CROWD PETITIONS COUNCIL TO BACK OLD HOSPITAL SITE

Backed by petitions and applause, a standing-room-only crowd Tuesday night urged the Cape Girardeau City Council to endorse the old St. Francis hospital site for a new federal courthouse.

About 100 people attended a 40-minute public hearing at City Hall. Most said they wanted the federal government to tear down the vacant, vandalized hospital building and the five houses bordering it.

Backers of the square-block site collected more than 1,500 names on petitions, including those of 147 business owners. The petitions were presented to the City Council at the hearing.

John Heuer, who helps run a family-owned implement company on Morgan Oak, urged the council "to do the right thing" and support the old hospital site. Backers of that site said the new courthouse could revitalize the whole southeast part of the city.

The site is bounded by Good Hope on the north, Ellis on the east, Pacific on the west and Morgan Oak on the south.

The council said it will discuss the issue at its meeting Monday and consider whether to recommend any specific site or sites to the federal government.

Mayor Al Spradling III said the public comments and petitions from the hearing would be forwarded to the General Services Administration, the federal agency in charge of selecting a courthouse site.

The mayor and several councilmen are reluctant to back a site. Councilman Melvin Gateley believes the council should endorse one. Gateley previously called on the council to recommend the old St. Francis hospital site.

The Haarig Area Development Association -- a group of businessmen in the Good Hope and Sprigg Streets area -- favors the old St. Francis site.

Dennis Meyer, the Haarig group's president, said a new courthouse would revitalize the southeast part of the city. He estimated the entire block could be purchased for about $250,000.

The Downtown Merchants Association would prefer the north side of the 400 block of Broadway, diagonally across the street from the Federal Building. David Knight, a member of the Downtown Merchants, said it makes sense in terms of government operations being near the Federal Building.

The government plans to use the existing building for federal offices.

Most of the crowd discounted the Broadway site. "There is nothing on Broadway that needs to be developed or redeveloped," said Haarig member Ted Coalter.

Downtown resident Don Greenwood suggested the GSA build a courthouse in the mostly vacant area west of City Hall. He said the area is blighted and could use the face-lift a new courthouse would bring.

Lawyer John Oliver Jr., whose firm is in the 400 block of Broadway, said it doesn't matter to him where the courthouse is built.

He said the council shouldn't take any stand that would antagonize the GSA. "We will all prosper from this building." he said.