Downtown building for sale; price tops $1 million

The Buckner-Ragsdale's building at 132 N. Main St. is up for sale, according to the Lorimont Place Ltd. website. The asking price is just over $1 million. The three-story, 22,984-square-foot building is owned by Cape Girardeau Brewing Co. LLC, founded by Mark Sprigg and Phil Brinson in 1998.

Brinson said that since the city voted to allow gaming there's been more interest in downtown properties. He was approached by several real estate agents who he's authorized to show the building at the corner of Broadway and Main Street, he said. Only one of them, Lorimont Place, chose to post the listing online, he said.

"If we get the right offer, I'd look at it. We're still going strong. It's for sale, but we're not out actively trying to sell it," Brinson said. "We're receptive to people who are looking to make an investment in the downtown."

The building includes a banquet facility on the third floor; Buckner Brewing Co. restaurant and brewery on the second floor and Ragsdale's bar on the first floor. The building was formerly a clothing store.

Just up Broadway from the Buckner building, the former Key's music building, owned by Randy Werner, is now advertised for sale by owner after a series of renovations were completed on the building. It once housed a Masonic temple.

* Missouri broke a record for exports in 2011, a positive economic indicator, Gov. Jay Nixon recently announced. With a total of $14.1 billion in Missouri exports in 2011 the state surpassed its previous record set in 2007.

A little over $2 billion in exports last year was from agriculture and agriculture-related goods. That includes processed food, grain, livestock, textile products, wood and forestry products, and beverage products. Among nonagricultural exports, more than $3.3 billion consisted of transportation equipment, and another $2.6 billion in chemicals. Machinery, electrical equipment and components, computers and appliances were about $2.7 billion. Minerals and ores totaled nearly at $750 million.

* The Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce will host Bill Drury's "Keeping Customers: How to Turn Tough Customers into Your Best Customers" workshop next month. The seminar will take place from 8:30 a.m. to noon March 7 at Drury Lodge. Topics will include preventing customer problems, building trust, calming angry people and overcoming burnout. Drury is a client communications expert who worked as a national training consultant for the Zig Ziglar Corp. He conducts workshops across the country and also offers training on audio CDs and DVDs. To register, call 335-3312 or email info@capechamber.com.

* Southeast Hospital and Southeast Home Care Services, including Home Health and Hospice, have earned a Gold Seal of Approval from the Joint Commission, which accredits health care organizations. The Southeast programs were found in compliance with the Joint Commission's national standards for health care quality and safety. The accreditation process occurs every three years. Six surveyors visited Southeast for an unannounced four-day survey last month. The team spent time at the hospital as well as at Southeast physician practices, Home Health and Hospice, evaluating Southeast for compliance with standards relating to the care of patients and leadership of the hospital.

Southeast Missourian business editor Melissa Miller may be contacted at 388-3646 or mmiller@semissourian.com.