Pleasing to the eye

If you've been in downtown Cape Girardeau recently, particularly in the area of the huge parking lot and pavilion in front of the floodwall that will soon display a new Wall of Fame mural, you have seen all the construction going on. The plan is to improve traffic flow through the parking areas and spruce up an otherwise ordinary expanse of concrete.

With the new Wall of Fame and the nearby Red House Interpretive Center, plus more and more activities being scheduled in and around the pavilion, it is likely that traffic will increase in that part of downtown. With the improvements that are being made, visitors will find it easier to get through the area and find it a bit more attractive.

Parks department officials have looked at the possibility of adding some trees to the landscape of that area, but the recent history of sidewalk plantings in an area bustling with night spots has not been good. Trees and other plants downtown in recent years have suffered at the hands of vandals.

But the parks department says it will be looking at what could be done to add a bit of green to the area. That's good. The improvements currently underway will be a big improvement, and some additional plantings would be a great finishing touch.