HEARING IS PLACE TO LET FEDS GET FEEL FOR COURTHOUSE SITE

In just over two weeks, the General Services Administration will hold a public hearing in Cape Girardeau on a new federal courthouse site.

The proposed site is directly south of the current courthouse. It is bounded by Themis Street on the north, Independence Street on the south, Lorimier Street on the east and Middle Street on the west. The two-square-block area is a mix of older homes, apartments and a few businesses. Some of the properties are historic, and that has a number of people up in arms.

This is no time for a public panic. Nor is it time to become adversarial. It is time for concerned citizens to come forward. Those with strong opinions about the site should attend the Nov. 16 hearing at the Port Cape Girardeau Restaurant.

At this point, the federal government's GSA is merely seeking input -- both positive and negative. No decision has been made. If the majority of input is negative about this site, the government has indicated it would focus on another location. A GSA representative has said publicly on more than one occasion that the government doesn't want a battle to secure a site for a new U.S. courthouse. The GSA has also said there won't be any large-scale condemnation. One real estate agent has estimated at least 30 site plans have been submitted to the government.

Cost is another factor. The federal government plans to spend $3.9 million for site acquisition and design of the five-story courthouse. The government can condemn the area, but that could prove a public relations nightmare. And from a financial point of view, a number of restored historic homes could price any site well over budget.

The GSA wants to build the new federal building downtown. U.S. presidents dating back to Jimmy Carter have decreed that federal buildings be constructed in downtown areas. The project would infuse considerable construction dollars -- $10 million for the new courthouse and $1.7 million to renovate the existing federal building. It would also relocate more jobs downtown.

But the project must be a balance between progress and preservation, between common sense and dollars and cents. The project will be good for downtown -- when a suitable location is found.