Overheard

Downtown visitors have access to 375 additional parking spaces after the May 15 opening of the $5.9 million Heer’s Car Park at the corner of Campbell Avenue and Olive Street. According to Springfield Director of Public Information Louise Whall, the five-story structure is open daily 6–2 a.m., and parking is free until the fall opening of Hollywood Theater in the nearby College Station development.

The garage has two entrances, on Olive Street and Campbell Avenue, but Whall said only the Olive entrance is open now, until roadwork on Campbell finishes on June 20, weather permitting.

The city initially anticipated opening the garage on April 1, but Whall said weather delays pushed back completion of the structure by general contractor Carson-Mitchell Inc.

Record pump prices

Surveys taken May 5 of gas stations throughout Missouri indicate that the average price for gas is a record $3.44 per gallon – up 8 percent from a month earlier and up 17 percent from a year ago, according to the Missouri Department of Natural Resources. Motorists filling up with diesel fuel also were looking at record prices.

The state average for diesel reached $4.07 per gallon, a 5 percent increase from a month ago and a 47 percent increase over this time last year, according to the DNR report. The high fuel prices are a reflection of record crude oil costs. Crude oil prices set a record May 7 with futures for June delivery on the NYMEX, hitting $123.53 per barrel. That’s up 11 percent from a month ago and 101 percent from the same time a year ago.

Dealing with devastation

Springfield-based Convoy of Hope has positioned people and supplies in areas devastated by tornadoes this month, and in Bangkok, Thailand, to give aid to cyclone-ravaged Myanmar, where reports indicate that about 300 refugee camps have opened.

Convoy has taken food, water and cleaning supplies to Newton County in Missouri, Picher, Okla., and Pine Bluff, Ark. More help will be sent as requests come in, according to a Convoy news release. In Bangkok, a staging area has been set up to distribute food, water decontamination tablets, tents and medical supplies to treat dysentery and diarrhea. Convoy expects to be involved with Myanmar efforts for six months.

$1M to Drury’s O’Reilly Center

The J.E. and L.E. Mabee Foundation of Tulsa, Okla., has pledged $1 million in a challenge grant to Drury University for construction of the O’Reilly Family Event Center, a 4,000-seat event center that will be located adjacent to Weiser Gymnasium on the Drury campus. The roughly $12 million center should be open by fall 2009, in time for the men’s and women’s basketball seasons.

The Mabee Foundation has given Drury a total of $3.96 million for several construction and renovation projects, including the Trustee Science Center, the Mabee Center and the Hutchens Health, Physical Education and Recreation Center, according to a news release.[[In-content Ad]]