Southeast Missouri State University's River Campus project keeps rolling along.

The university plans to turn a former Catholic seminary along the Mississippi River in Cape Girardeau into a school for the visual and performing arts.

The nearly $38 million project would provide some 150,000 square feet of building space.

The cost has risen by about $1 million from an earlier estimate. The added cost is for street and utility work, school officials said.

Southeast Missouri State University President Dr. Ken Dobbins said the River Campus is the biggest building project in the school's history.

He views it as a "bookend" to the university's other major project construction of the Polytechnic Building.

Plans call for hiring architects this spring to develop the final design for the River Campus.

A team of architectural firms led by Sverdrup of St. Louis and Barton Meyers of Los Angeles are expected to work jointly to develop the arts campus on the old St. Vincent's Seminary grounds.

Sverdrup, which did the conceptual design, would serve as the "architect of record" for the project. Final design work could take a year to complete, Dobbins said.

Some construction could begin late this year or early in 2001, he said.

The project is expected to be completed in 2003.

"It is going to make us a truly comprehensive university," Dobbins said.

Supporters say it will boost the arts and spur tourism and economic development in the region.

"I think it will tie the region together more," said Dobbins.

The River Campus will include performance space for music, theater and dance, and display space for the fine arts.

University officials hope to bring Broadway-caliber productions to the River Campus.

Dobbins said the arts appeal to many people in the region.

"There are some folks that don't like athletics," he said.

The River Campus may have some critics, but Dobbins thinks the finished product will win public support as has occurred with the Show Me Center.

The conceptual design for the River Campus would blend the old brick seminary with a modern addition and a separate horseshoe-shaped museum.

The proposed design would put an addition to the south and west of the seminary building. The addition would be connected by a glass-roofed structure to the seminary building.

A large, glass atrium would serve as the main entrance to the expanded structure.

The addition would include space for the art, music, theatre and dance departments, including a 1,000-seat performance hall, a smaller stage for the theatre department and a music recital hall.

Plans call for the historic seminary, part of which dates to 1843, to be renovated for faculty offices and use by the dance department. Exact plans for the use of the structure are being developed, school officials said.

The grounds near the river would be preserved as a public area. The River Campus Board of Managers, appointed by the city and university last year, will help supervise the museum and other public facilities at the River Campus. The board won't deal with academic matters at the River Campus.

Southeast late last year named dance professor Marc Strauss as associate dean for the River Campus. Strauss, who meets regularly with the Board of Managers, is seeking to develop a first-class school for the fine and performing arts. Strauss is coordinating academic plans for the River Campus.

Strauss and others at Southeast view the River Campus as a cooperative venture for the school's arts programs and the museum.

The museum could display fine art as well as items reflecting the region's history, members of the River Campus Board of Managers say.

Not everything on the seminary grounds is being saved. The 62-year-old gymnasium on the seminary grounds will be razed.

Asbestos material in the seminary building also must be addressed, Dobbins said. That work could commence later this year.

The state allocated $4.6 million for the River Campus project last year, and Gov. Mel Carnahan has recommended another $11.95 million for the project this year.

Southeast plans to raise about $10 million in private donations, aided by $5 million in state tax credits. The city of Cape Girardeau also would provide funding for the project through the issuance of bonds. The bonds could be issued through a state agency. The city expects to retire the bonds with money from motel and restaurant taxes.