The Cape Girardeau Historic Preservation Commission has released its Endangered Buildings list for 2018. The annual list is comprised of public-nominated and commission-approved structures that possess historic significance, and due to vacancy, may be at risk of deterioration or eventual demolition.
Three properties have been added to the list this year, including the city’s Carnegie Library. Serving as an annex on the Common Pleas Courthouse grounds, the Carnegie Library was built in 1921, and was Cape Girardeau’s first library. It was among the last Carnegie Libraries to be built in the country, and due to the inaccessibility of education at the time, it was held in high regard after being built.
City planner Ryan Shrimplin says county offices, which are currently housed at the courthouse, are slated to be relocated to Jackson within the next several years. This move would leave the library building behind.
“The commission wanted to be proactive in making the community aware of the significance of the annex building in the hopes of engaging the community, and looking for ways to find a new use for the building once it’s vacated,” says Shrimplin.
One property on Lexington Avenue that made the list several times in the past was removed this year; it was bought and put under a renovation process by new owners. 15 properties now remain on the Endangered Buildings List for 2018.
The commission’s goal by releasing this list is essentially to create a public awareness campaign of historic preservation for buildings of cultural value in Cape Girardeau.