TWO NEIGHBORHOODS NAMED TO NATIONAL HISTORIC REGISTER

Two Cape Girardeau neighborhoods have been recognized as National Register Historic Districts.

City officials were notified last week that the Commercial Historic District and the Haarig Commercial Historic District were added to the National Register of Historic Places.

The Commercial Historic District includes properties between the 100 block of North Main Street and the 100 block of Broadway. Businesses currently in operation on this stretch include Hecht's,

The Haarig Commercial District includes properties along Good Hope Street and South Sprigg Street. The Haarig District was a neighborhood largely settled by German immigrants. By the turn of the 20th century, it contained numerous shops, offices, taverns and boarding houses.

Both districts are represented by Old Town Cape, the city's Main Street downtown revitalization program.

The National Register of Historic Places is an official list of all the country's cultural resources worthy of preservation. Properties listed in the register include districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects that are significant in American history, architecture, archaeology, engineering and culture.

There are more than 71,000 listings on the NRHP, which is administered by the National Park Service.

NRHP listing qualifies properties for certain federal investment tax credits for rehabilitation. However, NRHP listing does not allow the federal government to place limitations on properties or require public visitation rights.