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PostDec 20, 2018#51

urban_dilettante wrote:
Dec 20, 2018
Former downtown YMCA site sold to Colorado firm with Walton family ties

https://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/new ... -firm.html

Behind paywall. Anybody care to provide a synopsis and/or full text?
Full text:

The former YMCA building in Downtown West has been acquired by Denver-based NuovoRE, the Business Journal has learned.

The deal for 1528 Locust St. closed Tuesday for an undisclosed price. It’s unclear what plans NuovoRE has for the building, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. St. Louis Development Corp. Executive Director Otis Williams confirmed the sale closed Tuesday but was unsure of NuovoRE’s plans.

The company, led by President Michael Everett, did not immediately return a request for comment.

In an October interview with the Business Journal, Everett declined to confirm his company’s interest in the building but said at the time that his firm looked at dozens of markets, including St. Louis, for opportunities.

NuovoRE, according to its website, focuses on urban redevelopment and calls itself a “socially and environmentally conscious group … (dedicated) to honoring a community's heritage by redeveloping iconic buildings into catalytic destinations that foster opportunities for enlightenment and appreciation.”

NuovoRE developed the 14-story, 107-room Hotel Revival in the Baltimore area earlier this year. That project earned a mention from the New York Times about neighborhood revitalization and the importance of attracting outside investors, including the Walton family’s financing of NuovoRE’s development.

A Bentonville, Arkansas, address attached to the Walton family also appears in state records for NuovoRE, according to the Colorado secretary of state’s office.

“It is the type of market that we have targeted for growth — urban redevelopment space,” Everett told the New York Times. “We are trying to find a diamond in the rough and bring in serious reinvestment.”

CBRE’s David Randolph and Matt Bukhshtaber and Lechner Realty Group’s Steve Lechner served as brokers in the deal.

The seller was Sonny Property #1, an Illinois-based entity whose manager is listed as Frank William Bonan II of Peoples National Bank.

The YMCA moved from 1528 Locust to Sixth and Locust streets, about a mile away, in the downtown central business district in 2017. Tim Helm, president and CEO of the YMCA of Greater St. Louis, cited significant annual financial losses as the reason for the move.

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PostDec 20, 2018#52

^ Thanks!

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PostDec 21, 2018#53

^Beat me to it.

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PostJan 03, 2019#54

A hotel is going in here and a building permit was applied for interior demolition valued at $700,000. I've also been told that an addition may be constructed to the East of the current YMCA building but I am still trying to get information on that.

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PostJan 04, 2019#55

Heh! Maybe the first new project of 2019? That didn't take long. I'll add it to the list. Looking forward to hearing more about this.

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PostJan 04, 2019#56

symphonicpoet wrote: Heh! Maybe the first new project of 2019? That didn't take long. I'll add it to the list. Looking forward to hearing more about this.
I am guessing we will hear more soon about the cost and architecture firm (among other things). But this project sure is coming fast. Building was bought, fencing went up, windows boarded up and now a permit was applied for and while I know that this doesn’t mean construction will start ASAP, it does show that NuovoRE is serious.

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PostJan 04, 2019#57

If they're pulling permits it sounds serious enough to add it to the "planned" list at least. Already stuck it on the map, just catching up with reading before editing. Trying to, anyway. But people keep posting neat stuff. ;-)

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PostJan 04, 2019#58

I'm glad to know that developers are interested in the building, but how many hotels can downtown St. Louis realistically support? Who is filling all these hotel rooms?

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PostJan 04, 2019#59

stlgasm wrote:
Jan 04, 2019
I'm glad to know that developers are interested in the building, but how many hotels can downtown St. Louis realistically support? Who is filling all these hotel rooms?
Nobody. For each one that opens, you have an Omn/Majestic or Sheraton/City Center or Millennium in various stages of collapse. Onto the next shiny, subsidized thing.

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PostJan 05, 2019#60

That's an interesting assertion, Bprop. Curious as to what's driving your thought process there. I can only offer my observational experience. 3 different times during the last year I have had co-workers coming into town (I work downtown) be forced to book hotels in Clayton and take the metro to downtown as there were no downtown hotels that complied with our company's travel policies (price points for rooms were too high, they were lower in Clayton at major brand name hotel chains.) So either downtown hotels are charging extremely high rates and no one is booking them (as you say) and for some reason won't lower rates in spite of vacancies, or there are in fact plenty of people utilizing these hotels.

Once again, only observational and the data may say otherwise, but your comment runs contrary to my direct experience.

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PostJan 06, 2019#61

newstl2020 wrote:
Jan 05, 2019
That's an interesting assertion, Bprop. Curious as to what's driving your thought process there. I can only offer my observational experience. 3 different times during the last year I have had co-workers coming into town (I work downtown) be forced to book hotels in Clayton and take the metro to downtown as there were no downtown hotels that complied with our company's travel policies (price points for rooms were too high, they were lower in Clayton at major brand name hotel chains.) So either downtown hotels are charging extremely high rates and no one is booking them (as you say) and for some reason won't lower rates in spite of vacancies, or there are in fact plenty of people utilizing these hotels.

