CITY TO HEAR ABOUT SAVING MARQUETTE

A group of historic-preservation students eager to see someone restore the downtown Marquette Hotel will talk to Cape Girardeau officials tonight in the hope they can dissuade the city from tearing down the 72-year-old building.

Southeast Missouri State University student Jeremy Wells, former student Mandy Wagoner and others are scheduled to make a presentation to the City Council and field questions. The council meeting, which is open to the public, begins at 7 p.m., with a study session at 5 p.m.

"Our goal is to convince the City Council that the Marquette is an asset for the city and not a liability," said Wells, who researched the business side of restoring the hotel property.

"In the marketing feasibility studies I've done, the Marquette has tremendous potential to not only revitalize the whole downtown but also bring money to the city."

Wells said the most intriguing information he uncovered about the Marquette, which stands at Broadway and Fountain, is that Cape Girardeau can feasibly support another hotel, particularly one downtown. Wells' research indicates that the occupancy rate in Cape Girardeau hotels with 50 or more rooms is about 75 percent. The national average, he said, is 64 percent, and anything above 62 percent is considered healthy, he said.

"That indicates, from the information that I've researched, that there is a very strong possibility that another hotel would be successful in Cape Girardeau," he said.

Wells also said a local architect indicated that the Marquette is structurally sound. "That's the important thing because that's where restoration really gets expensive," he said. "Basically, it needs a lot of cosmetic work and repairs."

The students also plan to make a more in-depth presentation to the city's Historic Preservation Commission during its meeting at 7 p.m. Wednesday at City Hall.

Cultural asset

Wagoner, who did historic research on the building, said she hopes to remind the city of the cultural importance of the Marquette.

"We want to let them know this is a very significant part of our history and losing the Marquette is losing part of the cultural legacy of Cape Girardeau," she said. "It was the place to be back in its heyday, and it can be that once again."

"The city has a prime opportunity to rehabilitate the building," she said. "We have a preservation plan and a nomination in the works. It would be a great asset to the downtown area."

Last fall the city vowed to proceed with demolition of the building unless the Marquette owner finds a buyer, makes repairs or presents a business plan by March 21.

After hearing of the impending demolition, Wells and other historic-preservation students jumped to find a way to save the building. The group compiled information about the building's history, possible uses for the property, grants and loans that are available to potential buyers and marketing opportunities.

The history of the Marquette, a vanguard of Cape Girardeau's downtown area, is one of highs and lows. Constructed in 1928, the building has been vacant since 1981, except for a piano store that operated for some time on the ground floor.

Cape Girardeau resident Thad Bullock owned the building from 1969 until his death in 1999. His widow, Ruby, inherited the property, but her daughter, Carol Bullock, is charged with maintaining it and wants to sell it.

Shut down in 1971

The six-story building once was one of the city's finest hotels. The building was shut down by the Missouri Division of Health in July 1971 for safety reasons.

Numerous real estate inquiries have been made, although the most promising deal is on hold for lack of funding.

In January, Carol Bullock, who lives in Kensington, Md., opened the first-floor lobby of the hotel to the public, and Realtor Thomas Meyer said about 600 people showed up to view the lobby and revive memories of the hotel's better days.

Meyer said he has received many more purchase inquiries since the reception, and he is following up on the serious ones.

Asking price for the property is about $700,000, according to Bullock, who admits she was slow to maintain the property after her father's death, citing family and work commitments.

Wells said he hopes the council will seriously consider the information the students have compiled and make an educated decision about the Marquette's fate.

"The more people who know about the Marquette, the more the potential exists of finding someone who wants to make an investment in the Marquette to preserve it," he said.

"The one thing that the Marquette has that no place else in Cape Girardeau has is the history and the historic fabric. You can't duplicate that from new."