Towns consider asking federal government to move them

(Picher-AP) -- Residents in two Oklahoma towns are tired of ongoing environmental cleanup in their communities.

So tired that they may ask the federal government to move them -- the entire towns.

John Sparkman is director of the Picher Housing Authority and president of the Picher-Cardin School Board. And Sparkman says moving may be the only option to keep the towns going.

He says residents are frustrated with long-running clean up of the Tar Creek Superfund site, and plans to resume yard remediation next year are raising frustration levels even more.

Sparkman says it has become increasingly more difficult to maintain the city's infrastructure. He says the tax bases in the communities have been declining with no prospect for improvement.

He suggests money planned for additional remediation and street work may be better spent relocating the far northeastern Oklahoma towns.

A public forum will be held Monday evening at the Picher-Cardin High School to discuss the situation.