INPUT NEEDED: NEW CVB DIRECTOR SEEKS IDEAS FROM ADVISORY BOARD

Cape Girardeau's new Convention and Visitors Bureau director is looking for ideas.

Terri Clark-Bauer, who started her new job Monday, told the CVB advisory board Thursday she wants to meet one-on-one with board members over the next week or so and "listen to you about your hopes and aspirations" for the CVB.

Clark-Bauer said she wants the board to "work as a team and build a strong foundation for the next five years."

"There are a lot of ideas that I am coming up with," she said after Thursday's meeting.

Feedback from board members will help her identify programs and projects, Clark-Bauer said, "and from there I will lay out my plan of action."

Clark-Bauer's arrival in Cape Girardeau coincides with the Missouri Division of Tourism's new initiative to push cultural and historic tourism.

Greg Williams, executive director of the Regional Commerce and Growth Association and an ex officio member of the CVB board, reported Thursday that the state has chosen three major themes for its new tourism campaigns, "all of which the city of Cape can tie into."

Those three themes are the rivers, including the Mississippi and Missouri; trails across the state; and music.

The Southeast Missouri Tourism Advisory Council is putting together a proposal to be submitted to the state on those themes, Williams said.

Cultural and historical tourism could be a big plus for Cape Girardeau, Clark-Bauer said.

The state of Illinois, where Clark-Bauer headed up CVBs in Danville and Alton, began pushing cultural tourism several years ago, she said, "and we had a very good success with things like Underground Railroad sites, Civil War sites and ethnic fairs and festivals."

Clark-Bauer said she's sure she'll find several sites locally that can be played up under the state's new initiative as she becomes more familiar with the region.

The decision this week by the city's Historic Preservation Commission to pursue establishing a historic district to be placed on the National Register of Historic Places could be a boon for tourism, she said.

"There is always a large segment of the population that selects historical sites as their destination for not only educational reasons but also for leisure travel," she said.

Establishing such a district "could be a very important step in building a strong foundation" for tourism in Cape Girardeau, Clark-Bauer said.

"History is always a big seller in the tourism industry," she said.

Walter Denton, assistant to City Manager Michael G. Miller and interim director of the CVB before Clark-Bauer came on board, said the CVB is collecting information on National Register sites in Cape Girardeau, Perry and Ste. Genevieve counties to be placed on the National Register's Web site.

Cape Girardeau has nine sites listed on the National Register of Historic Places.