PYLON FALLS FROM OLD BUILDING; INVESTIGATION OF INCIDENT AT MARQUETTE UNDER WAY

An investigation is under way to determine how a 25-to-30 pound glazed-clay pylon fell from the top of the closed Marquette Hotel early Thursday.

No one was injured when the roof ornament crashed onto Fountain Street.

"We were lucky," said Cape Girardeau building inspector Rick Murray. "If anyone had been struck by the pylon, it would have killed them instantly."

Murray emphasized the pylon was a decorative part of the parapet around the edge of the roof. There is no indication of any structural failure of the hotel building itself, he said.

"It appears to have been a freak accident, or maybe vandalism," Murray explained. "We won't know exactly what happened until we can get into the building and onto the roof to examine the area where the pylon was mounted.

"I've tried to contact the owner of the building, but he is apparently out of town. As soon as we can locate him and get inside, we'll try to find out what happened."

The building is owned by Thad Bullock, who also operated a retail piano salon on the first floor of the old hotel until the salon was closed recently.

Murray said the pylon apparently fell sometime between dawn and 8 a.m. Thursday.

"If it had happened any earlier than that, I'm sure the police would have received a report," he said. "An employee across the street at Union Electric Co. discovered the debris laying in the street and called police shortly after 8 a.m.," Murray said. "Apparently, no one witnessed the actual fall of the pylon."

Murray said there are no plans at present to fence off the sidewalk on Fountain and Broadway on the south and west sides of the building.

The decorative pylon is one of many decorative pylons that were once mounted around the edge of the former hotel, which was ordered closed by the state in 1971. Apparently, some of the other pylons have either been removed or have also fallen in the past. Several of them are missing on the south and west sides of the building.

Murray said if it is determined the remaining pylons are unsafe, the city may order them removed. The pylons are mounted on poles set in the edge of the roof.

Police checked the hotel building windows and doors on the ground floor to determine if there was any sign of a forced entry into the main hotel building. None could be found.

The hotel was closed by the state in 1971 for violations of hotel and tourist camp regulations. Since then it has been a source of controversy between the city and the owner. The city would like to condemn and demolish the building, but it would cost an estimated $170,000, more if asbestos is found in the building, said City Manager J. Ronald Fischer.

On Sept. 16, the city council approved legislation that allows the city to charge property owners for demolition costs. At the same time, the council urged the city staff to amend the old dangerous-buildings ordinance and research whether civil action can be taken against such property owners.

The council's action was due, in part, to the deteriorating condition of the old hotel building and the former St. Francis hospital building at Good Hope and South Pacific, which is also in a dilapidated condition.

There have been several attempts during the past 15 years to find another use for the hotel building.

In February 1981, Walter Parr, a Paducah, Ky., businessman, announced plans to renovate the then-53-year-old hotel, along with plans for construction of a high-rise condominium on the hotel property.

Parr had just completed a $4.5 million renovation project with the historic Irvin Cobb Hotel in Paducah, converting that structure into 104 apartment units.

Parr's death a short time after the announcement was made ended the renovation and condominium project.

Earlier this month several members of Southeast Missouri State University architecture class presented a report to the Historic Preservation Commission, urging the city and residents to take steps to preserve the building.

The report said the hotel is structurally sound and can be saved, and would serve as a catalyst for revitalizing the entire downtown area.

Suggested use of the hotel includes apartments on the upper floors and restoration of the lobby and mezzanine floors for a restaurant and other shops.

The report called for public support and interest in finding a buyer or investment group that would like to restore and renovate the hotel back to the late 1920s' and early 1930s' style.

The 115-room Marquette Hotel was opened in November 1928, at a cost of less than $200,000. The hotel was built to last. It contained 325,000 bricks, including 108,000 face bricks. Approximately 121 tons of steel beams and 2,500 barrels of cement were used during the construction. Each of the floors is made of poured cement.

The Marquette became known throughout the Midwest as "the place to stay" when in Cape Girardeau. Many dignitaries stayed at the Marquette when visiting Cape Girardeau, including famous-name band leaders and their bands that frequently played at the Purple Crackle night club in East Cape Girardeau, Ill., or in the hotel itself.