CITY, SCHOOL PLAN RIVER CAMPUS BOARD

A board of managers will oversee the operation of two theaters, a regional museum and a scenic overlook at the River Campus.

The Cape Girardeau City Council and Southeast Missouri State University's Board of Regents are preparing to appoint members to the board.

The six-member board will have three representatives from the city and three from the university.

Mayor Al Spradling III said the council hopes to appoint its three members on Aug. 16. The Board of Regents meets Sept. 2.

At that meeting, the regents likely will appoint the university members to the River Campus Board of Managers.

Initially, members of the advisory board will serve staggered terms, ranging from one to three years. In the future, all board members will serve three-year terms.

At least one of the city's appointees will be a representative of the hotel-motel industry, according to a written agreement between the university and the city.

The agreement was worked out last year and revised in January.

City officials said applications are available at City Hall, 401 Independence, for those interested in serving as city representatives on the board.

The university plans to spend nearly $36 million to develop a former Catholic seminary in Cape Girardeau into the River Campus school for the visual and performing arts.

It could be 2003 before the River Campus opens.

But Spradling and university officials said the board of managers needs to be in place this fall to assist with planning for development of the River Campus.

"It makes sense to start at the earliest possible time," said Spradling.

The River Campus board is patterned after the Show Me Center Board of Managers.

The Show Me Center board assisted the regents in the hiring of center director David Ross. That board assists Ross and helps set goals and policies.

"It has worked very well at the Show Me Center and I think it will serve us well here," said Don Dickerson, president of the Board of Regents.

Like the Show Me Center, the city is helping to fund the project.

Under current plans for the River Campus, the city's motel and restaurant taxes would be used to retire nearly $9 million in bonds that would be issued through a state authority.

The advisory board would only deal with the jointly operated facilities at the River Campus. Those yet-to-be-constructed facilities are a 1,000-seat theater, a 500-seat theater, a regional museum and a public-access, scenic overlook along the Mississippi River.

The board won't deal with classrooms and other academic space at the River Campus.

"Since it is a joint facility, there needs to be some control from both sides," Spradling said.

"This is being promoted as a cultural center, as a tourist and convention site," he said.

The River Campus will house a regional museum that will encompass the University Museum collections, but also could house community collections such as those housed in the River Heritage Museum.

The board of managers will propose written policies for the operation of the two theaters, the museum and the scenic overlook.

The policies won't take effect until approved by the university and the city.

Under the terms of the agreement, the board would annually review the policies.

The agreement calls for the Board of Regents to hire a director to oversee the public facilities at the River Campus.

The director would be hired with the advice and consent of the Board of Managers. The City Council also would have to give its blessing.

The director would be a university employee.

Under the agreement, the director, with the advice of the advisory board, would schedule events and "ensure fair access" to the public facilities.

The university would set fees for the use of the facilities. The public would have free access to the scenic overlook as spelled out in the agreement.

The director, with the advice of the advisory board, would develop "reasonable and competitive pricing on all events," the agreement stipulates.

While the university would foot the bill for the operation of the River Campus facilities, the city would receive copies of the annual budget requests.

All income from the operation of the River Campus public facilities, including concession income, would be plowed back into the operation and maintenance of those facilities.

Although the agreement is in place, Southeast President Ken Dobbins said no final decisions have been made regarding the administrative structure for the River Campus.

If a different structure is needed than the one currently envisioned, the city and university can revise the agreement, he said.

Both Dobbins and Spradling said the new board would be busy in the beginning, helping to set policies and plan for development of the River Campus.

Once the River Campus is up and running, the City Council likely will hear little from the advisory board, Spradling said.

Dobbins said the board won't be highly visible if operations at the River Campus run smoothly.