Cape Girardeau officials hope Broadway work done by casino opening

If Cape Girardeau's new casino is to be the destination, then think of Broadway as the welcome mat.

Providing an attractive roadway into the city -- and one that leads to a $125 million casino -- has become a more pressing priority to city officials, who are speeding up plans to improve Broadway so it can be completed in time for Isle of Capri to open its doors.

Broadway was already slated for $2.85 million in repaving work from Pacific to Water streets sometime in the next five years, city engineer Kelly Green said. That work is to be paid for out of Transportation Trust Fund money, which voters in August agreed to extend for another five years. The TTF money will also pay for new sidewalks, curbs and gutters, she said.

But since the granting of the casino license last week, work will start in earnest sooner, tentatively next fall, Green said. City leaders had also wanted to provide some amenities to Broadway, such as trees and decorative lighting and moving utilities underground, she said. That became possible faster when Isle bought 11 acres of city-owned property along North Main Street for $2 million, about half of which the city has earmarked for those amenities.

"We already wanted to do the repaving and the amenities," she said. "But then the casino came along and now it makes sense to do them together as a package and sooner. My goal is to have the work completed by the end of 2012. That's the goal, but it's tentative."

That's about the same time Isle plans to open its doors.

Mayor Harry Rediger talked about the importance of the city's part at the Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce's First Friday Coffee in front of the community's business leaders at the Show Me Center.

The work on Broadway is integral, Rediger said.

"We are going to proceed in a very deliberate way," Rediger said. "But we need to upscale Broadway as quickly as we can. Now Broadway becomes a hot-button for us, and we need to move forward as quickly as possible."

Isle of Capri executives agreed that Broadway is important, especially in light of the 1 million new visitors that are projected to come to Cape Girardeau to visit the casino. Most are expected to come from Interstate 55, and the fastest and most obvious route is to take Broadway to Main Street.

"The Broadway corridor is a key entryway for the casino and for other downtown businesses," Isle spokeswoman Jill Haynes said. "It would be important to all of us that Broadway puts its best foot forward as visitors enter the downtown."

Isle's $2 million payment is expected to come within the next 60 to 90 days.

Green said that, as city engineer, it's her prerogative to move the project up on the list of priorities. The city has already sent out a request for proposals. A steering committee is being organized to consider what the amenities should look like, such as what types of trees, and to make recommendations on the style of lighting.

"We want everything to be complementary of each other," Green said. "We want a very welcoming look into the downtown area."

smoyers@semissourian.com

388-3642

Pertinent address

Broadway, from Pacific to Water streets