JUVENILE-CENTER SITE RAISES THORNY PROBLEMS

Cape Girardeau County has had a tough time finding a suitable place for a new juvenile center. People think the center is a great idea, but they may be a little hesitant to live nearby.

They forget that the existing juvenile center at 325 Merriwether is in the center of a residential area, operating quietly with little notice from neighbors.

But not every location may be suitable for the center. Current plans to construct the center between a daycare center and the Cape Senior Center on Clark Street in Cape Girardeau may need to be re-examined.

Juvenile centers with the tightest security aren't always escape-proof. Putting the center within close reach of so many children and elderly people may be asking for trouble.

The fact the proposed center will be much larger means more potential for problems. The existing facility has only eight beds. There isn't enough room to keep every juvenile who is picked up by the police. It only houses juveniles who have committed felonies. There's no doubt that the county needs a larger juvenile center. But a more remote location would be advisable.

The new juvenile facility will include a detention area, space for juvenile-court proceedings and classrooms for offenders between the ages of 12 and 17. Plans call for the new center to have 24 cells with room for expansion to 40 if needed in the future.

The Clark Street location requires a special-use permit. The matter would have to come up before the Planning and Zoning Commission and then the City Council. There will be plenty of opportunity for public comment -- in favor or against the location.

The city's P&Z commission approved a special-use permit when the county had its eye on putting the juvenile justice center on Locust Street in a largely industrial area. But site testing showed the ground wasn't at that location wasn't suitable for such a heavy building.

The county needs help in finding a suitable location to keep the facility in Cape Girardeau. That's a challenge that local Realtors and property owners may be able to answer.