COUNCIL APPROVES PARK WORK CONTRACT

The Shawnee Park Sports Complex and the Osage Park Community Centre will be built.

The Cape Girardeau City Council just hasn't decided how it will pay for them.

City staff had proposed the council authorize the spending of an additional $1.1 million to meet the total price tag of $5.3 million.

To do that, the city staff proposed issuing bonds that would be retired with excess revenue from the motel and restaurant taxes. A previous city council had committed to spending about $4 million in motel and restaurant tax money on the park projects.

But the current council voted 6-1 to table the added-spending plan after questions were raised Monday about some $225,000 in equipment and other items that weren't included in the construction contract.

The council said it would revisit the spending issue at its Nov. 20 meeting.

Mayor Al Spradling III voted against tabling the matter.

The council by the same vote then hired Penzel Construction Co. to build the sports complex and the community building at a cost of $4 million.

The city already has spent about $1 million on the projects. Most of that money went toward grading work under separate contracts.

Spradling questioned the council's action. "It seems kind of silly to authorize construction of this project when we haven't authorized any funding for it," he said.

But councilmen Melvin Gateley and Richard Eggimann insisted after the meeting that the work will be funded.

The councilmen said they only want to more closely examine some of the details of the contract, including the $225,000 in equipment.

Bob Hoppmann, chairman of the city's Convention and Visitors Bureau Advisory Board, said his board, which also has reviewed the project plans, wasn't contacted about the additional equipment in the contract.

Hoppmann said a number of questions about the work remain unanswered, including who will manage the community building and how much it will cost.

But he said the CVB board still wants the park projects to proceed.

Jay Knudtson, chairman of the city's Parks and Recreation Advisory Board -- another group involved with the development plans -- also urged the council to move ahead with the projects.

Knudtson said it has been "a huge battle" just to get the projects to the construction stage.