BRIDGE LIGHTS SOUGHT; CITY WILL SEEK MONEY FOR NEW SPAN

When the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge opens in 2000, the Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce hopes it will be an impressive sight.

To further the chamber's goal of installing aesthetic lighting on the Cape Girardeau bridge, the City Council agreed Tuesday to sponsor a federal grant application to fund the project.

The chamber's Beautification Committee, which has studied the idea for several year, estimates the lighting would cost $432,000.

A resolution passed by the City Council Tuesday authorizes the city to apply for a grant under the U.S. Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA). If approved, the grant would pay for up to 80 percent of the costs. The chamber is committed to raising $100,000 to cover the required local match.

City Planner Kent M. Bratton said only local government entities can receive ISTEA funds.

"The Chamber of Commerce Beautification Committee formulated the project and wanted to put the application together, but they are not eligible for grant funds," Bratton said.

ISTEA funds can be used for a variety of transportation projects, including beautification, Bratton said.

The only other time the city applied for ISTEA funds it received $449,000 for the Cape LaCroix Recreational Trail.

The application is due Feb. 1, and will be submitted to the Missouri Department of Transportation's district office in Sikeston next week. State transportation departments administer ISTEA funds.

Chamber Beautification Committee member John Layton said he doesn't expect to hear back on the application until late summer or early fall.

Layton said the chamber committee has studied a number of similarly enhanced bridges, including the Mississippi River bridge connecting Alton, Ill., and West Alton, Mo., and they can be a sight to behold.

"We think it will serve as a landmark and even be a tourist draw," Layton said.

Said chamber president John Mehner, "It makes your bridge a showplace; it makes it simply gorgeous."

Mehner said the chamber will not move on fund-raising efforts unless an ISTEA grant is secured. Plans on how to raise the money are yet to be formulated.

"There are a lot of possibilities out there, and a lot of things are still in the works," Mehner said.

Although the city is handling the application, it has not committed financial support to the project.

"We're not sure if (the project) is eligible under the program," said Layton. "If we can't get any of these matching dollars, we'll have to look for other funding sources."

While Layton believes the $100,000 local match can be raised in the community, he said it would be unrealistic for the chamber to fund the project's entire cost through private donations.

If funding can be obtained, Layton said the plan is for the lighting to be in place when the bridge opens. Installing the lighting during construction would be easier and less expensive than adding it later, Layton said.

"We hope when the thing opens we can be ready to throw the switch on the lights as well," Layton said.

Construction on the four-lane bridge began in 1996. The $78 million project is expected to be completed in 2000.

The bridge, named after the late U.S. Rep. Bill Emerson, who secured initial federal funding for it, is being built south of the 69-year-old two-lane structure it will replace.