GRANT TO AID CITY, COMPANIES

Lone Star Industries, the Kasten Block plant, Consolidated Grain and Barge and the city of Cape Girardeau all will benefit from a timely financial boost from the federal Economic Development Administration (EDA).

The EDA notified the city Monday it plans to pay $425,750 of the $567,670 needed to embark on a flood recovery project in south Cape.

The project involves elevating 2,000 feet of South Sprigg Street from old Highway 74 to the Cape La Croix Bridge.

It is one of three projects in which the city has sent applications to the EDA for financial assistance. The city sent in two "full-blown" applications for projects affecting the water plant and wastewater treatment plant that, if accepted, would provide as much as $1 million in federal assistance.

"We just sent the full-blown applications in today after getting an extension on them," said Cape City Manager J. Ronald Fischer. "They (EDA) will probably contact us in the next 30 days or so about specific areas of interest. We'll have to have preliminary engineering plans and then it will go to Washington for final approval."

The construction on Sprigg Street will ensure access to the city's sewer treatment plant and to Lone Star's cement plant at 2524 South Sprigg.

"It should help Lone Star get raw materials in and out as well as Kasten block and Consolidated Grain," Fischer said.

Ken Eftink, Cape Girardeau's planning coordinator, said: "This comes at a good time because we can coordinate the project to elevate the street with the (new Mississippi River) bridge project.

"While we have the road closed to work on the bridge, we can work on the flood project. It's an excellent situation to be in."

The project also will keep the city's solid waste transfer station open and trash service costs comparable to those under normal conditions.

"It's a good deal for everybody involved," said Eftink. "We get to help a major industrial employer by providing better access to their plant, and we can save some jobs in the process. Thanks to people like (U.S. Rep.) Bill Emerson, who is working to help us get these grants, we're able to take care of some worthwhile and expensive projects."

Lone Star has 161 employees at its cement plant.

The EDA pays for 75 percent of the project while the city of Cape pays for 25 percent.

Fischer said the city staff was notified of the grant by way of a fax. "Right now we've got verbal approval for the project from Senators Bond and Danforth's office," said Fischer. "What happens next is for us to fine-tune it."

Eftink will go to work finalizing construction plans. "We need to secure a construction contract and finalize plans for right-of-way," said Eftink.

The city submitted an application for construction of a new water-intake structure and emergency power supply for Water Plant No. 1. The city also is seeking a grant to build an elevated access road and emergency power supply for the wastewater treatment plant.

At the pre-application stage, costs for these projects were estimated as $960,000 for the water plant and $476,000 for the wastewater plant.

The city would be expected to pay $240,000 for the water plant, or 25 percent, and $119,000 for the wastewater plant, which also is 25 percent of the total cost.

While Fischer would not say that these projects are likely to be accepted, he said they are being taken seriously.

"Anytime you get a request for a full-blown application, they are looking at it seriously, and that's a good sign," he said.