May 01, 2008 11:25 pm
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By Dustin Shipman
dshipman@joplinglobe.com
DUQUESNE, Mo. — Members of the Duquesne City Council on Monday night are expected to review the results of a public forum on a proposal for planning and zoning in the community.
A large group of residents turned out Thursday night for the forum at City Hall, some to support the proposal, some to question it and still others saying they just wanted to find out what was going on.
Town officials have said that barring major objections from residents, the council could adopt the proposal at its meeting Monday night. But, they say, the panel could take more time before voting.
“I came out just to see what was going on,” said Kenny Sharp, who owns residential and commercial property in Duquesne. “I haven’t really heard much about it at all.
“Zoning has always been bad out here. Right now, anybody can just stick anything anywhere. It would be a good thing to have zoning, but the bad thing is if they get to a point where they are putting commercial against residential, then there are going to be problems.”
Mayor Denny White said his reading on community opinion is that residents for the most part support the zoning plan.
“Everyone is going to have differences of opinion on this,” he said. “There are going to be people for it and those who are not necessarily for it at this moment, but we are hoping that they will be in the future.”
Nancy Wilder, a 50-year resident of the town, said she hopes Duquesne can remain the quiet community she has always known it to be.
“I don’t want Duquesne to be a part of Joplin or be a major metropolitan area,” she said. “The whole idea of living here is to get away from that.”
Tom Simpson, director of the Regional Economic Development Center at Missouri Southern State University, said the comments and concerns brought before the Planning and Zoning Committee at the forum will be added to the committee’s plan before it goes to the council. Simpson, who is a Duquesne resident, has been assisting with the plan.
Council meeting
The Duquesne City Council will consider the zoning proposal Monday night at City Hall, 1501 S Duquesne Road. The Zoning and Planning Committee’s plan may be viewed online at www.fourstategrowth.com.
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