Planning and zoning gives OK to Marquette redevelopment plans

One more bureaucratic step and the redevelopment of the blighted Marquette Hotel can begin.

The Cape Girardeau Planning and Zoning Commission gave approval Wednesday night of the final redevelopment plans of the Marquette Hotel project.

The plans must now be approved by the city council, which could happen as early as its next meeting Monday.

Prost Builders of Jefferson City, Mo., plans to pump about $8 million into the downtown historic Marquette Hotel and develop it for state office space and retail and restaurant space.

Creating parking

The final plans included one change from the preliminary plans, which were approved by both the commission and the council.

The building behind the H&H building will not be demolished in favor of a parking lot. The developers discovered that the building, which is currently owned by Southeast Missouri State University, would be too costly to demolish because of the surplus amount of concrete and steel that was used to build it. Instead, the developers were able to work with area landowners to create more parking spaces.

Fred Lafser, a consultant representing Prost Builders, said Wednesday night that the ramps and garage behind the building will be demolished. He said the owners of the H&H Building were cooperative and, by moving around the stripes in both parking lots, the developers and the H&H owners were able to create 15 additional parking spaces. The developers were also able to negotiate with other property owners in the area and they will have more parking now than what the original plans called for with the demolition.

Considering taxes

Cape Girardeau school superintendent Mark Bowles attended the meeting and addressed the commission. He said the school district is not against the project, but asked that the commission consider carefully future cases that involve tax abatements.

He said tax abatements, tax-increment financing and enterprise zones all take their toll on a school district.

"Especially now, when money is so hard to come by for school districts," he said.

In other business, the commission approved the following:

A request of Bobby D. and Lula M. McDonald for a special use permit for an advertising sign at 820 N. Sprigg St. in a C-1, local commercial district.

A request of Kenneth J. and Judith A. Voepel, trustees of the Kenneth J. Voepel Revocable Trust, and Kenneth M. and Mary C. Oberlohr for a special-use permit for an office at 2256 Kingsway Drive in an R-1, single-family residential district.

A record plat of Silverthorne subdivision.

An amended record plat of Emerald Forest.

A record plat of a resubdivision of Lots 47, 49 and 51 of Ashland Court.

bmiller@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 127