NewsJune 10, 2016
City, county have no plans to repair or replace crumbling steps to Common Pleas
Crumbling, cracked steps that lead to the Common Pleas Courthouse make it increasingly risky to navigate them, area runners and workout enthusiasts say. They maintain Cape Girardeau’s county or city government, or both, should fix the steps before someone gets injured. They argue the risk of a fall isn’t just to runners and exercise enthusiasts, but also to anyone who walks up or down the steps that overlook downtown Cape Girardeau...
Crumbling, cracked steps that lead to the Common Pleas Courthouse make it increasingly risky to navigate them, area runners and workout enthusiasts say.
They maintain Cape Girardeau’s county or city government, or both, should fix the steps before someone gets injured.
They argue the risk of a fall isn’t just to runners and exercise enthusiasts, but also to anyone who walks up or down the steps that overlook downtown Cape Girardeau.
But county and city officials said they have no plans to fix or replace the steps.
Charles Herbst, 2nd District associate commissioner for Cape Girardeau County, said the steps are not unsafe if people use the handrail and pay attention to where they walk.
“I don’t think we are ready to put up yellow tape” to block off the steps, he said.
Herbst added the county commission would not allow the public to use the steps if they were unsafe.
Still, some residents who use the steps regularly disagree.
Cape Girardeau runner Shannon Aldridge said the steps need repairs.
“They are in bad shape,” he said.
About 20 of the 54 steps are visibly cracked or crumbling.
The steps are in the worst shape near Spanish Street, he said, adding one step has a large chunk out of it close to the handrail.
“There are a couple of steps that are really bad near the bottom,” he said. “Either the city or the county needs to take ownership of this.”
Aldridge said inaction should not be an option.
“Either fix them or close them,” he said.
Unless they are fixed, “sooner or later someone is going to fall and get hurt,” he added.
Other area runners agree.
Bryan Kelpe, owner of Missouri Running Co. in Cape Girardeau, said it is a safety issue.
“I would be concerned with the looks of it, too,” he said.
Fellow runner Janet Cannon said she and her friends frequently run up the steps.
“It’s a great location with a great view of the (Mississippi) River; however, we’re always wary of the cracked and crumbling stairs,” she said.
Cannon added, “Even walking up and down them can be dangerous if one is not looking. If they decay much further, I don’t think they will be safe to run on.”
The steps are more than a workout spot, she said, noting the view of the courthouse and steps from the downtown area is “iconic to Cape Girardeau.”
Personal trainer Emily Cleveland is a member of a local roller-derby team. She said she and teammates regularly do sprints on the steps.
“We are down there once or twice a week,” she said.
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Cleveland said the steps need to be repaired.
“It is really sad to see them in that condition,” she said.
But Herbst, the associate commissioner, said the steps would need to be replaced, not just repaired.
Replacing all the steps could cost $100,000, according to 1st District Associate Commissioner Paul Koeper.
Aldridge, however, said a friend of his in the construction industry has looked at the steps and concluded repairs to some of the steps could be made at a cost of less than $500.
It also is debatable who would be responsible for replacing steps.
Herbst said the city of Cape Girardeau owns the four-acre site and the courthouse annex. The city and county each have half ownership of the historic, brick courthouse, part of which dates back to 1854.
Under a lease agreement that is scheduled to expire in 2029, the county maintains the buildings and grounds. In exchange, the city allows the county use of the buildings and grounds at no charge.
Herbst said replacement of the steps would go beyond any repair work the county would be obligated to perform under the lease agreement.
“I would contend replacing steps is more than maintenance,” he said.
But Cape Girardeau Mayor Harry Rediger and city manager Scott Meyer said the city has no plans to address the steps.
Meyer said under the lease agreement, the county “has the responsibility to keep them safe.”
The city manager added, “I have never heard anybody complain about the steps.”
“If they are not safe, I would expect the county to close them,” Meyer said.
He called the steps and the courthouse “a deteriorating public asset” that poses challenges.
Herbst said the county government, which is facing a lawsuit after a woman slipped and was injured seriously while negotiating a different set of steps into the basement of the courthouse to retrieve files, is reluctant to invest money in replacing the exterior steps. The county plans to move out of the courthouse once a new county administration building is constructed in Jackson within the next five years.
County officials also want to move the satellite offices of county government out of the courthouse annex and into a more suitable, customer-friendly location elsewhere in Cape Girardeau.
The Southeast Missourian reported in 1967 the steps were chipped and needed repair.
According to the article, the steps were made in 1900 with “Portland cement brought from England as ships’ ballast when they came to New Orleans for cotton.”
The steps reportedly marked the first concrete construction in Missouri south of St. Louis.
In 1990, the county paid to repair the courthouse steps. County officials said at the time some of the steps had cracked, creating a hazardous situation.
As for the current condition of the steps, Old Town Cape executive director Marla Mills said, “We are aware that they are in need of repair.”
But Mills said her downtown revitalization organization has no plans or funding to address the problem.
mbliss@semissourian.com
(573) 388-3641
Pertinent address:
44 N. Lorimier St., Cape Girardeau, Mo.
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