Work to replace the front columns on the historic Common Pleas Courthouse in Cape Girardeau got under way last week.

The wood columns have been deteriorated by rotting and from a siege of woodpeckers that have hammered away at the posts off and on over the last few years.

Landgraf Construction Co. of Jackson is the contractor and is installing steel posts to support the front porch of the building. The steel will be covered with fiberglass instead of wood.

Associate Commissioner E.C. Younghouse, who oversees all county buildings, said the new columns should be virtually maintenance-free. He pointed out that the columns have been replaced several times over the years on the courthouse, which dates back to before the Civil War.

Younghouse noted that the columns will be tapered, which will more closely resemble the original columns on the building.

"This is supposed to look like they did originally," said Younghouse. "Once this is done, the columns should be maintenance-free. The wood had really gotten rotten, and they had really been damaged by woodpeckers."

Last year the woodpecker damage was repaired; however, the birds eventually came back.

"Hopefully, with the fiberglass, the woodpeckers won't take a second look at it now," said Younghouse. "If they do, they will break their beaks."