Downtown Cape: The heart of the community and a driving economic force

Saturday, May 4, 2024 ~ Updated 7:10 PM

Southeast Missourian file

Growth and prosperity in a downtown area does not happen without commitment, vision and perseverance.

This includes the commitment of business owners to choose downtown, the vision from leaders and community members to recognize the importance of downtown development, and the perseverance from volunteers who work tirelessly to bring events, activities and beautification efforts to life.

In 2023, downtown Cape benefited from this abundance of commitment, vision and perseverance. An impressive 17 new businesses opened their doors and added 89 jobs to the area. Investors committed over $7 million in funding to vital projects. Community members logged more than 2,800 volunteer hours to help downtown efforts.

Downtown Cape also continues to be a driving force for the city through the formation of a Community Improvement District (CID) in 2014, continued funding for litter pickups, increased police patrols and way-finding signage.

But the success of an area isn’t measured in just dollars and cents.

Success is seeing visitors enjoy the shops and experiences that fill downtown streets and watching them dine at local restaurants serving dishes from around the world. Success is seeing people come together for events, showing how downtown is the heart of community.