COUNTY AWARDS CONTRACT FOR ARCHIVES CENTER

JACKSON -- The Cape Girardeau County Commission Monday hired Sides Construction Co. to build an archives center at a cost of $489,333.

Sides was the low bidder on the project. Bids also were received from Zoellner Construction of Perryville, Penzel Construction and Kiefner Brothers.

The new center will be built at 112 E. Washington in Jackson, just north of the county Administration Building.

County Clerk Rodney Miller said the archives center should be completed and in operation by next fall.

Miller said the new center will allow the county to better preserve and centralize its tax records and other documents. County records currently are housed in various county buildings in Cape Girardeau and Jackson.

The records are particularly important to genealogists and others doing historical research.

The center will include a research room. "It will be much more convenient and much more accessible," said Miller.

"One of our responsibilities is to protect the records," Miller said.

A director will be hired to manage the archives center, he said.