Cape City Council takes on regional airport issues

The Cape Girardeau City Council gave a financially troubled airplane manufacturer a deadline to meet and entertained a pitch for a different project at the Cape Girardeau Regional Airport -- a private hangar that would have access to the airport.

Without comment Monday night, the city council unanimously approved a new financial arrangement with Renaissance Aircraft that will give the ailing company until Oct. 1 to get its business running.

The new lease agreement -- which amends one signed on Sept. 1, 2001 -- requires payments from Renaissance to start in October, six months later than initially planned but in time for the city to begin retiring bonds issued to construct the manufacturing facility at the Cape Girardeau Regional Airport.

After the meeting, Mayor Jay Knudtson said the new agreement not only sets a deadline for the city to secure funding but also gives city officials time to market the building to other aviation manufacturing companies should Renaissance Aircraft fail to obtain the money needed to begin building its recreational planes.

"We really didn't have an alternative," Knudtson said of the amended lease agreement.

At the study session prior to the meeting, Cape Girardeau lawyer Rick Kuntze sought to sell the council on a proposed hangar project. Kuntze represents trucking company owner Jerry Lipps, who wants to put a large private hangar on land bordering the airport.

The plan depends on securing a "through the fence" agreement with the city that would allow Lipps access to the airport runways and taxiways from his property.

Kuntze said the project also depends on the city allowing the project to proceed without requiring the land be annexed into the city limits. Kuntze said the Lipps would prefer the project to be in the county because of the city's more stringent construction regulations.

Council members said they'll consider the request but aren't sure if they will agree to it.

mbliss@semissourian.com

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