Cape council pushes developer to fix expanding Town Plaza pothole

An expanding, large pothole in Town Plaza shopping center has prompted the Cape Girardeau City Council to push for the developer to make plans to fix the pavement before it will fill positions on a community improvement district board.

Council members on Monday delayed making new appointments to the Town Plaza Community Improvement District Board of Directors.

Mayor Bob Fox and other council members said they have received numerous complaints about the poor condition of pavement at Town Plaza.

A major concern is "a huge pothole" on Plaza Way in Town Plaza, Fox said the day after the council meeting.

"This one is just getting bigger and bigger," he said.

While shoppers may view Plaza Way as a roadway through the shopping area, the mayor said it is not a city street and not the responsibility of the city to fix and maintain.

Fox said it's not just shopping center customers who are frustrated with the potholes.

The owners of businesses that rent commercial space in Town Plaza are "frustrated" with the problem and want the potholes fixed, Fox said.

The developer has vowed to patch the potholes.

Ward 5 Councilman Ryan Essex said earlier this week the pothole is "a cavern in the parking lot that needs to be dealt with."

Greater Missouri Builders of St. Charles, Missouri, owns the shopping center and largely controls the community improvement district (CID).

Fox said the city has little control over the developer besides appointment of CID board members, who administer the use of revenue from a sales tax levied in the district.

The Southeast Missourian reported in 2016 the developer-run taxing district operated for nearly a decade with virtually no governmental oversight or public accountability, based on a review of hundreds of district and governmental records.

Until 2016, there were no laws on the books in Missouri to allow the state auditor to independently examine the financial records of CIDs.

As for potholes, Paul "Scott" Campbell, who heads up Greater Missouri Builders, wrote in an email to the Southeast Missourian on Wednesday "repairs are ordered and should be done soon." He added, "The parking lot is our problem."

The pothole has been temporarily repaired twice in the past several weeks. Snow removal, heavy rains and traffic have washed material from the hole each time. according to information Campbell forwarded to the newspaper.

More permanent paving work is scheduled throughout the parking lot, according to Campbell.

A 1 percent sales and use tax in the district generates revenue, which has been used to reimburse development costs.

The Cape Girardeau City Council approved the setup of the Town Plaza Community Improvement District on April 2, 2007, as a means to finance improvements to the then-vacant former Sears store to attract a job-creating call center to the shopping area that later closed in 2013.

The Town Plaza CID received more than $1 million in tax revenue from 2008 to 2015, according to the Missouri Department of Revenue which collects and distributes sales tax money. According to previous reporting, the company spent about $3.5 million fixing the former Sears building. The move made it harder for the company to recover its renovation costs, and after the call center departed, several tenants also followed suit when foot traffic from the employees dwindled. The area, however, has since seen a dramatic turnaround with new stores, restaurants and a gym.

State law allows for developers, after a public entity establishes a CID, to stack boards with officers of their own companies. There are more than 400 CIDs in Missouri. Developers are allowed to enact and extend taxes, sometimes with a vote of a single property owner/developer, and without feedback from affected businesses who must pass the extra taxes on to their customers. According to Missouri Auditor Nicole Galloway, 80 percent of CID boards are developer-controlled.

Under state law, board members must be property owners or own or operate a business within the taxing district or be a registered voter living in the district.

A five-member board, whose members primarily represent Greater Missouri Builders, operate the Town Plaza CID.

Since the formation of the CID, the council occasionally has been required by state law to play a role in the district. It approved expansion of the district boundaries in 2013 and has appointed board members.

mbliss@semissourian.com

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