S. SPRIGG BRIDGE, ROADWORK WELCOME INDEED

The opening of a new and improved South Sprigg Street recently came as good news to motorists who have depended on out-of-the-way detours for 14 months. The road had been closed for the construction of a bridge over Cape LaCroix Creek and raising a portion of the street that was prone to flooding.

This project had been talked about for more than 20 years, but lack of funding and other concerns delayed the work. Seventy-five percent of the cost of both the bridge and raising the street came from federal grants. The total cost of the two projects was over $1 million.

The new bridge may have been built none too soon. When work crews started to remove the old bridge, which was too narrow for heavy trucks, the structure virtually fell down.

South Sprigg Street receives heavy use from big trucks, because of Lone Star Industries, which makes cement next to its vast rock-quarrying operation near the Mississippi River.

Residents in the area, along with many of Lone Star's employees, will have direct street access, now that the barriers have come down that guided motorists around the construction area.

In addition to elevating a frequently flooded portion of Sprigg Street, the project also included raising some 2,000 feet of LaCruz Lane from Sprigg east to the city's wastewater treatment plant.

Although LaCruz crosses railroad tracks, the project was designed so that a temporary bridge across the tracks could be used when water is high and trains are stopped. This allows the city to operate the plant when water is high.

While the Sprigg Street project and bridge are in a part of Cape Girardeau many residents seldom visit, the improvements will be widely appreciated -- and used -- by motorists who travel in that area daily. The bridge and street work are a definite improvement for South Cape.