Cape Girardeau has a new attorney.

With a unanimous vote, Cape Girardeau City Council appointed Greg Young to city attorney Monday night.

Young's appointment follows the retirement of Eric Cunningham. The former city attorney retired in December after serving for 28 years.

Though Young is new to the title, his appointment follows more than a decade of experience with the City of Cape Girardeau.

Council members appointed Young to interim city attorney in January following Cunningham's retirement. He has been Cape Girardeau's assistant city attorney since 2011 and also serves as city prosecutor.

City manager Kenny Haskin said staff had several good candidates to replace Cunningham, however, "from the beginning, assistant city attorney Greg Young was clearly the top candidate for the position."

"With 11 years of experience as our prosecutor and his expert knowledge of our city's laws, I am confident in his ability to guide us in legal matters going forward," Haskin continued.

Young said he worked at the Missouri Attorney General's Office and in private practice before coming to Cape Girardeau. He received his education at the University of Missouri School of Law.

"I appreciate the confidence of City Council and the city manager, and I look forward to the opportunity to continue to make Cape a great place to live, work and raise a family," Young said.