City to seek input on updating downtown strategic plan

Cape Girardeau residents are being asked to share their visions for the future of the city's downtown. A public open house Tuesday, Nov. 1, will allow the community to suggest how to improve and enhance the region.

The event is part of an effort to update the Cape Girardeau downtown strategic plan, created in 2009. Like the original plan, the update will assess existing conditions, establish goals and objectives and make recommendations to implement them.

St. Louis-based Arcturis Inc. has been assigned the task of updating the plan. In September, the Cape Girardeau City Council agreed to hire the consulting firm for $66,800. The city will use $50,000 in casino revenue to help pay the bill, and a National Association of Realtors grant will cover the remaining $16,800.

Old Town Cape executive director Marla Mills said the strategic plan should consist of reasonable, achievable goals, but she hopes people will bring ideas of all sizes to the table.

"Ultimately the strategic plan should be attainable," Mills said, "But I don't think that means we don't want people's big ideas, because sometimes those are more attainable than people think."

Arcturis consultants will seek out not only general ideas for improvements and expansion within the downtown community, but they also will seek to target specific areas where work is needed.

The open house, Mills said, is the first step in creating a comprehensive, achievable plan.

"This is the first piece of community engagement." Mills said.

And what will happen next is more targeted engagement.

"We'll look at how many people come, and ask if there are other groups we still need to engage," Mills said, "really making sure our bases are covered."

The original strategic plan, Mills said, contained specific tasks and conceptual goals; it was carried out over the last seven years with great success. Because much of it was conceptual, however, the goals not always were achieved in the way they expected them to be.

One aim, she said, was to improve engagement between Southeast Missouri State University and downtown Cape Girardeau. Catapult Creative House and the Rust Center for Media, she said, are perfect examples of successful engagement.

Bringing a hotel to downtown Cape Girardeau, she said, was also a goal. The H-H building wasn't necessarily where they envisioned it going, Mills said "but now that's coming to fruition."

The Cape Girardeau downtown strategic plan open house will take place from 4:30 to 7 p.m. Nov. 1 at the Broadway Federal Building.

Mills encourages anyone in Cape Girardeau who is interested in the long-term direction and development of downtown to come.

"It's a great opportunity to be a part of something that's going to be a working document," Mills said.

bbrown@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3630

Pertinent address:

339 Broadway, Cape Girardeau, MO