Cape Council approves reconstruction of Sloan Creek Bridge; also awards contract for concrete repairs to city streets

Cape Girardeau�s Sloan Creek Bridge will receive a major makeover and the Main Street bridge north of Isle Casino Cape Girardeau will be reopened to local traffic while construction work is being done.

The city council awarded a contract Monday to low-bidder St. Louis Bridge Construction Co. to reconstruct the bridge�s substructure and stabilize the creek bank at a cost of more than $857,000.

The council also awarded a $1 million contract for concrete street repairs and approved the sale of a now-vacant fire station.

Council members also heard from a developer who hopes to renovate the old Esquire Theater on Broadway for use as a concert venue.

As for the bridge project, the substructure, including the concrete road pavement and an existing sidewalk, will be replaced. The new construction will include a 5-foot-wide sidewalk on the east side of the span, city engineer Casey Brunke said in an agenda report to the council.

Traffic moves across the Sloan Creek Bridge on Big Bend Road on Monday in Cape Girardeau.BEN MATTHEWS

As for stabilizing the bank, Brunke said the city previously tried to stabilize it with rock, but without success.

�We don�t know what is happening. We keep putting rock out there,� she said.

But the ground �is just sinking,� Brunke said.

There is no sinkhole at that location, she said.

The bridge reconstruction project will include installing a rock blanket and placing a curtain of metal rods into the ground west of the bridge to better stabilize the creek bank, Brunke said.

Tax revenue from the city�s Transportation Trust Fund 5 sales tax, approved by voters in 2015, will fund the project, city officials said.

Construction work could begin as early as April, Brunke said. The contract calls for the project to take about four months to complete.

But Brunke said any Mississippi River flooding could affect the construction schedule, delaying completion.

The bridge over the Mississippi River tributary is near the intersection of Big Bend Road and North End Boulevard. It frequently is used by residents in the Red Star neighborhood on the city�s northeast side and is also a route used by trucks, officials said.

Reconstructing the bridge has been on the city�s drawing board for several years.

In March 2015, city staff said the bridge needed to be replaced.

The Missouri Department of Transportation has lowered the weight limit on the aging span in recent years.

The Sloan Creek Bridge opened to traffic in the 1970s.

It will be closed to traffic during reconstruction, Brunke said.

While the project is under construction, the old Main Street floodgate and bridge will be reopened for local traffic, she said.

Traffic, excluding truck traffic, then will be routed over the bridge and onto Paul Keller Way, a street that runs from the north side of the casino west to Big Bend Road.

Brunke said the span and the area along Big Bend Road is no longer part of a truck route. The approved route takes trucks over Lexington Avenue and Sprigg Street, she said.

Council members also agreed to a contract with Lappe Cement Finishing Inc. for concrete street repairs this year.

Brunke said the work involves removing and replacing concrete pavement, curb and gutter on sections of more than a dozen streets including Scenic Drive, Belleridge Pike, Freemont Drive, Autumn Drive and Nottingham Lane intersection, South Louisiana Avenue and North Hanover, Good Hope, Cousin, South Frederick, South Ellis, South Pacific and Hackberry streets.

As with the bridge project, the city plans to pay for the street work with transportation sales tax revenue.

The council also approved the sale of former fire station No. 4 at 1429 Kurre Lane to Sho-Me Technologies LLC, a broadband internet company. The company purchased the building for more than $175,000, city officials said.

The council passed an ordinance to execute a special warranty deed for the sale of the property.

Developer Cara Naeger told the council at the study session before the regular meeting her company wants to restore the Esquire Theater on Broadway for use as a venue for concerts by local and touring bands.

Cape Girardeau Area Chamber of Commerce president John Mehner said the developer and city and civic leaders are �still working through some of the details� for the project. Mehner said further details could be presented to the council in March.

Council members welcomed the news. Mayor Harry Rediger said, �Bring it on.�

Ward 6 Councilman Danny Essner said a restored Esquire Theater could serve as a �gateway� to the Broadway corridor.

mbliss@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3641

Pertinent address:

Sloan Creek Bridge, Cape Girardeau, Mo.