BETWEEN THE LINES: DREAMING BIG MEANS GREAT VISIONS AND PLANS FOR THE CITY

Somehow I missed the meeting where a drive-in theater, doughnut shop and White Castle restaurant were listed as essential needs for Cape.

Nobody knows what the future holds, but we can all offer our dreams and visions for a better world and locally, a better community.

That's exactly what Vision 2000 has been trying to do for Cape Girardeau since it began in the late 1980s. The community pride group has been looking for ways to improve the city's look and services to residents.

Since its inception, Vision 2000 has done plenty to cultivate the arts, entertainment and beauty that a river city like Cape Girardeau offers.

We wouldn't have nearly the number of rose gardens or blooming flowerbeds around town if it weren't for Vision 2000 and Melvin Gateley.

Despite all the hard work and effort of Vision 2000 members, the Class of 2000 still has plenty of suggestions for making Cape a better place to live and work.

Students at Cape Girardeau Central High School met with city leaders last week to offer their vision of what Cape's needs really are.

As the reporter covering city government for the last few months, I was surprised and amused by their list.

I'd sat through a retreat where council members and city staff rattled off their wish lists for parks, equipment and new buildings. I thought I had a good idea of what Cape Girardeau needed for the future.

But I was wrong.

A drive-in theater, doughnut shop and White Castle restaurant were never written in my notes of city building essentials.

The students listed better streets, more hiking and biking trails, and public transportation as the top needs, but a Krispy Creme doughnut shop, White Castle and a drive-in theater weren't too far behind as some of the most pressing needs for our region.

I agree that Cape needs some improved streets (it's working on it now) and maybe a public shuttle or bus system. But how are a drive-in theater and a doughnut shop going to improve the city?

Maybe it was the novelty of the drive-in that sounded like such a good idea. After all, retro is in these days.

I've been to my share of Krispy Creme doughnut shops to know they're great doughnuts, but they won't be much of a community improvement after the sugar rush wears off.

While on vacation with some friends several years ago, we planned our hotel stays at places that offered a continental breakfast. We were traveling on a budget. So at nearly every hotel we stayed in, Krispy Creme doughnuts were the breakfast of champions. After a week of glazed doughnuts and cinnamon rolls, I know firsthand what too many Krispy Cremes can do to your brain.

White Castle burgers are another story entirely.

All in all, the students' list of needed improvements to the city matches what others have said Cape needs. If we're all worried about public transportation, finding ways to improve our parks and fix the potholes, maybe some of the work will get accomplished quickly.

So when Vision 2020 comes seeking your suggestions for a new and improved Cape Girardeau, add your list to the tallies.

If we don't dream big every once in a while, nothing will get accomplished.

~Laura Johnston is a copy editor for the Southeast Missourian.