Former Cape mayors come for rare meeting at city hall

Cape Girardeau's mayors have survived everything from floods to funding fights to constituent complaints, all within the fish bowl of city government where every bang of the gavel can bring debate.

Mayor Jay Knudtson said it's time to recognize the accomplishments of his seven predecessors who led the city over the past 37 years in both financially good times and bad. The former mayors will be honored at a reception scheduled for 3 p.m. Monday in the council chambers at city hall. The city has invited 120 former and current council members, other local government officials, business, school and civic leaders to the event.

Knudtson said the reception is open to the public.

Prior to the reception, he plans to meet privately with the former mayors.

"I want to sit down and talk to them and try to glean some of the experience they had," he said.

Many of the ex-mayors are elderly. Knudtson said this may be the last chance to bring all the ex-mayors together.

"I felt we had a window of opportunity to really recognize these men who have served with such distinction," said Knudtson who plans to have a group photo taken of the men.

Six of them, all from Cape Girardeau, are expected to attend the reception. A. Robert Pierce, who lives in Mount Auburn, Mich., won't be at the reception due to a scheduling conflict. But Knudtson will read a letter from Pierce reflecting on his experiences in Cape Girardeau city government.

Those who are scheduled to attend are J. Ronald Fischer, Ivan Irvin, Howard Tooke, Paul Stehr, Francis "Gene" Rhodes and Al Spradling III.

Of those men, Tooke had the longest tenure as mayor.

Tooke, who ran a sawmill, served on the city council for 17 years in the 1970s and 1980s and held the post of mayor 13 of those years. He was mayor from 1970 to 1978 and from 1981 to 1986, the last four years as the city's first mayor under the charter form of government. Under the charter approved by voters in 1981, the mayor is elected at large by the city's voters. The first mayoral election under the charter system was in 1982.

Fischer, the only mayor later hired as Cape Girardeau's city manager, remembers when the Common Pleas Courthouse served as city hall.

Regardless of where government met, Fischer said constituents found him.

"Everybody knows who you are when you are on the council or are mayor," he said.

Fischer and Rhodes welcome the reception.

"I have had lunch a couple of times with Mayor Knudtson," he said. "I think he is doing a good job."

During his two terms as mayor, Rhodes said city officials had to deal with serious flooding, the loss of federal revenue and environmental regulations that forced the closing of the landfill.

Rhodes and other ex-mayors have been reluctant to speak out on city issues since leaving office.

"It's kind of like being president," he said. "You don't say too much after you go out of office."

mbliss@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 123

Cape's past mayors

J. Ronald Fischer, 1966-1967

A. Robert Pierce, 1968-1969

Ivan Irvin, 1969-1970

Howard Tooke, 1970-1978 and 1981-1986

Paul Stehr, 1978-1981

Francis "Gene" Rhodes, 1986-1994

Al Spradling III, 1994-2002