WELLSTON > Former city attorney sues over pay — The former city attorney in Wellston says she has retained an attorney to help her collect her final paycheck from the city, which she never received after she was terminated last month.

Mavis Thompson said the City Council voted to terminate her contract on Jan. 31. There was no reason given for her dismissal, she said.

When reached by phone, Councilman Linda Garner would not confirm the dismissal. Efforts to reach Mayor Linda Whitfield and other members of the council were unsuccessful. (Marlon A. Walker)

ST. LOUIS > Briefing on pension overhaul plan delayed — A legal briefing on St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay's pension overhaul proposal for the city's top three elected leaders has been rescheduled for next week.

A special meeting of the Board of Estimate & Apportionment, made up of the city aldermanic president, comptroller and mayor, was originally scheduled for Thursday, but Aldermanic President Lewis Reed's office said his schedule was full and he could not make the meeting.

At a board meeting last week, Reed had requested the city provide him a legal opinion from Thompson Coburn, the firm hired to advise the city on Slay's plan. The meeting with the law firm was rescheduled for 2:30 p.m. Wednesday. (David Hunn)

JEFFERSON CITY > Measure would require all driver tests to be given in English — Anyone hoping to get a Missouri drivers license would have to understand English under legislation passed by the Missouri House.

The bill would require all drivers license tests to be administered in English, eliminating versions that currently are printed in 11 other languages. The House passed the bill by a 93-63 vote Thursday. It now goes to the Senate.

Supporters said it would make the roads safer by ensuring drivers can read the signs. Opponents said it was unfair to immigrants, who may be adept of driving while still learning the English language. (AP)

FESTUS > Subdivision residents oppose proposed changes — Residents of Sawyers Ridge Subdivision on Gamel Cemetery Road want to see the remainder of the development built as planned — with villas.

Developer Helmut Weber has proposed building single-family units on the remaining 23 lots. In doing so, he would reduce the side setback to 5 feet from 7 feet, leaving just 10 feet between homes. The lot widths would be reduced to 45 feet instead of 50 feet.

The number of units would remain the same, but they would not be attached, said Dan Govero of Govero Land Services, representing the developer. The homes would be constructed with the same building materials and have a base price starting at $120,000. "We want to try to make something that will sell," Govero said.

At the City Council meeting Wednesday, four people indicated they were opposed to the change.

Vincent Roy has yet to move into the villa he recently put a deposit on, but is now having second thoughts. He noted a recent house fire in Arnold that melted the entire side of the house next door.

Since the Planning & Zoning Commission recommended approval, a supermajority vote is needed by the council to overturn it. The council opted to wait until the March 14 meeting to vote. (Special to the Post-Dispatch)

KANSAS CITY > Two mail processing centers in Missouri to close — The U.S. Postal Service, hit hard by declining mail volume and revenue, announced plans Thursday to close mail processing centers around the country, including two in Missouri.

Brian Sperry, a Postal Service spokesman in Denver, said more than 200 processing facilities have been targeted for closing nationwide.

In Missouri, the Postal Service plans to shift the work from its Springfield distribution and processing facility to its Kansas City distribution center, and move work from the Cape Girardeau distribution center to a site in downtown St. Louis, said Richard Watkins, spokesman for the Postal Service's regional office in Kansas City.

The closings don't affect the Postal Service's retail or business mail units in the Missouri locations. No date had been set for the consolidations, but Watkins said they would not take effect before May 15. (AP)