The contract for the final phase of renovation on the Cape Girardeau post office at 329 N. Frederick St. has been let, and construction is set to begin next week. The post office is scheduled to reopen in early August, according to officials.

The building, which was dedicated in 1965, closed its doors in March 2004 for renovation and has stayed closed due to unforeseen structural problems.

Officials are eager to return.

"The building is structurally sound now. There has been some misinformation out there, but engineers from St. Louis and Denver have come in and looked at it and said it's sound. It was just outdated," said acting postmaster Dan Strauss. "It's going to be a good building. I'm kind of pumped to move back in there."

The total cost of repairs will be approximately $1.5 million. Bratton Brothers Contracting of Shawnee, Kan., is handling the last phase of the renovation and will charge just over $200,000.

That phase will call for a remodeling of the customer and the sales lobbies, replacing windows, a complete wash the of exterior of the building, repairing broken sidewalks installing a ramp and restriping and adding lights to the employee parking lot.

Elected officials, including Rep. Jo Ann Emerson and Mayor Jay Knudtson, have objected to the plan, believing the city would be better served by a full-service post office on the city's west side.

Since the Frederick Street office's closure, the post office has operated out of a converted storefront at 284 Christine St. Since November, it has operated a substation out of a Bi-State convenience store at 920 N. Kingshighway.

The substation will remain open, Strauss said.

Strauss is manager of customer services but is acting as postmaster while Mike Keefe serves a three-month detail in Kansas City acting as the manager of post office operations for the 10 largest offices within the mid-America district. Keefe said he has no interest in keeping the position and has told superiors that he will only stay until a suitable replacement can be found.

tgreaney@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 245