Eastbound traffic

In the months leading up to December's opening of the new Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge, much was made of what the new $100 million span would mean to Southeast Missouri's economic future with the thousands of new people that would come to Cape Girardeau on the safer, wider and more attractive structure.

But bridges -- and their long-term impacts -- go both ways. Shouldn't Southern Illinois expect a comparable boost from people traveling from Missouri to East Cape Girardeau and beyond?

"It sure can't hurt anything," said longtime East Cape Girardeau Mayor Joe Aden.

The bridge promises an influx of thousands of new drivers that will cross into Illinois every day. Currently, the Mississippi River bridge is used by 14,000 people a day. But the Missouri Department of Transportation predicts that by 2015 that number will increase to 26,000 a day.

Margie Foster-Stout opened her restaurant, Margie's, in East Cape before the new bridge was finished. On the Saturday the bridge opened, people were lined up outside her door, some of them people who had walked across the bridge after the opening ceremonies.

"When I first opened, I hardly could get anybody through the door," she said. "When the bridge opened, it's been nonstop."

Foster-Stout says her business has tripled in the three weeks since the bridge opened.

It's the same across the highway at Karpet Korner.

"There's definitely been more people, starting from Dec. 13," said office manager Mary Martin. "I would say probably four out of 10 customers say they can finally come here -- that they never would have crossed the old bridge. It just seemed too unsafe."

While existing businesses in East Cape Girardeau said they are welcoming new customers, Aden doesn't expect the bridge to resuscitate Southern Illinois, which is one of the poorest regions of the state. After all, he points out, East Cape Girardeau and other places in Southern Illinois are largely flood plain, which severely limits the development of new business.

"Unless they want to put it 14 feet in the air, and I haven't found many people wanting to do that," Aden said. "We get calls all the time about coming here. But then they find out about the flood plain, and that's about it."

Missouri Department of Transportation district engineer Scott Meyer says a little creative thinking might help businesses get around the flood plain issue.

"To me, and I'm no expert, it's right for some kind of industrial development," Meyer said. "You could raise a plant or something above the flood plain. I think it's open for a lot of things. It's really going to change the future, but it's hard to say how."

Don Denny, who is in charge of economic development for Union County, which is adjacent to Alexander County, agrees that it's difficult to assess how the bridge will affect Southern Illinois at this point.

"I think it's too early to tell," he said. "I don't know if it will have a huge impact here or not. But every little bit helps."

Aden acknowledges that the bridge will mean a good deal to businesses that are already in East Cape Girardeau and says everyone is thrilled to have it. Others within the state say the importance of the bridge goes beyond its meaning to just one region and that any new transportation improvements are good for commerce statewide.

Illinois officials also say the new bridge could be a huge factor for economic improvement because it is one of the keys to getting the Interstate 66 project to come through Illinois. I-66 is a proposed coast-to-coast highway that would provide a faster route between Cape Girardeau and Paducah, Ky.

Currently, the federal government is considering building the interstate from Wickliffe, Ky., and then into Missouri, or through Illinois. Some hope the Illinois route will have an edge because a new bridge will have to be built if the interstate goes through Wickliffe.

Jan Rash, a liaison with the Illinois Department of Transportation, said the new bridge is a key piece of the I-66 puzzle in a lot of ways.

"It's already in place," she said. "If I-66 comes through, then that's a big boost to us economically, socially and politically. But I do think that the bridge is going to help us grow our economy. It provides another smooth flow of commerce. It also makes traveling to each place a lot safer."

Gov. Rod Blagojevich unveiled a plan for the southern region of Illinois at Southern Illinois University-Carbondale in November.

"And the governor realizes, and everybody realizes, that having a first-class infrastructure system is one of the key components to keeping new businesses and attracting new businesses," said Andrew Ross, a spokesman for the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. "Anything that helps goods and services flow into and out of the region more easily is a step in the right direction."

smoyers@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 137