Decking downtown: Old Town Cape hopes to improve Christmas spirit with new donated decorations

~ Some of the decorations went up Monday with several more to be put in place later this week.

Last year, downtown Cape Girardeau looked like the Grinch had snatched up all the holiday decorations. Other than what individual business owners did themselves, only a few wreaths were strung.

"The ones we had were just too old and worn out to put up," said Jayne Ervin of Jayson's Jewelers, who also serves on the decorations committee of Old Town Cape. "They were in such bad shape."

But this year, thanks to donated decorations from Capaha Bank and a slight restoration project for some older decorations, the holiday spirit is returning to the downtown area.

Some of the decorations -- Christmas stockings, lighted signs and wreaths -- went up Monday on Broadway electric poles, with several more to be put in place later this week in other areas.

In all, more than 45 decorations will be put in the Old Town Cape area, with a good many of them coming from Capaha Bank. Ervin said they also cleaned up some of the old decorations and replaced lights on them to make them more presentable.

This year is a transition of sorts, she said. Ervin said they are working on buying new decorations for next year. She doesn't know how much new ones would cost, except to say that the ones they had until last year cost $30,000.

"So it's going to cost a lot," she said.

Old Town Cape oversees the downtown decorations. Executive director Tim Arbeiter said Capaha Bank provided many of the new decorations, including the stockings that will go on Broadway and a "Happy Holidays" banner for the side of Grace Cafe. They also provided a lighted Santa's sleigh that will go on the terraces of the Common Pleas Courthouse and several wreaths that will go on lamp posts throughout the Old Town Cape area.

The estimated value of the donation was about $5,500, he said. Cotner Electric installed the decorations for about $5,000, he said, which included a 30 percent discount. For years, Union Electric put up the lights, but when the company became Ameren UE, that stopped happening, Ervin said.

A golden "Seasons Greeting" sign will go across Sprigg Street near Good Hope Street -- the first time that decorations will be placed in the Good Hope Street area.

"We wanted to expand our holiday decorations to more than the river front," Arbeiter said. "We wanted to spread the holiday cheer."

Dennis Meyer of Meyer Supply, which is located on Good Hope, said he welcomes the sign.

"It's a good thing that kind of brings Good Hope into the fold of Old Town Cape," said Meyer, who is on Old Town Cape's board of directors. "I think it's a good idea, especially considering that Good Hope is one of the entrances into the Old Town Cape area."

Jennifer Hendrickson is the vice president and chief financial officer for Capaha Bank. She said the bank donated old decorations after it bought some new ones, though she added the old ones are in very good condition.

"They were in good shape, but we wanted to put up something different," she said.

Old Town Cape's efforts to decorate downtown jumped to mind when they began to think about what to do with the old decorations, she said.

"Old Town Cape does such a great job in making the downtown area a great place to live and do business," Hendrickson said. "Capaha Bank is pleased to donate the holiday decorations to help support Old Town Cape in its efforts to help get everyone in the holiday spirit."

smoyers@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 137