly $3 million.

3. Regina's House of Dolls strip-tease bar opened in Cape Girardeau in February despite an outcry from citizens who wanted to ban it. More than 1,900 people signed a petition opposing the business.

The City Council subsequently enacted legislation to regulate strip-tease bars and other adult businesses.

The council's action led to a court battle, with David Rosener, the lawyer for Regina's, contending that the regulations were unconstitutional.

In August, Municipal Judge Edward Calvin handed down stiff fines against Regina's manager and other employees for failing to obtain adult business licenses.

The cases have been appealed and a judge in Macon County has been assigned to hear the cases.

At year's end, Regina's was still operating without a license.

4. The federal government's decision to build a new courthouse in downtown Cape Girardeau sparked controversy this year.

The General Services Administration announced this fall that it wanted to build a five-story courthouse in a two-block, residential area immediately south of the Federal Building.

But many residents in the area opposed the idea, saying it would destroy the historic-homes-filled neighborhood.

The GSA plans to hold a public hearing on the issue before deciding whether to look at alternative sites. The hearing has been postponed several times, but is now scheduled for Feb. 1.

5. Dr. Kala Stroup resigned as president of Southeast Missouri State University to become Missouri's commissioner of higher education. The Coordinating Board for Higher Education made the hiring decision in June, and Stroup began her new job on Sept. 1.

In late July, the Board of Regents hired blunt-talking, Cape Girardeau native Dr. Bill Atchley as interim president of Southeast.

The former president of Clemson University was one of four candidates in the running for commissioner of major league baseball in the early 1980s.

Atchley said he wouldn't be a caretaker president while the school searched for a permanent replacement for Stroup.

6. In August, Cape Girardeau voters approved a half-cent, transportation sales tax. Voters had rejected a similar tax twice in nine years before approving this one.

The five-year sales tax will raise an estimated $17 million for road and bridge projects, including the paving of gravel roads.

7. On Sept. 20, a Southeast Missouri Hospital LifeBeat helicopter crashed in a swampy, wooded area near the Mississippi River in Union County, Ill.

The three crew members survived the early morning crash and managed to walk away from the wreckage.

The crash was the first for LifeBeat since the air ambulance service began operating at Southeast eight years ago.

8. The Meadow Heights School District had its share of controversy in 1995. Tom Waller resigned as superintendent July 12 after questions were raised about reporting student attendance to Missouri's Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.

An investigation revealed that 17 fictitious student names were added to the school's roster for 1990-91 and 1991-92. The added names could have generated as much as $34,000 in additional money for the school district.

9. A restraining order failed to protect Linda Nelson from her husband, who shot her twice in the head before he took his own life.

Nelson, 40, and her husband, Jerald Amos Nelson, 44, were found dead Oct. 2 in the house the two owned on Highway C. At the time of the shooting, her husband had moved out and was living in Cape Girardeau. Linda Nelson had filed for divorce in September.

10. The tragedy of domestic violence also surfaced March 6 when a dispute at the Millersville home of Shirley Maintz escalated into a shooting and apparent suicide.

Maintz was shot four times, including three times in the head, by her estranged husband, David Maintz. She survived.

David Maintz died a short time later in a barn fire on the family farm. Authorities concluded Maintz committed suicide.