Mayor: Thanks for tax vote

A big thank you to the Cape Girardeau citizens who took the time to vote in our recent election. There was a very low voter turnout, which was expected with only a single issue on the ballot, but I always expect it to be more. Your city council is very excited to be able to fulfill many of our goals and feel this will be a big boost for the future of our city.

In recent years, we have progressed very well with recent capital expenditures. The two major items in our Capital Improvement plan not dealt with were the airport and City Hall. Thanks to you, these projects are on the horizon. We can begin preliminary design on City Hall now, so when the County vacates Common Pleas next year, we will be in a position to begin the project. Future improvements at the airport will occur with the guidance of the FAA. Under our current Airport Master Plan the two major items already identified as deficient are a couple of taxiways and having no perimeter fencing. As these items are completed, we can also begin the land acquisition necessary to update the Master Plan for the new Terminal and Tower.

The Water projects will be completed as tax money is collected over the next few years. The additional $7.5 million toward street repairs will be allocated as $500,000 per year and will be a great addition to funds raised with the current Transportation Trust Fund tax receipts to continue to improve our city streets. The TTF expires next year, and there is a current TTF-6 committee reviewing projects and will solicit input from our citizens as they develop a plan for the renewal of this vital tax in April, 2020.

We welcome our newest city council member representing Ward 3, Nate Thomas. This was a difficult process as we had 9 individuals who stepped up and applied for the position. The field was narrowed to 3 finalists before Nate was selected. I am personally encouraged by the interest in serving our city, and can only hope this type of interest will continue. I have been a proponent of more citizen involvement all across our city since my election to the council and then Mayor. Our Citizens Academy has been very successful in educating our citizens about every aspect of what our city does, of the importance of our city staff, and what it means to serve the public. I recently saw on the news that Carbondale is now offering a similar program, and I hope it is also successful there.

Our next Academy began Aug. 22 and will continue thru Oct. 24. We are trying to have two sessions annually limited to about 20 participants each time. If the success of the program continues, we will have many more people who truly understand how important our local government is to our everyday life. I would also hope that it will cultivate more people who love Cape Girardeau. We need an emotional connection to our city and at the same time our city needs to be engaged with our citizens. If we can accomplish this, then it will enhance development both socially and economically and we will continue to prosper.

Bob Fox is the mayor of the City of Cape Girardeau.