Proposed Cape ordinance may put new intersection at Hwy. 74, Minnesota Ave.

Cape Girardeau City Council will have a first reading Monday for a right-in/right-out only intersection along the westbound traffic lane of Shawnee Parkway near Minnesota Avenue.

The proposed intersection will give motorists easier navigation to local businesses, homes and schools east off Kingshighway and north of Shawnee Parkway.

The location was chosen, in part, because of its proximity to Jefferson Elementary School, according to a grant application written by former Cape Girardeau city manager Scott Meyer.

If approved, the intersection would be located down the street from Cape Girardeau School District's future civic center and aquatics facility at Jefferson Elementary.

The goal of the projects, Meyer explained, was to "revitalize underserved neighborhoods within the city's downtown and southern core."

"Providing direct access to Minnesota Avenue from Route 74/Shawnee Parkway will further this mission by providing direct connectivity to a local road which provides north-south mobility to schools, local businesses [and] numerous neighborhoods. ..." Meyer wrote.

Through Transportation Trust Fund (TTF) money, the city will also extend College Street to establish a connection between Minnesota Avenue and South West End Boulevard just south of Jefferson Elementary and its proposed campus additions.

The council will vote whether to authorize the city manager to execute a Missouri Department of Transportation Cost Share Program agreement with Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission for the new intersection at Shawnee and Minnesota.

Cape Girardeau applied for and was awarded a MoDOT Cost Share Program grant earlier this year.

MoDOT will provide 50% of necessary funds for the project with a $296,000 cap. According to Mayor Bob Fox, the city's share may cost about $296,000 as well. It will be sourced from the fifth iteration of the voter-approved TTF.

Also on Monday's agenda

City Council will vote on final consent for the preliminary development plan of Saint Francis Healthcare System's proposed urban farming community.

The planned development, called South Side Farms, may bring a health care clinic, police substation, vocational school and training facility, an agricultural production facility and more to south Cape Girardeau.

Fox called the proposed South Side Farms "a great project."

"My only question would be who locally will be there to run it," Fox said. "It takes community involvement, but I think they have enough of that and they'll make it work."

City Council will also vote on final consent for the proposed Bloomfield Crossing community improvement district.

The district, at the northeast corner of the intersection of South Kingshighway and Bloomfield Road, will fund a portion of costs for redevelopments and improvements in the district through a proposed 1% district-wide tax.

The tax will only be imposed on qualified voters within the 3.15 acre district and have no financial impact on the City of Cape Girardeau, according to an agenda report.