Marvels & Legends relocates to roomier spot

Marvels & Legends in Cape Girardeau has relocated.

Formerly at 1030 Broadway, the store moved to 1029 Broadway on July 15.

Jack Huskey, who owns the store with his wife, Jennifer, said the move allowed him to double the size of his storefront and expand his selection of posters from three to 12 and T-shirts from 60 to hundreds.

"I've been a collector for 30 years and I geek out about stuff like this," Huskey said. "But I couldn't do this without my wife, Jennifer, who keeps the books and helps with other things at the store."

Marvels & Legends is open from noon to 6 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday but will change to 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday after the Huskeys attend the Chicago Comic-Con from Aug. 6 to 9.

* The Comix Strip finds new home: On June 16, the rear outer wall of a building at 621-623 Broadway collapsed, and the remainder of the wall was demolished. The Comix Striphad operated in the front of the building at 621 Broadway, but once the wall began tumbling down the store was forced to close its doors June 17.

But good news, superhero fans. The Comix Strip has reopened at 821D Broadway, effective July 8.

Owner Andrew Johnson said he plans to add more toys, videos and T-shirts. He said the layout will allow him to stock more T-shirts. The store also is handicapped-accessible.

"It was an emergency move, and I grabbed this place quickly," Johnson said. "Now I'm finding out I'm getting more foot traffic from the Mississippi Mud House, Burritoville and students from Southeast Missouri State University. A lot of my customers believe it will be better in the long run."

The Comix Strip's hours and phone number remain the same. The store is open noon to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday and can be reached at 335-9908. But Johnson is considering additional hours of operation.

* Illinois Mexican restaurant closes: A reader e-mailed me last week with news that El Mexicano restaurant in East Cape Girardeau, Ill., had closed. But it's not surprising considering the history of the building at 107 Iroquois St., which seen its share of restaurant closings. Others who had previously occupied the space include the Rose Garden, Witz's, Joey's, Courtney's and Marjorie's.

* Wib's expanding: Wib's Drive In has outgrown its space at 1204 N. High St. and is adding to both ends of its building to enlarge its dining and kitchen space, according to plans submitted to Jackson's building and planning division. Other upgrades include an airlock vestibule, which will keep the interior climate more consistent, energy-efficient and comfortable. Parking will be relocated from the front of the building to the sides.

* Mall happenings: West Park Mall has seen a bit of extra activity lately. It was good to see the old Steve & Barry's location have a tenant, even though it was only for a few days during Little Lambs Children Store consignment sale two weeks ago. But unlike its normal sale of children's items, this sale was geared toward grownups.

Near the main entrance of the mall is a new eatery, Durango Deli, which recently opened next to El Durango Mexican restaurant (the former McAlister's Select and Cinnabon spots).

Durango Deli is an offshoot of the restaurant, but serves American food such as sandwiches, pizza, three varieties of spuds, cinnamon rolls and salads.

Management told me they wanted to offer a different and healthier variety than their Mexican fare.

And EJ Roni's opened last week next to Smoothie and Pretzel Co. EJ Roni's serves pizza, hot dogs, burgers, soft drinks and more.

* Buchheit opens Illinois store: Biehle, Mo.-based Buchheit Inc. has opened a store in Greenville, Ill. The 72,000-square-foot building was originally built as a Grandpa's retail store. This is the sixth store Buchheit has opened.

Greenville city manager Dave Willey said, "We realize that Buchheit could have chosen any number of other Missouri or Illinois towns, and we are very proud that they have selected Greenville."

* Ribbon cutting planned: The Cape Girardeau Area Chamber of Commerce will hold a ribbon cutting for Lafser & Associates at 1:30 p.m. Friday.

The company does environmental consulting for businesses.

The event celebrates the firm's move to 20 N. Main St., Suite 101, in June. The business was previously at 1028 N. Kingshighway, Suite 1. An open house will immediately follow the ribbon cutting.

Southeast Missourian business editor Brian Blackwell may contacted at 388-3628 or bblackwell@semissourian.com.<I>