Sewage Issue For Lakes Genevieve Being Reviewed By County Officials

Greg Becker, president of the Lakes Genevieve Homeowners Association, received assurances at last Thursday’s Ste. Genevieve County Commission meeting that his concerns about a sewage issue are not being taken lightly.

Becker complained about a trailer park, located outside the private lake development’s gate but on land that has been annexed by Lakes Genevieve. Sewage is flowing from it onto private property, he said.

Becker complained that he has brought the issue up with the Ste. Genevieve County Health Department previously and had “gotten absolutely nowhere.” Becker said he had meetings with Sandra Bell, executive director of the county health department, and department inspector Bob Kluender and had not gotten the action he had hoped to get.

Becker believes the trailers are too close together for septic systems to work properly, thus causing the sewage issue.

He called the mess “inexcusable” and said that two or three of the mobile homes are currently occupied.

Presiding Commissioner Garry Nelson called Bell to get her side of the story.

Bell said Kluender had taken the information — including photos of the situation — home to work on to prepare it to submit the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.

“He went home and spent hours working on it,” Bell said.

She said Kluender’s work was taking as long as it was in order to make sure the paperwork was perfect. An earlier case, Bell said, had been thrown out by the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office due to a minor error in the paperwork. Bell said he was taking great care to avoid a repeat of that.

Becker had met with Bell and Kluender during the January 27 County Commission meeting.

Bell said on Monday that the paperwork had been submitted to the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.

See complete coverage of the County Commission in the February 12 edition of the Herald.