The Cordish Cos. has been selected to execute a nearly $670 million redevelopment of the long-vacant Millennium Hotel, the nonprofit Gateway Arch Park Foundation announced Wednesday morning.
The developer plans to build 1.3 million square feet that combine residential, office, commercial and public spaces together. It鈥檚 proposed to include upscale residential, Class A office space, an amphitheater, a food hall, an improved streetscape and other amenities.
鈥淭his does provide a once-in-a-generation moment for us to reimagine this iconic landscape of the front door of St. Louis,鈥� said Ballpark Village President Mike LaMartina, who also oversees the St. Louis market for the Cordish Cos. 鈥淚t [is] a unique opportunity to not only create the best views of our entire city, but a mixed use [development] that acknowledges living, working, leisure, public space all in one site.鈥�
The proposed development would be a marked change for the prominent and iconic hotel between the Gateway Arch grounds and Busch Stadium, which has sat vacant since 2014. Gateway Arch Park Foundation went under contract to purchase the site last September after the city threatened to use eminent domain to acquire it.
鈥淲e want this site to be something that St. Louis will be proud of, that it will be an economic driver for the region again,鈥� said foundation Executive Director Ryan McClure. "Their plan is bold, imaginative, creative and frankly, it鈥檚 what St. Louis deserves.鈥�
In addition to the need for mixed-use downtown, LaMartina noted the opportunity to focus a development on connecting existing spaces in the Gateway Arch grounds, Kiener Plaza, Ballpark Village, Busch Stadium and others that can see millions of visitors each year.
鈥淭hese anchors surrounding this site are all walkable destinations, [and] right now the connectivity between them is a little disjointed,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e want to emphasize pedestrian thoroughfare, accessibility, walkability, public transportation.鈥�
Emphasizing connectivity was one of the key priorities for the site as the Gateway Arch Park Foundation, Greater St. Louis Inc. and the St. Louis Development Corporation worked together on a request for proposals, said SLDC President and CEO Neal Richardson.
鈥淭his cannot be your typical big-glass structure,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t had to really be focused on addressing the blight [of the Millennium Hotel] and show the entire country that St. Louis is open for business, ripe for redevelopment, and we can get big projects done.鈥�
The timing of Wednesday鈥檚 announcement sets the tone for a new downtown and era for the city, Richardson said.
last year characterized St. Louis鈥� downtown as a 鈥渞eal estate nightmare,鈥� prompting Mayor Tishaura Jones to challenge SLDC and Greater St. Louis Inc. to devise a plan for two prominent vacant buildings in the Millennium Hotel and Railway Exchange building.
鈥淭his is a really transformational moment for downtown St. Louis,鈥� Richardson said. 鈥淚t also signals to the rest of the country that St. Louis is moving in the right direction, and we will no longer be coined as 鈥榯he doom loop.鈥欌��
McClure said the foundation was eyeing a solution to the property years earlier. It means the nonprofit is stepping into an unfamiliar space by going under contract to purchase the building from its current Singaporean owners, he said.
鈥淥ur board and our donors have been incredibly supportive of this initiative. Something that is, quite frankly, a risk, but it's a risk worth taking because it's the right thing to do,鈥� McClure said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e not real estate developers, and we鈥檙e not looking to get into that business.鈥�
They facilitated collaboration that McClure expects will lead to redevelopment at the site. He added it will mean demolishing an iconic property that many St. Louisans are attached to.
鈥淲e completely understand that there鈥檚 nostalgia and memories for this site. How could there not be?鈥� McClure said. 鈥淎t the same time, we鈥檝e got a chance to do something bold and new that cannot be done with the existing structures.鈥�
He added that all of the development proposals that his organization received were for complete demolition. The request put out included the option for adaptive reuse of the existing buildings, McClure said.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 what the market is telling us,鈥� McClure said. 鈥淲e put out a [request for proposal] that said you can do adaptive reuse for these buildings or complete demolition and start fresh.鈥�
LaMartina said Cordish Cos.鈥檚 planned redevelopment of the Millennium Hotel site could help create a destination downtown that people flock to year-round, LaMartina said. That could help spur momentum for long-desired development that leans into the St. Louis riverfront.
鈥淥ur goal is that this creates an opportunity for other seismic effects that can traverse up and down the riverfront and continue through the downtown core,鈥� LaMartina said.
McClure characterized Cordish Cos. as a 鈥渨orld-class U.S. developer鈥� and lauded it for further committing to St. Louis. The developer has experience with upscale mixed-use, entertainment and hospitality developments and has garnered several for other projects it has done.
鈥淭hat just speaks to Cordish鈥檚 experience doing transformational projects in urban cores, and that鈥檚 what we need,鈥� McClure said.
The developer鈥檚 track record includes sizable work , across the state in and locally with Ballpark Village. LaMartina said the addition of the Millennium Hotel site augments Cordish鈥檚 local presence.
鈥淭hese sites are meant to be complementary to each other for the benefit of St. Louis,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he timing of them is not an obstacle to us by any means.鈥�
McClure said the redevelopment plan is set to go before the city鈥檚 Land Clearance for Redevelopment Authority board meeting next Tuesday, where the board may vote to approve the concept and development partnership.
鈥淕etting that approval will be a big step in terms of determining the timeline of when we鈥檒l close on the property,鈥� he said, adding he hopes it will happen in the coming months.
Richardson said the long contract to purchase the Millennium Hotel property is because Gateway Arch Park Foundation wanted an identified developer for it. It鈥檚 a significant financial commitment for an organization that fundamentally isn鈥檛 in the business of development, he added.
鈥淭he strategy that we took for them was to enter into an option agreement, identify a long-term developer of the site, and then work with the developer to close on the property and ultimately bring this project to fruition,鈥� Richardson said.
This story has been updated.
