CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. -- The now-vacant Common Pleas Courthouse Annex could become the new home of the Cape River Heritage Museum if the organization's board of directors has its way.
"We think it would be wonderful," museum director Margaret Ford said Tuesday.
She said the board has toured the annex.
"We looked at it, and everybody loved it," Ford said.
The board proposed the relocation last month.
She said the three-level structure offers more space than the museum's current location in Cape Girardeau's one-time police/fire station at the corner of Independence and Frederick streets. The building is still owned by the city as is the annex.
The annex also has central heating and cooling, something the museum's existing building does not have, Ford said. The second story of the old brick police/fire station, where museum artifacts are stored when not on display, is not heated or cooled, she said. Artifacts can be better preserved if stored in a climate-controlled space, Ford said.
But city officials said Tuesday the future uses of the annex, the Common Pleas Courthouse, current city hall and the now vacant police station on South Sprigg Street have not been determined.
Cape Girardeau County satellite offices recently moved out of the annex and county officials plan to vacate the Common Pleas Courthouse within the next several years, once a new justice center is constructed in Jackson.
The city council in May hired Chiodini Architects of St. Louis to conduct a space-needs study regarding the aging city hall and determine whether it makes sense to relocate city operations to another building or construct a new city hall.
City officials said at the time the study could cost $100,000 to $150,000.
City manager Scott Meyer said Tuesday the study should be completed this fall.
"We are still studying possible uses," Meyer said, adding city officials have not seen a formal request from the museum board.