I guess now that I've made it a year, it's time for you to learn a little more about the lady behind the keyboard. Hey - I'm Christa Zickfield, your friendly Old Town Cape Project Manager. Our organizations marketing, social media, events and various other odd jobs are my responsibility. I love downtown and I love Cape Girardeau, so this job seemed like a good fit. Boy was I wrong...

Cape Girardeau is my stomping ground; I've lived here my whole life (actually 28 years, but to those of you gracious individuals who swear it's only been 25 - thank you!). A Cape Public Schools alumni, I'm proud to call myself a Central Tiger. After high school, I thought I wanted to go off to college and do the 'big-city thing' at the University of Kentucky. I moved into my dorm room one Friday evening around 5pm, moved out and was gone by 8am the next morning, and was enrolled in Southeast Missouri State the following Monday. After 3.5 years of projects, papers and exams, I received a little sheet of paper granting me a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration degree with a major in Integrated Marketing Communications - wow. All that hard work for a piece of paper!

Somewhere in the middle of all that, I met the handsome guy that I would one day get the honor of calling my husband, William. We thoroughly enjoy making memories together and can't wait to see what our future holds. Yes, the Zickfield in my last name is relation to the downtown jewelry store. If you stop by, he'll be the good looking salesman ready to chat about cut, color and clarity with you. He is my everything and I am truly blessed to have him as the co-pilot on this crazy journey we call life.

My family ranks right up there at the top as well. I can't even put into words how much I love them. My dad, mom and sister, and the dog - anyone who knows us knows how head-over-heels we are for Harley! This also includes my extended family of aunts, uncles, grandparents, cousins, my cousins children and second-cousins that we consider first-cousins, their extended families - if you can't tell, we're really close, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

At the very top of my food chain is my relationship with Christ. Someone that I never met loved me so much that he sacrificed his life to save me from my sins - how cool is that?! I can't even begin to fathom where I would be today with this guiding force. As much as I love life and try to be as positive an influence as possible, it isn't always easy; there have been water leaks. However, I know what my future holds because of Jeremiah 29:11 - 'For I know the plans I have for you,' says the Lord. 'They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.' I'm excited to see how the rest of my story will play out.

What are my hobbies? Favorite things? First off, I'm terrible at sports, anything that requires the coordinated use of an object, really. That summer I played softball - phew! I do, however, love attending sporting events with my loved ones and friends. St. Louis Cardinal and Blues games rank up there at the top of the list. It's a dream of mine to attend the Australian Open, preferably before Rodger Federer retires from the game (he's pretty dreamy). I love food, however am terrible at preparing it. Coming from a long line of family cooks, sometimes I'm convinced I look like the mailman. Evening walks with the dog and traveling are additional pastimes I thoroughly enjoy. Also, it's really hard to beat warm towels out of the dryer - seriously, it doesn't take much!

Idiosyncrasies? Well, if you ask my peers I'm sure they have plenty to tell you. I only eat pickles the day after Thanksgiving. Toenails kind of give me the creeps. I'm thoroughly convinced that every time I hear a creak at home, there's some ninja-assasin hiding under the bed waiting for me to hang my foot off and, you know the rest... Typically the inside of my vehicle is impeccably clean, yet I can't seem to get my desk organized.

My love for downtown started blossoming at a young age. My Grandma Kinsey was the long-time seamstress for Hecht's clothing store. Chances are she's altered something for either you or someone you know. My dad has worked downtown at Cape Paint & Glass since, I'm pretty sure, the beginning of time. My uncle used to own a bakery on Main St, My Daddy's Cheesecake, that my cousins and I often frequented, especially on cake decorating days because we were almost always guaranteed a bite of the extra icing or cake scraps! The Christmas Parade of Lights has always been a family tradition that is something I hope to continue with my kids one day. Walks on the railroad tracks, yes on the tracks, and heading to the riverfront to check out the riverboats were typical occurrences. Up until a few months ago, my grandparents owned a farm just on the other side of the river, so trips to and from would often times warrant a detour downtown. Downtown has been a part of my life since before I can remember, and I'm better person because of it.

Each of these roads led me to this juncture in life. So when I mentioned at the beginning that it seemed I had found the right job, but boy was I wrong - I didn't find the right job, I found the perfect opportunity. I get to work downtown amongst some of our area's richest history almost everyday. I get to work for and with some of the coolest entrepreneurs and business-people in the community. I get to represent one of the greatest downtowns in the nation.

I am truly blessed!

There are several new businesses popping up in the downtown area. One of these new businesses is a unique fashion boutique, Ophelia, which opened in early June. With its fashion forward designs and vast assortment of clothing, shoes, jewelry and gifts, Ophelia has something to offer for women of all ages. From trendy pieces to basic staples, the store only carries six of each individual item, allowing for new styles to be brought in daily. Ophelia also has a line of all natural bath and body products called KIND, which come from Webster Groves, Missouri.

Ophelia’s original location is in downtown Farmington, Missouri. In June of 2013, Patrice Parson had an opportunity to purchase Ophelia after hearing that it was going out of business. “I decided to start a new adventure into owning a business when the previous owner approached me with the chance to buy the store. I was so excited about the new adventure, but also scared to lose my shopping place so I decided that being a new business owner was a new adventure I was ready for”. Not long after purchasing the Farmington location, Patrice and her husband new that they wanted to expand. Being a Southeast Missouri State University graduate and a former resident of Cape Girardeau, Patrice was very familiar with the Cape Girardeau area. After making several trips to downtown Cape Girardeau and visiting with several downtown business owners, they began to start the search for the perfect building for their new boutique. With the help of Old Town Cape, Patrice and her husband were able to find the perfect location for their second store.

