QUALITIES OF LIFE, CAPE GIRARDEAU; SPECIAL REPORT: CULTURAL/RECREATION; CITY BACKS CHURCHES, CULTURE

Cape Girardeans strongly support their churches, library, parks and cultural facilities, showed a Qualities of Life survey conducted by the Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce.

Dr. Keith Russell, co-chairman of the QOL committee, said committee members were "pleasantly surprised" by information that indicates strong and steady growth in those areas.

"If there's anything that is a positive sign of high quality of living, certainly it's the increase in churches," said Russell, a business and finance professor at Southeast Missouri State University.

The number of churches in the city has been rising since 1990, according to QOL statistics. "You just have to drive down Lexington Avenue to see that," he said.

Russell said he knows of no other city the size of Cape Girardeau that has as much park space. "There's just an unbelievable amount of parks for the city the size of Cape Girardeau," he said.

The success of the Cape Girardeau Public Library, whose materials have increased slightly since 1990, shows a literate, well-educated community, Russell said.

"Those are positive and high-valued aspects of community living in Cape Girardeau," he said.

More people are visiting the city's museums and theaters.

"Cape Girardeau supports culture," Russell said. "Cape Girardeau supports the growth of culture, and it appears that their support is more than just word-of-mouth; it is financial as well."

The chamber will use the QOL report as it tries to attract business to the area, Russell said.

"Being able to take a publication like this and show it to a prospective plant manager who is deciding about coming to Cape Girardeau, to bring plant personnel and their families to Cape Girardeau, cannot be understated," he said.

Mike Jennewein, Procter & Gamble Co. human-relations manager, said a strong cultural, recreational and religious environment is a definite plus for employers as they consider locating in the Cape Girardeau area. But, he said, it is a personal matter as to how much weight they have on the business owner.

"I think it just depends on the process and the people involved in that process as to how those things get weighted," Jennewein said. "It helps. There's no question that it helps. It just gets weighted differently by different people."