New downtown Cape floodwall mural set to complete by end of September

A new mural on the east side of Cape Girardeau’s floodwall will be completed by the end of September, according to Old Town Cape board member Danny Essner.

The new mural would replace a 30-year-old painting currently spanning from the floodwall’s entrances at Themis Street and Broadway.

Shawn Gunn, owner of Premier Housewash, began removing the mural last week. Essner estimates the mural will be completely power-washed off by the end of next week.

Painters will begin their work at the end of August. Multimedia artist Craig Thomas will paint the new mural along with a crew of three or four other artists, according to Essner.

“It’s going to be dramatically different.” Essner said. “The old mural has deteriorated so much, it’s created a bad image of our city.”

The new mural will read “Welcome to Cape Girardeau” in large bubble letters. Inside each letter, Thomas will paint an image from Cape Girardeau’s history or an iconic landmark of the city. It will be painted in a more durable paint designed to last at least 50 years.

Artist Fred Lincoln designed the previous mural in 1991. Thomas said parts of Lincoln’s mural have changed a lot since they were painted.

“It’s a nice design, it’s just outdated,” Thomas said.

At a Cape Girardeau City Council meeting in May, representatives of Old Town Cape asked for funds to help pay for the nearly $80,000 project. Essner said the city committed $58,000 to the mural and that the estimated costs have since dwindled to $75,000.

Old Town Cape had previously set aside $13,000 from private donations for the project. Essner added Old Town Cape has also received extra financial assistance from Visit Cape.