FOR DISCUSSION'S SAKE, WHAT ABOUT THE BRIDGE?

There's no such thing as a bad idea, they say in those business seminars where they put you around a table and have you come up with suggestions for better products, better sales and better customer service.

So, for the sake of discussion, let's agree that keeping a section of the old Mississippi River bridge as a bit of history and as a way to give local folks and visitors a place to go see the river is an idea that needs to be fully aired before it is either implemented or tossed into the wastebasket.

It is a fact that, despite being a fine river city full of history and tradition, Cape Girardeau is sorely lacking when it comes to grand vistas of the river. There are many river towns along the Mississippi and Missouri rivers whose urban bluffs were, often before the turn of the century, turned into showcases of fine homes and grand gardens. With one or two exceptions, that didn't happen in Cape Girardeau.

And even though downtown is right at the river's edge, the floodwall that so adequately protects that area from frequent inundation also is an immovable visual barrier year-around, save a couple of gaps where the floodgates are located.

In truth, it's hard to connect with the mighty river in Cape Girardeau. So when it is suggested that part of the old bridge at the east end of Morgan Oak Street might be turned into a pedestrian overlook, there is some merit to the idea owing to the dearth of similar perspectives in our fair city.

But there are many, many reasons to wonder why participants in any good brainstorming session wouldn't almost immediately sense that even some good ideas aren't going to pass final muster.

Here's a quick list:

-- The old bridge -- even a piece of it -- would be expensive to maintain. As pointed out by Cliff Shirrell, currently the old bridge's nearest neighbor, in his letter to the editor on Saturday, the ongoing costs of upkeep could be quite a burden on future taxpayers. Shirrell and his wife, Lynette, are all too familiar with the litter, questionable visitors -- some who stay overnight -- and graffiti that the structure currently attracts.

-- The new Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge under construction nearby is, based on the Missouri Department of Transportation's drawings, a thing of beauty. The chamber of commerce is engaged in a fund-raising campaign to pay for half a million dollars of lighting to make the new bridge a nighttime light show. Somehow, having the old bridge in the line of sight would be self-defeating.

-- With development of the River Campus between the old and new bridges, the public will have considerable reason and opportunity to enjoy one of the best river views to be found. Every bit of planning so far on Southeast Missouri State University's ambition plan to put its school for visual and performing arts on the site of the former St. Vincent's Seminary has been geared to capturing that view. As a result, the public will have its panorama without having to walk onto an old section of bridge.

-- And there is a river-safety factor. Every indication up till now has been that the old bridge has to go just to make the river channel safe for barges and tows.

There may be equally compelling reasons to try to preserve a section of the old bridge. For one thing, it would be the only place around to be not just close to the river, but on it -- short of getting in a boat.

But there's still time for a good discussion. So let's hear your ideas. Should we try to save a part of the old bridge? Or should we let the new bridge shine brightly on its own? You decide.