Isle of Capri, city leaders celebrate casino at Cape Girardeau groundbreaking

Golden shovels slid into the dirt Thursday as Cape Girardeau celebrated the construction of a $125 million casino complex.

"We are excited to bring this project to your community. It is a game changer for Cape and it is a game changer for Isle," said Virginia McDowell, president and chief operating officer at Isle of Capri.

More than 200 people attended the ceremony, including the president of the Missouri Gaming Commission, Jim Mathewson.

Construction on the relocation of North Main Street around the casino site will begin next week, said Dick Meister, Isle's vice president of design and construction.

Cape Girardeau County contractors hired for the road realignment project are Fronabarger Concreters Inc., Apex Paving, Cotner Electric, Nip Kelly Trucking & Equipment, Monroe Plumbing and Roadrunner Safety.

The bidding process for the casino construction is ongoing, Meister said.

"We are completing interviews and have some excellent candidates that have come to us," he said.

Isle will announce the selection of its building contractor in early May.

For nearly a year, Isle of Capri has been working to make Thursday's groundbreaking possible. Isle and local businessmen David Knight and Jim Riley of Dream Big LLC worked to secure Missouri's 13th and final casino license in December. Local real estate agent Bob Herbst worked with them to obtain the property needed for the casino site.

"So much progress has been made, and yet we are really only at the beginning," Mayor Harry Rediger said. "The beginning of site work and road construction. The beginning of a new relationship with Isle. A new beginning for part of downtown which once flourished."

Isle's gaming and entertainment complex north of downtown at the old shoe factory site, off North Main Street, is expected to have 1,000 slot machines, 28 table games, three restaurants, a lounge and terrace overlooking the Mississippi River and a 750-seat event center.

Scheduled to open in 2012, the casino will create approximately 450 jobs, McDowell said.

"We have designed this property to celebrate the river heritage of Cape, to complement the existing business community and to serve as a future catalyst for development on Main Street," she said.

The casino is expected to attract visitors from six states and generate millions in tax revenue for the state and the city.

Rediger said the casino is integrated into a strategic concept in which it will anchor one end of downtown while the Old Town Cape district anchors the other.

"The synergy between the two anchors creates opportunity for future development," Rediger said. "A lot of opportunities for future development."

Casino visitors will give existing businesses access to new customers, he said.

Ward 1 city council member John Voss said this is the second time in roughly a century the ground is getting another major development for downtown Cape Girardeau.

In 1906, city leaders stood near the same spot to break ground on the Roberts, Johnson and Rand Shoe Co. At its peak, the factory employed 1,600 people and spurred the development of homes, businesses and churches in what became known as the Red Star district. The name came from the red star imprinted on the men's dress shoes made there.

"Like the shoe companies of the past, the Isle of Capri has started a partnership with Cape Girardeau. A partnership that we envision will continue to grow our families, our neighborhoods and our region," Voss said.

mmiller@semissourian.com

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Pertinent address:

777 N. Main St., Cape Girardeau, MO