Ophelia is located at 125 North Main Street. For more information about their store, check out their facebook page https://www.facebook.com/OpheliaCapeGirardeau.

This post is written by guest blogger, Jen Schwent, Student Worker at Old Town Cape.

Three years ago I moved from Chicago to Cape Girardeau to pursue a degree in Historic Preservation. Since then, I have lived in three different apartments in three different areas of Cape. Transitioning was tough, but now that I live downtown, I feel like I have the best of both worlds! I'm close to everything and the environment reminds me of home, while still giving me the charm of Cape.

One of the great things I enjoy about all the shops, galleries and restaurants that downtown Cape offers is how diverse they are. A lot of them also offer student discounts - score! The mall is great, but the shops that I am within walking distance of beat the mall, hands down. Stash and Philanthropy have the latest trends, but the clothes are unique unlike that shirt you got at the mall that everyone has. There are also a lot of antique shops where one can find special items to decorate their home with or simply find the odds and ends that you've been searching for at a great price. The restaurants downtown are just as unique as the shops. The chain restaurants along the highway are alright, but downtown Cape has so much more variety. One of my favorite things to do is to walk to the Cape Riverfront Market and then stop by Cup N' Cork for a morning coffee. I mentioned that I'm pursuing a degree in H.P., so I can't help but mention all of the historic buildings, art galleries and museums downtown. They all offer great cultural experiences.

The environment of downtown is also amazing! There is always something going on, people to meet, etc. When I hear music and people talking from my balcony, I can feel the heartbeat of downtown and I feel like I'm a part of it.

I'm glad to call downtown Cape my home. This big city girl has finally found where she belongs in this town and I couldn't be happier. If you haven't checked out Old Town Cape and everything that it has to offer, you are certainly missing out. I know that I was.

Up until about a year ago the historic A.C. Vasterling building at 407 Broadway was sitting dusty and empty. Some initial TLC was given to the building in 2012 by then owner Seymour Chilton and boutique owner Bridgett Kielhofner. After some renovations to the front retail section, Philanthropy, a women's boutique was opened in June of 2012.

Seymour had visions for the rest of the building, which stood with the majority still empty, unused and in need of an intense rehab, but he decided to sell the property instead.

Enter Cara Naeger and RJ Clements, a sister and brother duo, who run their family business, Clemco Development. Cara and RJ bought the building together 6 months ago, and hit the ground running with Architect, Rebecca Ward and major plans to overhaul the upper floors into luxury apartments aka Vasterling Suites. 

If you've driven Broadway lately, you've probably noticed that the façade of Philanthropy is being restored, too. The building qualified for historic tax credits, so Cara and RJ decided to take advantage of the credits and to adhere to historic standards for the rehab with the help of Rebecca. One of the requirements was to remove the stucco façade and to restore the historic façade that still laid underneath - most likely dating back to 1923 when the building was remodeled from 2 stories to 3. (Pretty exciting for a history nerd like myself!)

I first met Cara about a month ago at Vasterling Suites in the midst of construction and clean up. She met me at the entrance with rushed enthusiasm and paint-stained jeans, and explained that they had to have construction finished in a matter of days for the first tenants arrival date - July 1st. We took a quick tour of the building going through studio apartment options, one bedrooms, artist suites and even a two bedroom so I could get a feel for the place. Historically, she said the building used to house a sausage shop, bowling alley and a rumored underground tavern. 

I visited the Vasterling Suites again on Friday with some of the Old Town Cape crew to take photos of the freshly finished apartments. This time Cara and RJ both took us through the suites. RJ was enjoying the "day off" although we hardly believed he was taking a vacation day while on location. We were all so impressed with the slick work that Clemco Development did in just 6 months. The apartments are beautiful and trendy, and still have some neat, historic details in tact including charming trim throughout the building and original fire doors that now serve as industrial hallway decor.

This is Cara and RJ's first project downtown. They chose downtown and the historic rehab because they love downtown and wanted to contribute something great to the community. In our eyes they've more than accomplished that. More specifically they've created a truly unique living space for some very lucky tenants. 

While so much has been accomplished there are still more plans for the property including an outdoor courtyard, fitness center and additional first floor apartments to name a few. We're really grateful to have another living option downtown, and to see a once vacant, historic structure returned to its shining glory.

If you're interested, apartments are still available for rent ranging from $590 - $990 depending on size and # of rooms. Several amenities are included, and they have the coolest washer and dryers in town - they text you when your laundry is done! Another fun perk is that tenants get 10% off at Philanthropy. Give the Vasterling Suites office number a call at 888.346.0543 and press 1 for Leasing Details. You can also check out the Micro Luxury Apartment here.

Read more about this project on Rebecca Ward's blog, Uncovering the Past.

Author: Toni Eftink is a Project Manager at Element 74 where she leads custom web projects. She has a huge love for downtown Cape Girardeau and small businesses. You can find her on Google+ and Twitter.