NASH ROAD PARK PURSUES DEVELOPMENT

Cape Girardeau and Scott City share at least one common bond -- an industrial park along Nash Road.

Area businessmen and civic leaders proposed the idea of an industrial complex south of Cape Girardeau in 1959, but it wasn't established until the 1960s.

Although the park has a 30-year history, it is not complete. Mitch Robinson, executive director of the Cape Girardeau Area Industrial Recruitment Association, said the group is always looking for new business in the area.

To do that, the recruitment organization has built a 60,000-square-foot speculative building to show prospective businesses. The building is an unfinished shell without a floor or utilities that is used to attract companies, Robinson said, explaining it can be finished to meet a buyer's specifications.

"About 80 percent of all companies looking for new locations want an existing building because it's cheaper and time-saving," he said. "We have a building available for them to relocate, expand and establish a facility."

Advertising the Nash Road industrial area is a tough business since other cities across the country also are trying to attract new businesses. There are approximately 20,000 economic recruitment organizations in the country and not nearly that many businesses are available yearly, Robinson said.

Cape Girardeau hopes to have a technological advantage by mid-year with Internet access. The Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce and the industrial recruitment association will create a home page on the Internet to advertise the area's industrial parks.

When talking to prospective businesses, Robinson tells them of the advantages of locating in the area. And he doesn't restrict his conversations to just the Nash Road Industrial Park.

"We try to promote all of them," Robinson said. "One park may not have what they are looking for but another will be to their liking."

Among advantages in the Nash Road area:

-- A central location with easy access to railways, the airport and river.

-- Training resources through Southeast Missouri State University and the Cape Girardeau Area Vocational-Technical School.

-- A quality workforce that is skilled but affordable.

-- Quality-of-life factors of the region.

Most of the some 20 industries operating businesses in the Nash Road park are solid companies, Robinson said.

The growth and expansion often depends on the national economy, he said. While national market trends affect business, the government offered its support to Scott City when officials wanted to improve the Nash Road tract. In July, city officials announced a $1.37 million street and drainage improvement project, which is funded by a grant from the Economic Development Administration of the U.S. Department of Commerce.

The next phase of the industrial park work will be paving of roads, installation of a culvert under a bridge on old Highway 61, and resurfacing roads from the park into Scott City.

The Scott City Industrial Park, which included about 480 acres on the east side of Nash Road, was annexed into the city in June 1989.

Shirley Young, Scott City Chamber of Commerce president, said inquiries about locating in the park are often forwarded to the industrial recruitment association. "We handle what we can on our own and turn the rest over," she said.

"With the amount we receive, it makes you feel optimistic," she said. "Sometime the law of averages will come through for us."

There are about 40 different industries in the Nash Road Industrial Park.