Final Sidewalk/Budget Vote Tomorrow.

The City Council is scheduled to vote on the proposed sidewalk repair/replacement incentives at tomorrow evening’s regular meeting in City Hall. The bill would allow the City to reimburse property owners that replace or repair qualified existing sidewalks an amount of $1.50 per square foot. The Budget/Ways and Means Committee has recommended that $50,000 be included in the budget for this program. The incentive would be available to residential and commercial property on a first come-first serve basis as long as funding is available. A limit of $2,500 per property owner per year is included in the measure. Director of Engineering Joe Butler reported that twenty owners have already asked to be placed on a waiting list in anticipation of the incentives.

Also scheduled for a final vote is the $7.7 million 1999/2000 fiscal year budget for the City. Included in the budget is a reduction in the "emergency reserve" from 33% of the operating budget to 25%, resulting in approximately $1.2 million. An additional $400,000 is set aside future Civil War road improvements and as matching funds for the proposed interchange at HH and Fairview.

Letters to the Editor

Opinions expressed reflect those of the writer and not necessarily those of the Mornin' Mail.

Council Members City Council,

Enclosed is an article taken from the Parade section of Sundays Joplin Globe that addresses the recycling issue.

As you are all probably aware I am a firm believer in the recycling issue. I feel that it is our duty as responsible citizens to pick up after ourselves and help insure the health and well being of others both now and especially in the future. Americans are wasteful, we eat in excess, buy in excess and throw away in excess. America is the most wasteful nation on the planet, but we don't have to be. With education and proper facilities we (and that means everyone) can clean up the landfills. Almost everything we dispose of can be recycled and reused. There is plastic building material that is being manufactured out of recycled milk and juice cartons. There are 2x4's and fencing material being used that is made out of recycled plastics. It doesn't need to be painted and is termite free. Old tires are now being used on playgrounds instead of sawdust and sand. It makes a softer safer playing area for children. According to this article, it takes 96% less energy to reuse aluminum than to manufacture new. Newspapers, cardboard and Styrofoam can be used and remanufactured into another form of a product. It takes 1/2 the amount of energy to recycle these paper based products than to cut virgin timber.

Now that I have mentioned why I am for recycling, lets talk cost. Carthage has the least expensive trash pickup service of any surrounding community that I have researched. Now you are looking at increasing the cost for the privilege of not having to store these products, load them in your trunk or truck and driving to the landfill and disposing of these items. The cost you are debating on is at most 38 cents a week! This is twelve cents less than the cost of a soda and four cents more than a postage stamp. I would gladly mail one less letter a week or not drink that Pepsi for the PRIVILEGE of being able to put my papers, plastics, cans, etc. out once a week and get them out of my basement! Your concern as a council should be to guarantee that these items so bundled and washed etc. actually get recycled and not put in a landfill. THAT should be your concern, not 38 cents a week.

Please think about the future of this Nation as a whole. We can't continue to be children leaving our room for someone else to clean up, responsibility starts at home.

As far as money going outside of the City, that should have been a consideration when a local company bid on the contract and it was not given to them.

Donna Harlan

Just Jake Talkin'
Mornin',

Mornin'

I think one of the biggest breakdowns ‘tween generations is bein’ bored. I hear frequently that a big problem with teenagers is this state of mind. I can vaguely remember a time or two when that thought may have crossed my mind, but it never was a lingerin’ problem. On the contrary, the "problem" I was faced with has always been havin’ enough time to do the stuff I thought was important at the time. ‘Course a lot of times that was prob’ly pretty’ borin’ stuff.

They say that a good portion of bein’ happy is based on expectations. If you expect to make a dollar and ya get two, you’re happy. If ya expect to make four and only get two you’re sad. ‘Course nowadays, if ya expect ta buy anything with two dollars, you’ve just lost touch with the borin’ facts of reality.

This is some fact, but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.

by

Today's column postponed in order to make room for the letter to the editor.

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