New businesses open in downtown Cape Girardeau, but vacant buildings remain

It would have been a shame to watch the former Royal N'Orleans restaurant building disintegrate or turn into a parking lot, said Mark Dirnberger, who owns the historic structure in downtown Cape Girardeau.

But that's not likely to happen now that the building is home to Katy O'Ferrell's Publick House, 300 Broadway. The soon-to-be-painted salmon-pink building fit the concept of an Irish pub -- an old, folkish gathering place -- and that has positioned it for greater success.

It also helps that the downtown area is gaining "a little more charm all the time," Dirnberger said.

With a downtown the size of Cape Girardeau's, there will always be some business turnover, said Marla Mills, executive director of the not-for-profit downtown revitalization organization Old Town Cape.

Not too long after the recent news of Cape Girardeau's former federal building, 339 Broadway, being purchased by new Cape Girardeau City Councilman Joseph Uzoaru, it was announced all state agencies would be relocating their offices from the Marquette Tower across the street on Broadway.

Patrons dine at Katy O'Ferrells Publick House, Thursday evening, June 19, 2014, in Cape Girardeau. The Irish themed restaurant recently opened in the old Royal N'Orleans location on Broadway, which had been vacant since June 2009. (Laura Simon)

"We would love to have 0 percent vacancy, but, you know, we don't right now," Mills said, though that number is improving.

"Over the last two years specifically, that number has decreased, and there's been lots of building improvements and lots of buildings [occupied] that weren't engaged previously," she said.

From July 1, 2013, to April of this year, there was a net gain of six businesses in Old Town Cape's 130-block downtown district, bringing an estimated 50 jobs to the city, according to a report compiled by Mills for the city of Cape Girardeau. Since April, a few more small businesses, including Muriel's Garden, 202 Independence St., and Ophelia, 125 N. Main St., have opened.

The number of businesses opening downtown is not only increasing, but the quality of those businesses is much higher and more sustainable compared to four or five years ago, she said.

Admittedly, though, many historic properties still need some attention, Mills said, and bigger developments take a lot more time and energy to fill.

People fill Katy O'Ferrells Publick House, Thursday evening, June 19, 2014, in Cape Girardeau. The Irish themed restaurant recently opened in the old Royal N'Orleans location on Broadway, which had been vacant since June 2009. (Laura Simon)

Larger vacant properties, such as the Marquette Tower, the property at 1 N. Main St., the Esquire Theater and the previous Buckner Brewing Co. property, pose a bigger problem because of their size. The larger the property, the bigger the risk and the fewer people interested in purchasing or developing it, she said.

"Anytime there's transition with a large property, of course that can be concerning," Mills said.

Other concerns that may keep properties vacant include maintenance issues and even simple timing.

At the beginning of the year, Cape Girardeau Mayor Harry Rediger made it a personal challenge to address the vacancies of the what he calls "the Big Three," which are the former federal building, the Marquette Tower and the Hammelberger and Harrison Building, 400 Broadway, also known as the H&H building.

"I knew they were all kind of in trouble, and mostly empty, if not all empty," Rediger said. "And with [them] being at the same intersection, it was going to be difficult to get those filled."

Patrons dine at Katy O'Ferrells Publick House, Thursday evening, June 19, 2014, in Cape Girardeau. The Irish themed restaurant recently opened in the old Royal N'Orleans location on Broadway, which had been vacant since June 2009. (Laura Simon)

Rediger said he was encouraged the former federal building has been purchased and now is in local hands. Uzoaru plans to use the building's space as a multi-tenant office building.

There has not been any news regarding occupancy of the top floors of the H&H building, which currently houses the Cape Girardeau Convention and Visitors Bureau, and it remains a work in progress, Rediger said.

The news released last week that the Marquette Tower's tenants were moving out was disappointing, he said, but there may be some progress on the building later in the year, but "nothing to report at this point."

"Those three [buildings] are really very, very important to the continued growth of the downtown area," Rediger said.

A positive way to look at an empty building such as the Marquette Tower is as an open canvas, said the property's real estate broker, Tom Kelsey, commercial broker for Lorimont Place Ltd. in Cape Girardeau.

A server carries drinks to the lower level of Katy O'Ferrells Publick House, Thursday evening, June 19, 2014, in Cape Girardeau. The Irish themed restaurant recently opened in the old Royal N'Orleans location on Broadway, which had been vacant since June 2009. (Laura Simon)

The Marquette was a Spanish-style hotel that opened in 1928 and consists of two properties: the Marquette Tower, a 59,000-square-foot former hotel along Broadway, and the 25,000-square-foot Marquette Centre at 221 N. Fountain St.

G&S Holdings LLC, the Marquette property's owners, have listed the property as for sale. It's possible the tower could be restored to its former use as a hotel or a boutique hotel, apartments or condos, retail or restaurant space or keeping its use as office space, Kelsey said.

The listing price for the Marquette Centre was reduced $200,000 and now is $549,900. The Marquette Tower is listed at $3.49 million.

One way Old Town Cape works to promote downtown Cape Girardeau as an attractive place for people to do business is by hosting its annual downtown Commercial Open House to highlight interesting, usable buildings.

This is the third year for the open house, which will be from 4 to 7 p.m. Thursday and will feature properties at 725 Broadway; 609 Broadway; 339 Broadway; 26 N. Spanish St.; 36 N. Main St.; 20 N. Main St.; 19 N. Main St.; and 221 N. Fountain St. Downtown living potential will be featured on the tour for the first time this year, Mills said.

Downtown offers character to businesses that other locations in the city may not be able to, she said, and the area is becoming a destination for businesses because it's becoming a destination for people in general.

"Downtown is more than just a place to do business," Mills said. "You're part of a neighborhood; you're part of businesses supporting each other."

The transition of the downtown area over the past couple years has been obvious, she said, with movement seen in properties such as the federal building, the old Keys building, which is to be a microbrewery and pub called Minglewood Brewery, and the former Royal N'Orleans restaurant building.

"We know that we have some properties to fill, but we feel very positive about everything that has been happening over the last year," Mills said.

Any of the vacant buildings in downtown Cape Girardeau, even the smallest, that become occupied count as "making headway," Rediger said, and there is no question that progress has been made over the past three of four years in downtown Cape Girardeau.

"I truly believe in momentum, and I think we've gained some momentum in the downtown area," he said.

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Pertinent address:

300 Broadway, Cape Girardeau, Mo.

339 Broadway, Cape Girardeau, Mo.

338 Broadway, Cape Girardeau, Mo.

125 N. Main St., Cape Girardeau, Mo.

400 Broadway, Cape Girardeau, Mo.

221 N. Fountain St, Cape Girardeau, Mo.

121 Broadway, Cape Girardeau, Mo.