30-year-old industrial park getting city water

Southeast Missourian

Employees at the plants and warehouses in and near the industrial park anticipate the day they will be able to raise their water-filled cups in celebration.

"The water is not drinkable, and it's not fit for our employees to shower after work," said Tim Simmers, the director of operations at Spartech Polycom, of the current water situation. "We bring in bottled water in coolers."

To solve that problem, the city of Cape Girardeau is in the process of running a 12-inch water main under the Mississippi River Diversion Channel to connect the Cape Girardeau Regional Airport and the industrial park on Nash Road with the city water treatment plant on South Sprigg.

The project should be done by mid-September, but city engineer Mark Lester said it could be completed next month.

As a result, drinking water will be available to this area for the first time, and companies will save thousands every year on filtration equipment.

Currently, businesses at the industrial park use a well system that provides water rich in iron. Not only is the iron-rich water unfit for drink, it stains toilets and sinks and eats away at pipes. Businesses like Spartech -- which employs 85 people and manufactures additives for plastics -- invest in expensive filtration systems to protect their equipment.

Simmers said his company expects to save approximately $75,000 per year once the new water main is assembled.

The water main expansion "definitely makes it more attractive to expand in this area now," Simmers said.

Those words are no doubt music to Mitch Robinson's ears. Robinson, the executive director of the Cape Girardeau Area Industrial Recruitment Association, said the current businesses will be much happier with city water. And he's optimistic this improvement will spur more interest in locating to the area.

"This is going to help us sell this property and create more jobs for the residents of this area," Robinson said.

The industrial park was developed in the early 1960s, but the city could not afford the expansion until now. The $647,000 project was subsidized with an $479,438 block grant from the Missouri Department of Economic Development. Cape Girardeau was eligible for this only because Renaissance Aircraft, LLC, a small airplane manufacturer, brought its business to the airport.

The grant is only available, Robinson said, when a company is expanding or coming to the area and has a need for extra services. The airport uses two wells that provide drinking water.

City planner Kent Bratton said construction on the project began in March but was delayed because of the spring floods.

"It's been a long time coming," Bratton said.

The project also will allow water connection with Scott City's water treatment plant, being built near the industrial park. Bratton said there has been preliminary communication between the two cities on connecting just for backup in case of emergencies.

Lester said workers are in the process of digging underneath the Diversion Channel.

"Basically, they bore a hole big enough for the pipe to go through and, as they're drilling the hole, they're putting a welded, plastic pipe through," Lester said. "I call it a sausage pipe."

bmiller@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 127