City of Cape Girardeau

2025 State of the City Address

I gave this address Thursday at the State of the Community luncheon put on by the City of Cape Chamber of Commerce. I continue to be so appreciative of the Chamber’s work in getting all the various organizations—the City of Cape, Cape County, and SEMO—together to share with the community our progress and challenges. We are indeed all on one team that is vital to making our community a great one!

On the City of Cape side, this year in Cape has been one marked by consequential trips to the polls that will impact important infrastructure. I am excited to report that the future looks very bright in the city’s ability to provide smoother roads and cleaner water, thanks to voter approval of the Transportation Trust Fund 7 (TTF7) in April, and the Water Rate Increase in August.

Strong community support for these kinds of initiatives is not something commonly seen around the country these days. While there will always be disagreement on what street in Cape has the worst pothole, we’ve collectively agreed that our major infrastructure is worth investing in. The City of Cape has developed trust with smart planning and budgeting, and this process is also impacting other important aspects of the city as well.

Economic Health of the City               

When I became mayor in 2022, city staff salaries, especially in the areas of public safety, were among the lowest in the state. This was creating poor morale in our departments, and creating large holes in our staffing. We actually had 1 in 5 of our police officer positions open at that time.

Through meaningful reform in the salary, benefits, and overtime structures, we have produced a 24% increase in average staff pay since 2022. Police officer pay is up 41%, firefighter pay is up 43%, and overtime in both departments has been drastically reduced. And later this year, for the first time since anyone can remember, we expect to see every officer position in the Cape Girardeau Police Department (Cape PD) filled.

All this was thought to be impossible several years ago, but we have maintained that a fully staffed public safety force with a strong culture and high morale is what our community needs and deserves. This is great for our officers, and it is ultimately helping create a safer Cape, and one that businesses are willing to invest in.

Other city departments that are tremendously impactful to the city’s economic health are the Parks and Rec Department and the Cape Girardeau Regional Airport (CGI). If you’ve ever driven around town on a Saturday, or tried to eat anywhere on a weekend, you’ve probably ended up in a big line behind a bunch of energetic kids in matching uniforms and cleats. We have the Parks and Recreation department to thank for that!

Week in and week out, our city hosts leagues and tournaments that bring in a lot of people who need equipment, Gatorade, fun stuff to do, tons of chicken nuggets, welcoming hotels, and gas to get home. The Parks and Rec department generates the participants and visitors, and the City continues to greatly benefit from the various sources of revenue. We locals just have to wait a little longer for our chicken on some days.

The Cape Girardeau Regional Airport continues to produce good numbers in terms of enplanements, fuel sales, and infrastructure development. The SEMO Pilot Program based there keeps on growing, and we look forward to the future possibility of an air traffic controller program at SEMO based at the airport. These are the kinds of collaborative efforts that will lead to better results for not just our community, but also the region, in terms of both opportunity and development.

Regarding the news I know everyone is waiting to hear, we expect any day now to receive the US Department of Transportation decision on our next air carrier at CGI. The overwhelming local support was for the bid from American Airlines, and we in the City, along with our state and federal partners, continue to press for that choice. Regardless of which carrier is chosen for CGI, however, we are excited to see a lot of positive progress at the airport, and the new carrier contract will play an important role in that.

Development

In regard to development around the city, construction and business permits are up. We are seeing development in and around the mall and along Siemers Drive, and widespread expansion in hotels, historic revitalization downtown, and at the health care facilities that serve 25 surrounding counties in southern Missouri and Illinois.

TTF7 and work in the water treatment system will bring a lot of construction as well. In short, there is a lot of development happening around the entire city, and our unofficial slogan might be “Pardon Our Progress” for quite a while!

Public Safety

Public Safety continues to be the primary focus of my administration, and of the entire municipal government. This year’s annual budget dedicates 62% of the General Fund budget to public safety. This focus is what also led to my interest in the creation of the Gun Violence Task Force last year, which has provided support for some very important initiatives we are seeing coming out of the Cape PD.

We are excited to see the new police substation just opened, on Good Hope Street in the downtown Haarig district. The City is incredibly thankful for the partnership with Scott and Lisa Blank in seeing that historic property redeveloped and being used for this important purpose. In an area of town that is ripe for redevelopment and in need of a police presence that brings not only enforcement, but also a community connection, this substation will be a vital asset to our citizens in the area.

Our police chief, Adam Glueck, has been at the helm of the police department since last November, and is bolstering the technology that will help address violent crime in Cape. This is being seen in a number of impactful ways:

• Drones are being added to the ShotSpotter network currently in place. These drones will quickly arrive at gun shot locations, alerting officers to the situation on the ground and providing critical intel. They will also be used with the Special Response Team (SWAT) operations.
• In conjunction with the drone program, a partnership with SEMO’s Unmanned Aircraft Systems program is also in development, which could provide great experience for SEMO students and assistance for the Cape PD, especially at large events.
• The Cape PD Gun Crime Task Force has been very active over the past few months, and we have personnel who have begun developing crime mapping in conjunction with the ATF, while investigating many of the shots fired cases. In a short amount of time, this work has gotten numerous violent offenders off the street, and has recovered multiple firearms used in gun crimes.
• The concept of a real-time crime center is being developed, in a way that could start small with the ShotSpotter and Flock license plate reader technology already in place.
• The Cape PD has been named as a recipient of Governor Kehoe’s Missouri Blue Shield Grant Program, due to the department’s focus in its enhanced law enforcement efforts. This designation will open our department to grants for additional equipment, training, and technology, and we are appreciative for the support from the state, and the excellence in our Cape PD that has earned this designation.

One huge issue that came out of the Gun Violence Task Force was the need to focus on the issues created by the lack of consequences for juvenile offenders. If you follow state and national news, you know this is a problem seen across the country. Over a span of many years, state funding has been decreased for Juvenile Divisions, the system of assigning consequences has been weakened, and our local juvenile detention center here in Cape was removed.

The result of all this is a growing culture of nonchalance among juveniles toward any real penalties for dangerous or criminal behavior. It has a side effect of increased recruitment by adult criminals for juveniles to engage in illicit activity, especially with guns. We believe a reversal of this culture is needed in Cape Girardeau—for the sake of our community, and also for the sake of our young people. We have to focus on strong law enforcement with an eye on prevention strategies as well.

Small steps have already begun. The Cape PD and the Juvenile Division have become engaged in better communication when incidents occur, resulting in better coordination. In addition, the Cape PD is proposing the concept of converting the city’s municipal jail into a juvenile detention center, which is an idea with a lot of merit. Working in strong collaboration with the Juvenile Division, Cape County, and the State of Missouri will flesh out the thorny issues—of which there are many—and will help determine the finances needed to make it a reality. We want to better engage in “upstream thinking” like this that will help our young people want to stay on the right path and create great futures for themselves.

We are seeing a lot of upgrades around the city, which will create a safer community with more opportunity for everyone. Residents young and old can thrive here, whether you want to continue your education, get training in a trade, develop and grow a business, or engage in public service. The focus of the City of Cape is to serve our residents by providing a solid infrastructure, a safe community, and a healthy economy to engage in. We are seeing big progress right now, with even bigger potential on the horizon. It is truly an exciting time to live in Cape Girardeau! And remember, you can always go to the city website and click on the “Text My Gov” button to get a quick response to that terrible pothole!