State of Missouri office to vacate Marquette Tower

A State of Missouri office will leave the Marquette Tower in downtown Cape Girardeau, according to a news release from the building's ownership group.

The move was rumored after the state Department of Mental Health announced in early June it would move to another location.

Angie Fehr-Clark, assistant director of the Sikeston, Missouri, regional office of the Department of Mental Health, confirmed the department's satellite office would move from the Marquette Tower. It has been a tenant there for 10 years but soon will move to the former Anthem BlueCross BlueShield building on Siemers Drive on Cape Girardeau's west side.

At the time of the announcement, it was unclear whether other state administrative offices in Marquette would move as well. It still has not been released where the State of Missouri office there is relocating.

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.

The Marquette Centre has been completely rehabilitated except for the interior, which was left for potential tenants to remodel. The center remains unoccupied.

The Marquette Tower still is being used for office space, with occupancy at approximately 50 to 60 percent, estimated Tom Kelsey of Lorimont Place, the building's commercial real estate broker. Kelsey said after some agencies chose to move out in the past three years, the leased space is almost exclusively state agencies.

Now that the state office is moving, it is unclear how much of the building will be occupied.

Brian Hayes, who issued the news release, said members of G&S Holdings LLC, the Marquette Tower's owners, will consider exploring all options for the building, including restoring it to its former use as a hotel. But Hayes stated he is unsure whether reopening as a hotel is a "financially viable option."

Hayes also mentioned the possibilities of leasing or redevelopment.

The property will remain listed for sale or rent, according to the release. The Marquette buildings are listed by Tom Kelsey, commercial broker for Lorimont Place Ltd. in Cape Girardeau.

Hayes said he is saddened at the loss of the State of Missouri offices, but is excited to continue being a part of the city of Cape Girardeau.

smaue@semissourian.com

388-3644

Pertinent address:

338 Broadway, Cape Girardeau, Missouri

221 N. Fountain St., Cape Girardeau, Missouri