Cape Girardeau, Penzel receive Hall of Fame honors for City Hall, SportsPlex

During the Cape Girardeau City Council meeting Monday, Dec. 5, Phil Penzel of Penzel Construction Co. Inc. presented Mayor Stacy Kinder with Hall of Fame trophies for projects completed for the city.

The city and the contractor were on the receiving ends of two separate awards from the Mid-America Region of the Design Build Institute of America for the City Hall and SportsPlex projects.

Penzel said at the meeting that it was the first time the Southeast Missouri region had ever received a DBIA award and the first time any entity had one two awards in one night.

"I have told many people throughout the last year and a half that this is the No. 1 project of my career, and it's probably the No. 1 of our company history," Penzel said, gesturing to the building he was standing in.

Kinder said congratulations should be turned to Penzel and his company who deserve the praise for City Hall and the SportsPlex.

Phil Penzel, owner of Penzel Construction Co. Inc., talks about the ongoing construction at the Cape Girardeau SportsPlex in 2017.Southeast Missourian File

Employees began moving into the new City Hall at 44 N. Lorimier St. in mid-December 2021. The project, which took the better part of a year and a half and $12.5 million to construct, combined new buildings with the existing Common Pleas Courthouse and former Carnegie Library to make one home for city staff and government.

The project received the Merit Award.

Penzel said the SportsPlex was on its last eligibility cycle this year. The project was completed by the Jackson-based contractor in 2017.

The $12 million, 121,000-square-foot complex located just off Interstate 55 contains two indoor soccer fields, six indoor basketball courts and a concession stand, among other things. It been heralded by city officials as a success, allowing Cape Girardeau to gain a foothold in the growing sports tourism market.

The SportsPlex was named Schedule Award winner for Early Completion. The contractor's portion on the construction was completed in 14 months, four ahead of schedule.

This isn't the first time the project received national recognition. The SportsPlex was ranked as the top indoor sports facility in the Midwest by Sports Planning Guide in 2018.