COUNCIL FAVORS JUVENILE CENTER LOCATED INSIDE CITY

The Cape Girardeau City Council is in full support of the county building a new juvenile justice center within the city limits."We shouldn't let it get away," said Councilman Richard "Butch" Eggiman. Councilman Melvin Gateley suggested the city staff draft a resolution expressing support and encouraging cooperation among city and county staff as sites are considered.

The resolution will likely be approved at a December council meeting. County and juvenile officials want to find a suitable site for a new juvenile justice center within Cape Girardeau because most of the juvenile referrals come from the city.

The 32nd Judicial Circuit serves Cape Girardeau, Bollinger and Perry counties. There are 12 law enforcement agencies and 13 school districts within that region.

Cape Girardeau is the bulk of the referrals, so that's why the city is a prime location, but referrals are only part of what the center is about, said Randy Rhodes, chief juvenile officer. The center would look like a light-industrial building or office building, not like a correctional facility. It would house alternative education classes, probation programs, and a life skills program as well as provide space for counseling, Rhodes said.

However, some Cape Girardeau residents have expressed concern about building the detention center in a residential area. Yet, the existing juvenile detention center sits in the midst of a residential neighborhood on Merriwether Street. Councilman Jay Purcell said he favors having the center in Cape Girardeau but knows it might be a battle for the commission to find a site.

The Cape Girardeau County Commission had earlier expressed an interest in an 11-acre tract of land on Clark Street between a day-care center and the senior center, but is now looking elsewhere.

Once neighboring residents learned of the site, they expressed concern about more criminal activity, the look of the building and increased traffic on the street. There were enough calls that the commission began looking at other sites even before the issue came to the Planning and Zoning Commission, said R.J. McKinney, chairman.

Last November, the Planning and Zoning Commission had granted the county a special-use permit for the juvenile center, which was to be on a 10-acre site on Locust Street off South Kingshighway. However, that deal never went through.