Cape council rezones historic property as renovation of Reynolds House proceeds

Cape Girardeau City Council members rezoned the historic Reynolds House on Monday as a private foundation plows ahead with renovations to the brick structure.

The goal is to complete work on the 162-year-old building by February, said Alyssa Phares, president of the board of directors of the James Reynolds House Foundation.

Once finished, the one-and-a-half story house will provide wall exhibit space showcasing the community’s past, everything from history to archaeology, she said while she toured the house just hours before the council meeting.

It also will serve as a venue for small meetings and events on the building’s first floor. The structure will include a warming kitchen and a bathroom.

The upstairs will be used for office space and storage, Phares said.

The property at 623 N. Main St., near Isle Casino Cape Girardeau, was rezoned central business district (CBD), replacing what has been a tapestry of residential, commercial and manufacturing districts encompassing the area.

In an agenda report to the council, city planner Ryan Shrimplin wrote the rezoning is warranted because the central business district zone is the only zoning district where off-street parking is not required.

Phares said Isle Casino parking spaces across the street will be used by those visiting the Reynolds House.

Shrimplin wrote CBD zoning is appropriate because the downtown neighborhood already has mixed uses and there is “potential for additional mixed-use developments.”

A cedar roof was placed on the building 10 or 12 years ago, Phares said.

The current renovation effort, which began last winter, includes new heating and cooling, and electrical systems.

“We have done most of the exterior work,” Phares said.

The exterior bricks once were white washed. But the white paint has been removed, restoring the exterior to how it looked before 1908.

Most of the floor boards were rotten and had to be replaced, Phares said.

Original flooring remains in only one room of the house. The plaster walls are being repaired and preserved.

Also being preserved are some of the original doors. The original windows have been restored. They are stacked in the basement waiting to be reinstalled.

Once that occurs, the renovation work will be more visible to passing motorists, she said.

“I think most people who picture this house picture it as boarded up,” she added.

“It has been 50-plus years since someone lived here,” she said.

Preserving the once-prominent home has been a major undertaking, Phares said.

The price tag for current renovations is expected to top out at $250,000, An anonymous donor made the renovations possible, Phares said earlier this year.

Built in 1857, the Reynolds House predates the Civil War.

The original owner of the home, James Reynolds, operated a steam-powered flour mill, which extended out over the Mississippi River just north of Broadway.

“It is just such an important piece of history,” Phares said.

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