Byrnes Mill officials do want to rid the city of "snipe signs."
      However, instead of citizens taking down the illegally posted advertisements, officials would like them to report the offending items so the Byrnes Mill Public Works Department can dispose of them.
      The matter was once again a topic of discussion when the Byrnes Mill Board of Aldermen met Nov. 19.
     "We're going to use our personnel and not recruit citizens," said Rose Bauer, the city clerk.
     Alderman Grant MacLaren of Ward 2 brought up the topic at the board's Nov. 5 meeting. His idea was to form a citizens committee to remove illegal signs.
     Other board members agreed that the signs - which advertise everything from get-rich-quick schemes to more legitimate activities - are a nuisance and need to be removed from the city's scenery. However, the majority of the board decided to assign the task to Public Works.
     "The board is directing the Public Works staff , through the mayor and city administrator, to take down the signs whenever they see them," MacLaren said. "Another thing they want is the mayor to write a letter to MoDOT (Missouri Department of Transportation) to remove the signs from MoDOT roadways and, when they move them, to destroy them. The board is also asking the mayor to ask the mayor of Arnold to do the same thing."
     MacLaren and Byrnes Mill Mayor Terry Oberer had attended a meeting about snipe signs conducted by Arnold's city government.
     "It came out at the Arnold meeting that MoDOT does not destroy the signs, thus giving the sign owners the opportunity to take back the signs to use again," MacLaren explained.
     MacLaren said he would like to have seen his original proposal to have a citizens committee formed to dispose of the signs, but is glad something is being done about snipe signs.
     "I certainly do feel these are steps in the right direction," he said.
     Oberer said he is encouraging those residents who locate snipe signs to tell city officials.
     "Of course, any citizen that is interested, we encourage them to contact us," the mayor said. "We want them to let our Public Works Department know where the snipe signs are, plus debris and other things that need attention.
     "The can call City Hall or me, the mayor."
     Oberer may be reached at 636-677-7201. The City Hall phone number is 636-677-7727.