Officials pitch sales tax at chamber gathering

It may not be an issue that captures the imagination of most Cape Girardeau voters, by Mayor Jay Knudtson says meeting transportation needs is critical for future development.

"Kohl's, Sears -- they won't come to you if you don't give them the growth they require," Knudtson said Friday morning, referring to new retail stores that are coming to the area. "It may not be as sexy, but transportation is very important to the growth of our city."

Knudtson and other city officials say the success of meeting those needs hinges on voters, who are being asked next month to approve Transportation Trust Fund 3, a half-cent sales tax first approved by voters in 1995 and then extended in 2000.

On Aug. 2, voters will be asked to extend the tax for another five years to pay for $20 million in major street improvements across the city. On Friday, Knudtson, city manager Doug Leslie and planning commissioner Harry Rediger made a pitch to area business leaders at the Chamber of Commerce's First Friday Coffee event.

The business community seems inclined to agree. Chamber president John Mehner told the group that the chamber board had voted to fully endorse the proposal, which will pay for nine major street projects. Also, Old Town Cape announced its board had endorsed the proposal as well.

"We consider this extremely critical for the next five years of our city," Mehner said.

Leslie told the group that the tax extension has a five-year sunset, which means it expires every five years. That assures accountability, he said.

Just a few of the completed projects include widening Broadway, Seimers Drive and Mount Auburn Road.

The newest list includes widening sections of Mount Auburn from Independence to Kingshighway, widening Bloomfield Road from Stonebridge Road to Benton Hill Road, extending Fountain Street from Morgan Oak Street to William Street, improving the intersection at Kingshighway and Cape Rock Drive to add a northbound right-turn lane and constructing four new streets.

"We did what we said we were going to do," Rediger said. "We want to do it again."

Knudtson agreed.

"If we don't have this source of revenue, we can't maintain the roads we have, let alone build new ones," he said.

smoyers@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 137