Once again, only observational and the data may say otherwise, but your comment runs contrary to my direct experience.
Those are interesting data points too. When my coworkers have come in, they've booked downtown for $110 a night (and that was at the Magnolia (most of the time) and the courtyard Marriott (once). Never an issue. Did they come during open times? Maybe. The only other observations I have are the hotels like the Omni and Sheraton, which are clearly distressed after having been de-branded and operating on a shoestring (example), and others that have closed. All I have are anecdotes, too, but another one is that I've seen far fewer tourists downtown in the past few years. I go out for a walk every day to the Arch and Old Courthouse and it's markedly different than in years past, especially over the summer.

(I will say Hotel St. Louis at 701 Olive is stunning...I just hope it's not displacing rooms from another).

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PostJan 06, 2019#62

(I will say Hotel St. Louis at 701 Olive is stunning...I just hope it's not displacing rooms from another).
100% agreed there. Wow what a tremendous job that group has done with that property. Fingers crossed chemical is next and quickly.

^That could all very well be the case. 3 samples isn't exactly a giant data set. As yours may have booked during open times, mine could have easily been during busy times.

OT, but whatever convention was in town last week or the week before was awesome to see. Bring that thing back every year. Tons of young people roaming about downtown with businesses packed to the gills.

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PostJan 12, 2019#63

Two weeks ago was the Urbana Student Missions Conference which is held every other year in St. Louis the week between Christmas and New Years. A big convention during a normally slow time.

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PostMar 13, 2019#64

This is going to become a 21c museum and hotel

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PostMar 14, 2019#65

Wolfpaw wrote:
Mar 13, 2019
This is going to become a 21c museum and hotel
https://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/new ... s_headline

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PostMar 25, 2019#66

Was in the area and from what I can see whatever is going on with this building is happening at a snails pace.
Is anything being done? There is an occasional hard hat person poking around an exterior window.
Whats the point? Token efforts?

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PostMar 26, 2019#67

hebeters2 wrote:
Mar 25, 2019
Was in the area and from what I can see whatever is going on with this building is happening at a snails pace.
Is anything being done? There is an occasional hard hat person poking around an exterior window.
Whats the point? Token efforts?
I live right next to this place. I see people working on it just about every day. Today, I saw a group of guys in hard hats taking a bunch of stuff out the building and loading it on trucks, so it's possible they're just doing cleanup right now.

I would love someone more "in the know" to let me know though what they're doing.

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PostMar 26, 2019#68

hebeters2 wrote:
Mar 25, 2019
Was in the area and from what I can see whatever is going on with this building is happening at a snails pace.
Is anything being done? There is an occasional hard hat person poking around an exterior window.
Whats the point? Token efforts?
Considering how recently this was announced, I'm actually surprised to hear any work is taking place this soon. Finalizing design work and financing takes a lot of time. Especially when working with any historic tax credits or other government incentives.
Interior demo work, usually done by a separate permit, sometimes even done by a separate set of construction documents, is always done by a pretty light crew. It's a far cry from the massive crews that are on site during the new construction phase.

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PostMar 26, 2019#69

As far as I know, only interior demolition permits have been applied for, and based on some comments here, it sounds like those have been issued. Honestly, this seems to be moving quite fast considering it was only officially announced in late December.

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PostJun 20, 2019#70

some serious lifting now going on:

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PostOct 09, 2019#71

Any update on this project? When I drive by during the day the parking lot is empty.  I presume than that the interior demo is done.

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PostOct 10, 2019#72

chris fuller wrote:
Oct 09, 2019
Any update on this project? When I drive by during the day the parking lot is empty.  I presume than that the interior demo is done.
According to Geo St. Louis, two addenda to their original demolition permit were issued, one on 8/9 with no description, and one on 9/18 for masonry restoration, with a total $4.4 million estimated cost.  They may have found some deterioration or structural issues, or the plans may have changed.  That would explain the addendum and delay (if in fact work has stopped), but looks like they will at least be starting on the exterior soon.

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PostOct 24, 2019#73

Excuse the interruption but does anyone know if this plan for re-do is moving along?  The gut has taken place..whats next? Thank You

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PostOct 24, 2019#74

A good reminder that interior selective demolition and abatement does not equal "construction has started" 

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PostOct 26, 2019#75

chris fuller wrote:
Oct 24, 2019
Excuse the interruption but does anyone know if this plan for re-do is moving along?  The gut has taken place..whats next? Thank You
I'm not sure what kind of structure this is, i.e. reinforced concrete or steel, but next will be work to repair deterioration: masonry repair, tuckpointing, structural replacement and reinforcement; and then leveling floors, new floor and wall openings, etc.

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