LOOKING TOWARD THE FUTURE

Pockets of Cape Girardeau have changed considerably since the city first began formal planning procedures, but the biggest changes yet to come likely will be on the city's south side.

Cape Girardeau maintains what is known as a Future Land Use Plan. The plan, which in its simplest form is a color-coded map, allows officials, residents, businesses and others get an idea of what the city may look like, from a land use standpoint, 20 years from now. The plan is a guide, not a promise, said city planner Kent Bratton, adding that the plan is not the same as zoning.

"The future land use plan is designed only as a general guide and not as an absolute directive for individual development or use of any specific tract of land," Bratton said. "The plan must be flexible to remain applicable to changing conditions in the community."

The plan is based on the city's comprehensive plan, which includes a major street plan, water line and sewer line plans, and a future facilities plan.

The future land use plan is important because it allows the city to anticipate future land uses and code them as such. It takes into consideration changes within the existing city, annexations, development of vacant land within and outside city limits, and development beyond the city that will affect future growth.

For instance, a person wanting to build a house on a piece of property can look at the future land use plan to determine if there is a chance, based on the city's best educated guess, that commercial development may happen nearby.

The plan can be used for a variety of development projects, including subdivision regulations, transportation funding, zoning changes, commercial development, long-term planning and construction of city facilities.

The last update to the plan was in January, and before that it was in 1999 when officials determined the site of new Route 74.

Some of the biggest changes the city expects will take place south of town. As construction proceeds on roads such as Highway 74, Southern Expressway, and the new Missouri-Illinois bridge, officials expect businesses and industries will want to set up shop along them. Bratton said construction of the new high school south of town also is expected to affect commercial development.

Planning officials also suspect that property at intersections of some Cape Girardeau roads on the north side of town could become home to commercial establishments.

For instance, Lexington Avenue intersections at West Cape Rock Drive, Sprigg Street and Big Bend Road have the potential to become attractive locations for convenience stores, coin-operated laundries, gas stations and car washes.

While those pieces of property are not zoned for commercial use, the city is alert to that possibility, Bratton said.