Blunt announces plan to help downtowns

Today, Missouri Gov. Matt Blunt will unveil his new DREAM initiative in Cape Girardeau at 3:15 p.m. across from the Southeast Missourian.

The acronym stands for Downtown Revitalization Economic Assistance for Missouri. It promises to help between 6 and 10 communities annually secure funds through community development block grants and historical preservation tax credits for downtown.

In the past, believes Blunt, smaller communities have lost out to larger cities for state money because they lacked a comprehensive planning department focused on downtown.

~For more information, check out Wednesday's Southeast Missourian.