Cherry Hill will still be open for baseball fans despite construction at Capaha Park

Baseball fans will still be able to watch games at Capaha Field from Cherry Hill this spring, despite ongoing construction.

Doug Gannon, director for Cape Girardeau Parks and Recreation, said the road and parking on the hill will be accessible and people will be able to set up lawn chairs to watch games.

The curb and gutter on the hill has already been poured, and a sidewalk will be added outside of it. Barricades will remain up in the area for safety reasons until improvements are complete.

"We don't want cars to pull up onto that curb and gutter and collapse it, because there's nothing on the backside of it to support it right now," Gannon said.

Portable restrooms will be placed in the area — as they have been in the past. A permanent restroom in the area will be usable once it is connected to the sidewalk system.

The director estimated construction will be complete around the end of April. It is being handled by municipal employees.

Capaha Pond

Perhaps the most significant part of the renovations to the historic park in the heart of Cape Girardeau has been to the pond. The improvements were made in conjunction with Cape Girardeau Public Works.

The pond was dredged back to its original 15-foot depth as part of the renovations.

A new boardwalk and sidewalk, as well as new lighting, were added at the pond.

It will be a great environment for those looking to fish or stroll around the pond, Gannon said.

"The pond is really the real focal point of that park, and we are real, real pleased with the outcome of the pond," Gannon said.

The fence is still up around the area because more grading and seeding needs to be done. Department employees will also be adding benches and trash cans around the pond. The fence will be brought down once that work is complete.

The fountain for the pond has arrived and will be installed soon, said Brock Davis, parks manager.

Rose Garden

Rose Garden improvements will be the final ones completed at the park.

Retaining walls have been added to the area. Workers have created numerous access points to the garden, and the parking area will be widened.

Gannon said Parks and Rec is working with numerous community groups — including Southeast Missouri State University's Horticulture Club — to determine what plants to put in the flower beds. A fountain will also be placed in the garden. Parks and Rec will be working with those groups for planting in other parts of the park, including around the pond.

Once work on the Rose Garden is finished, the Capaha Park Master Plan — renovations in the works for many years — will be complete.

Davis said he's excited the park will now be easier to navigate for everyone.

"Everything in Capaha Park was so old, nothing was ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) accessible. I mean, you could get there, but it was a struggle, if you had a relative in a wheelchair or if you had crutches, or anything," Davis said.

The improvements will make every part of the park ADA compliant, Davis added.

Gannon said he was pleased with Parks and Rec's ability to balance the bevy of improvements with work at the city's dozens of other parks.

"It took a little bit longer than maybe it could've if we would have contracted that out," Gannon said. "But, choosing to do that in-house, we were able to do more with the money we had available."