First Friday Coffee held at River Campus

~ The Chamber of Commerce president says he'll stress to business recruits how convenient Cape is to larger cities.

John Mehner has dropped part of his pitch to the businesses and professionals he's trying to recruit to Cape Girardeau.

Mehner, president of the Cape Girardeau Area Chamber of Commerce, said his sales talk once downplayed the distances area residents had to drive to see top-notch shows. Instead, he said, he would talk about how convenient Cape Girardeau is for a visit to St. Louis or Memphis.

With the opening of the River Campus, he said, he'll be telling prospects that it's the shows that do the traveling, not Cape Girardeau residents.

"It's just a phenomenal additional piece for what makes up a community," Mehner said.

Members of the chamber gathered for their monthly First Friday Coffee at the River Campus, and for many it was their first glimpse inside the $50 million arts school and performance center. They heard a short concert by the Southeast Missouri State University Jazz Ensemble and got a close-up look at Bedell Peformance Hall, the 952-seat theater that is the main venue.

The project, which transformed the old St. Vincent's Seminary property, is financed in part by state taxpayers, in part by private donations and in part by taxes on hotel and restaurant purchases in Cape Girardeau.

Danny Essner, vice president of Capaha Bank, said the new campus is an economic development anchor with the potential to be a major magnet for talented young people.

"It is going to attract a lot of students to the university," Essner said. "There are a lot of positives."

First Friday is regularly held at the Show Me Center. Southeast Missouri State University president Ken Dobbins said the university invited the business leaders taking part in the regular networking event to the River Campus to show them what their tax dollars had built.

And to perhaps sell them some tickets, as well. Dobbins noted that when he asked the audience how many had visited previously, only about half of the hands were raised.

The River Campus can already be credited with attracting an additional 200 students to Southeast, Dobbins said. Studies conducted by the Harrison College of Business show that for every 100 additional students attending Southeast, the area's economy shows a $1 million benefit.

Overall, Dobbins said, the university's enrollment has increased from 7,900 in 1994 to more than 10,000, "That makes a big difference in the economy of Cape Girardeau," he said.

The drawing power of the River Campus -- and its impact on the city's economy -- should grow for several years as Southeast seeks to become a national destination for talented artists looking for educational value, Dobbins said.

"People are coming from all over to see the facilities," he said. "It will make a difference to the university and it will make a difference to Cape Girardeau."

rkeller@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 126