Trail gets $100,000 restrooms

There's no need to hurry on Cape La Croix Trail any more.

That's because there's a new 275-square-foot restroom facility along the 4.4-mile walking and biking trail that begins on Lexington Avenue near Route W and ends at Shawnee Park.

A ribbon-cutting was held Friday morning announcing the opening of the $100,000 restroom, located next to Quality Car Wash on Mount Auburn Road.

City spokesperson Tracey Glenn said there has been a great deal of interest in the facilities by people who like to walk the trail, but often get a call from nature that until now has gone unanswered.

"People have been calling for weeks wanting to know when that's going to be open," Glenn said. "So I know there's a need for it."

Glenn said Friday's ribbon-cutting ceremony, which featured Mayor Al Spradling III and city staff, naturally featured some good-natured potty talk.

"There were jokes about the first flush and the royal flush, about not having to run on the trail now," she said. "People were having a good time with it."

Cape Girardeau resident Lisa Hill commented on the new restroom as she took her afternoon stroll.

"It was a good idea to put in bathrooms," she said. "People are here all the time trying to use it. There's really nowhere else to go."

Hill, 45, walks the trail daily with her husband and she said she knows the restrooms, which will be open all year, will be used.

"There are a lot of older guys who walk the trail, so you know they'll use it," she said.

Parks director Dan Muser said that the restrooms, which will be heated in the winter, cost about $100,000; 70 percent of the costs were paid by the Missouri Department of Conservation and the city paid the remainder. The work also included a 10-space parking lot.

Construction of the project began in late April by Nip Kelly Trucking and Equipment Co.

The facility also features a concrete driveway and a concrete trail from the parking lot to the trail. The restrooms are also handicapped-accessible.

smoyers@semissourian.com

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