Zoning commission meets Wednesday, will discuss DREAM Initiative plan

The next round of approvals for Cape Girardeau's DREAM Initiative plan could come Wednesday evening when the city Planning & Zoning Commission digs into the proposal.

The commission meets at 7 p.m. Wednesday at city hall, 401 Independence St.

The plan was developed as a result of the city's participation in the three-year Downtown Revitalization And Economic Development for Missouri program. It seeks to set the tone for development efforts along Broadway, the downtown core area and the Good Hope Street-Haarig areas near Southeast Missouri State University's River Campus.

The proposed plan has big ideas, such as an expanded riverfront park with an amphitheater and a river museum and aquarium at Broadway and Main Street. It also includes practical ideas to implement the plan, such as the creation of a Community Improvement District with power to levy property and sales taxes.

The plan has already been approved by the Old Town Cape Board of Directors. It is now working its way through various city advisory boards before going to the city council for a final vote.

"In the process it was our discretion, but we felt it was important for all these boards and commissions and committees to have a say in the process," said Marla Mills, executive director of Old Town Cape. "The final implementation really depends on partnering all these efforts and moving it forward and we want to make sure everybody understands that."

On Wednesday the commission will also consider a request from James Coley and Eldon Nattier, owners of the Rose Bed Inn bed and breakfast, to rezone their property from residential to commercial. The pair now own all the property on the west side of Sprigg Street from Highway 740 to Maple Street and plan to build a 40-foot-by-70-foot meeting hall and banquet center, Nattier said.

The Rose Bed Inn has been operating under a special-use permit.

The commission will hold a public hearing on the request before voting on the zoning change.

rkeller@semissourian.com

388-3642

Pertinent Addresses:

401 Independence St., Cape Girardeau, Mo.

611 S. Sprigg St., Cape Girardeau, Mo.