There has been so much opposition to a liquor license request that the Cape Girardeau City Council veered from normal procedure Monday night and scheduled a public hearing so that members of Lynwood Baptist Church can vocalize their displeasure.

Dave Goggin, a Lynwood member who has helped organize a churchwide effort to persuade the council to deny Tony Scruggs' request for a liquor license, handed the council a petition with 268 signatures of registered Cape Girardeau voters.

As a result of the campaign, the council voted to table the issue Monday night, setting up a public hearing for 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 29. The city does not usually hold public hearings regarding liquor licenses.

Many of the 1,300-plus church members have also e-mailed the council members and asked that the council deny the request because of the restaurant and lounge's proximity to the church's driveway, which is currently gravel and seldom used but will eventually be paved and widened to become a main entrance to the church.

Goggin appeared before the council on behalf of the church two weeks ago and had concerns that Big's Riverboat and Sports Lounge will give the visitors a bad impression of the city because it sits at a city entrance. He also said he was concerned with the safety of it being on a busy, five-lane highway and, he said, the church has a moral obligation to oppose it.

Meanwhile, Scruggs says his establishment will be a classy establishment with fine dining, a relaxed atmosphere and some dancing. He said the restaurant will target the 30-years-and-older crowd.

Scruggs, who said no one from the church approached him about his plans, thinks there are many misunderstandings about his business. Councilwoman Marcia Ritter agreed.

"I think there are a lot of misconceptions out there," said Ritter, who toured the facility. "What I heard before I went and what I saw are two different things."

On Monday night, Goggin submitted letters to the council from four nearby businesses that opposed the liquor license.

Goggin made a reference to something his father told him when he was a child that if you are not wanted, then you shouldn't go.

Mayor Jay Knudtson didn't go that far, but looked at Scruggs and said, based on the number of e-mails and comments he's received, "I assure you, you are not wanted there."

Knudtson and most of the other council members -- with the exception of Matt Hopkins, who voted not to table the issue -- said the public hearing could help straighten out misconceptions and allow a viewpoint to be heard.

Regardless, the council cannot reject the license request because Scruggs has met all the necessary criteria to obtain a liquor license.

"I don't see any way or reason we can deny this request," Hopkins said.

Task force report

Melvin Gateley and Nancy Jernigan, co-chairmen of the Cape Girardeau Citizens Finance Task Force presented their final recommendation to the city council.

The council will hold a special study sesson on Wednesday, Nov. 6, to go over and further discuss the report, meaning the issue will not be on the February ballot. The deadline for putting issues on that ballot is Nov. 4. There will be elections in April and August.

The biggest items recommended by the task force would cost $21.4 million over the next 20 years. They include $4.5 million for equipment purchases, $3.6 million for stormwater projects, $1.8 million for a new fire station, nearly $5 million for an addition to the police station and $6.5 million for an aquatic center.

They recommend paying for those items through a 1/4-cent increase in sales tax, the introduction of a use tax which would create a local sales tax on out-of-state purchases of more than $2,000; the extension of a 10-cent property tax levy which is currently paying off bonds used to build the Show Me Center; a stormwater/utility fee yet to be determined but estimated to cost an average resident $2 to $3.50 more per month.

New lights in south Cape

The council also voted to use $3,000 from the unrestricted reserve fund to pay for street light improvements in the Hanover and Jefferson area in South Cape Girardeau. Two new lights will be put up, and six others will be made brighter.

A local neighborhood watch group has been making an effort to clean up its neighborhood, and the council granted its request for the lights Monday night.

bmiller@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 127