Marquette open again

The Marquette Hotel has new tenants.

The 10 employees of the Missouri Department of Health and Human Services who moved into the renovated building last week were the first tenants the building has had in more than 20 years.

Today, more than 100 workers from six Missouri state government agencies in Cape Girardeau and Sikeston begin working in new offices inside the Marquette. Other agencies that are expected to move include the Workforce Development Division, Employment Security Division and the Workforce Investment Board of Southeast Missouri and the Department of Social Services' Family Support and Children's Division. The Sikeston office of the Missouri Department of Mental Health also will relocate.

MERS/Missouri Goodwill Industries also is preparing for its move to the Marquette. The company runs the Goodwill thrift stores and works with the Workforce Investment Board to coordinate employment programs for the poor and disabled.

The Marquette Hotel, a Cape Girardeau landmark, has been undergoing renovations for some time, and some critics were not sure the project would ever become reality. Seeing moving trucks and activity other than construction work at the Marquette is a welcome sight.