Proposed scenic byway route through Ozark County may hit dead end

A proposed scenic byway, a portion of which would run along U.S. Highway 160 through Ozark County, was generally not well received during a public hearing in Gainesville last week.

About 25 people attended an informational public hearing in the second floor courtroom of the Ozark County Courthouse on Sept. 6, and while there were a few people who expressed interest in the proposal, the majority of those who spoke and asked questions about the scenic byway proposal had concerns that the proposal was a potential open door for a government land grab.

The Ozark Run Scenic Byway proposal is the brainchild of a St. Louis software developer, Eric Hermanson, who gave the presentation on what the byway would entail.

Hermanson described himself as a “Missourian who loves to travel the backwoods of rural Missouri and the Ozarks.” Hermanson is also a board member on the non-profit group Scenic Missouri, which falls under the umbrella of Scenic America, a national organization.

Scenic Missouri describes itself as an “organization dedicated to the enhancement and preservation of Missouri’s scenic landscapes and communities,” according to their website scenic.org. The website also states that “Scenic Missouri provides educational and technical services to communities across the state on aesthetic issues including billboard and sign control, landscaping standards, tree presentation and the regulation of communication towers.”

At the public hearing in Gainesville, Presiding County Commissioner John Turner presided over the meeting, introducing Hermanson and issuing instructions for the question-and-answer session that would follow Hermanson’s presentation. “If you have questions to ask that’s fine,” Turner said. “That’s what we’re here for, but we’re not going to sit here and listen to somebody talk for 20 minutes about the fall of Rome or the history of the United States … we’re going to keep it on subject.”

The proposed scenic byway is a 375-mile route that stretches from St. Louis to Thayer, and also west from West Plains, through Howell, Ozark and Taney counties to Branson.

The public hearing did get a little contentious at times, with a few land rights advocates shouting things like “how dare you try to shove this down our throat” and “what gives you the right to tell us what we can do with our land?”

Hermanson explained that the proposal doesn’t involve any changes to land use along the route except no new billboards would be allowed on the route with the exception of on-site billboards and signs and also signage that is erected in areas that are zoned commercial or industrial. He said areas zoned commercial or industrial would be removed from the scenic byway path. In Ozark County, the only areas that are zoned are inside the city limits of Gainesville, so Hermanson said the city of Gainesville would not be on the designated route as it is currently written.

There was a lot of skepticism in the room about the proposal and the intentions of the non-profit groups that are behind it.

Bob Parker, who is not an Ozark County resident but lives near Raymondville in Texas County, says he is part of a property rights coalition that opposes the plan. Parker has attended several of the public hearings on the proposed scenic byway and has written letters in newspapers in opposition to the proposal.

Parker said he is suspicious of the proposal because of the Scenic Missouri and Scenic America groups that are sponsoring the plan. “While this looks like a simple designation with a few signs, it kicks off a whole agenda of some radical environmental activists to come and spend a ton of money and a ton of time to basically, it looks like to me, shut down what we do here in the Ozarks.”

Hermanson said that the Scenic Missouri and Scenic America groups are advocacy groups, but they have no authority to change any laws or restrict land use in any way. “Yes, they are advocacy groups, but our idea is to hand this scenic byway off to a local coalition,” Hermanson said.

Several others who attended the public hearing shared Parker’s concerns that the scenic byway was an open door for land restrictions. A few of the attendees just simply wanted more information about the proposal.

Ricky Johnston, of Bakersfield, said people are upset about a proposed “corridor” on the group’s website that appears to regulate private property rights. She read the group’s definition of corridor that includes property visible from the highway. “That’s what has people upset,” Johnston said. “We don’t want people coming in here and telling us what we can and can’t do on our own property.”

Hermanson told Johnston that the group has no authority to regulate any land.

During a somewhat heated confrontation between opponents and Hermanson, two Ozark County sheriff’s deputies in attendance at the meeting stood up and began monitoring the crowd in an effort to keep the arguments from escalating. A deputy reminded the crowd that the meeting was not a public debate, but rather an informational meeting.

Hermanson said he has faced some very vehement opposition, and he has even received death threats. He said he canceled a meeting in Oregon County because his wife was concerned for his safety after a very raucous meeting in Shannon County. Hermanson said Shannon County and Oregon County have opted out of the route.

Local approval is required for the scenic byway to come through a county or municipality. In Ozark County, that means Ozark County Commissioners John Turner, Layne Nance and Gary Collins have to agree to the proposal, and a written statement of support must be given to the Scenic Missouri group within 90 days of the public hearing.

At their regular meeting on Monday following the hearing, county commissioners discussed the proposal for about 15 minutes. Turner said commissioners will be gathering public input for the next 45-60 days before making a final decision.

Western District County Commissioner Layne Nance said he already knows how he’s going to vote. “I already can tell you I’m voting no and I’m not going to change my mind on it,” Nance said. He said he has received several calls from his constituents voicing their opposition. “I’ve had a lot of people who’ve called me and said they’re against it. They’re concerned that it’s going to infringe on their rights and I’m not so sure it won’t,” Nance said. “You can’t tell me that this guy from St. Louis just wants to take on all this and receive death threats and everything else just because he likes to travel. There’s more to it than that.”

Eastern District Commissioner Gary Collins also said he was going to vote against it. “I’m not going to leave all this on Layne, I don’t want it either,” Collins said. “If I want to do something on my land, I own that land and I don’t want anybody telling me I can’t do it,” Collins said.

Turner didn’t give an opinion during Monday’s meeting, except to say he’s heard a lot of opposition to it. He said residents who would like to give their input to commissioners can do so by attending one of their meetings or by calling them. The commissioners’ office number is 417-679-4096.

“We welcome input on this, and after we get people’s opinions we will have an official vote on the proposal,” Turner said.

Hermanson said that Taney County has already given its approval, and he is awaiting word from Howell County, which was scheduled to conduct a similar public hearing on Sept. 13.