Cape City Council to vote March 2 on Capital Improvement Program for 2020-2025

No comments were made during a public hearing at the Cape Girardeau City Council meeting Monday night to gather input on the current draft of the city’s Capital Improvement Program for the next five years.

The five-year program outlines the use of more than $200 million in funding for capital infrastructure projects in three categories: transportation, environment and capital assets.

The Capital Improvements Program draft presented for the Monday public hearing stated its project data “shows the importance of the continuation of existing sales tax revenues.”

One such revenue source is the Transportation Trust Fund tax extension, which will go before voters on the April 7 ballot, and would potentially fund the projects chosen by the City Council on Jan. 21.

The council chose eight projects to fund with TTF 6, which accounts for an estimated $10 million of the initiative’s $25 million worth of projects to receive tax-generated funds.

Last year, voters extended a one-fourth of 1% sales tax for capital improvements including the refurbishment of the Common Pleas Courthouse and Annex to serve as city hall and the construction of a new terminal and control tower at the Cape Girardeau Regional Airport.

Additional revenue streams identified in the proposed Capital Improvement Program for 2020 to 2025 include grant funding, motor fuel tax funds from the State of Missouri, the parks and stormwater sales tax initially approved in 2008, the fire sales tax approved by voters in 2004 and approximately $3 million in projected annual casino revenue.

The proposed improvements projects for 2020 to 2025 listed a total of $104,472,869 in identified funding from various revenue sources, and also lists $99,069,343 in contingent projects to be potentially funded by tax initiatives on upcoming ballots. Some proposed projects were identified to receive funding from multiple revenue sources, but others have no determined funding at this time.

Some of the projects were previously listed in the Capital Improvements Program five-year outline for 2019 to 2024, and a full list can be viewed on the city’s website.

With no changes recommended at Monday’s public hearing, a decision regarding the Capital Improvement Program proposal for 2020 to 2025 is scheduled for the March 2 meeting of the City Council.

According to the city’s charter, the Capital Improvement Program must be adopted on or before April 1.