ST. LOUIS, July 11, 2018 — Loews Hotels & Co, The Cordish Companies and the St. Louis Cardinals today released new hotel renderings and officially broke ground on the new $65 million Live! by Loews – St. Louis, MO hotel which will be located inside the second phase of Ballpark Village. Executives from Loews, Cordish and the Cardinals were joined by St. Louis Cardinals hall of famer, Ozzie Smith, St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson, Kitty Ratcliffe of Explore St. Louis and local business and community leaders to celebrate the new addition to the St. Louis hotel landscape.
The hotel will be the first St. Louis hotel for New York based Loews Hotels & Co and will be part of Ballpark Village's $260 million phase two expansion. Ballpark Village, developed by The Cordish Companies and the St. Louis Cardinals, is a mixed-use dining and entertainment district adjacent to Busch Stadium.
"We are thrilled to partner with Loews Hotels & Co on their first St. Louis hotel," stated Bill DeWitt III, President of the St. Louis Cardinals. "Live! by Loews – St. Louis, MO will be an incredible anchor for Ballpark Village and a tremendous step forward in fulfilling our vision of creating a world-class, mixed-use destination next to Busch Stadium."
Loews Hotels & Co has made a commitment to expand its Midwest presence over the course of the last several years, with the additions of Loews Chicago, Loews Chicago O'Hare and Loews Minneapolis. Earlier this year Loews announced the 800-room, Loews Kansas City Convention Center Hotel, which will open in 2020.
"We continue to make deliberate investments in growing Loews Hotels & Co, in key markets around the U.S., with nearly $2 billion in hotel development projects underway. Today marks a first as we expand into the St. Louis market," says Jonathan M. Tisch, Chairman & CEO, Loews Hotels & Co. "Partnering with The Cordish Companies and the St. Louis Cardinals allows us to focus on bringing the Loews hotel experience to market with absolute confidence."
"Loews Hotels & Co is one of the most respected hoteliers in North America and their involvement is a tremendous coup for Ballpark Village and the City of St. Louis," said Blake Cordish, Vice President of The Cordish Companies. "Live! by Loews – St. Louis, MO represents a partnership between three great companies, brands and families. Today's celebration is a major step forward in transforming Ballpark Village into a vibrant 24/7 neighborhood for downtown St. Louis."
Live! by Loews – St. Louis, MO will become the second hotel to carry the Live! by Loews name. The first announced location, Live! by Loews – Arlington, TX, is currently under construction and will open in the heart of the Arlington Entertainment District between the Texas Rangers' Globe Life Park and the Dallas Cowboys' AT&T Stadium. Live! by Loews – Arlington, TX will anchor the $250 million world-class Texas Live! dining, entertainment and hospitality destination, opening August 9, 2018 in partnership between The Cordish Companies, the Texas Rangers and the City of Arlington.
Live! by Loews – St. Louis, MO will be located at the intersection of Clark and 8th Streets and will become a spectacular destination for sports fans, families, and visitors, as well as a premier location for meetings and special events. The eight-story hotel tower is part of a dynamic plan to complete a full build-out of Clark Street, transforming it into one of the most unique city streets in all of professional sports.
"I am excited to celebrate this major milestone and welcome Loews Hotels & Co to St. Louis," stated Lyda Krewson, Mayor of St. Louis. "Live! by Loews – St. Louis, MO will be an incredible new amenity for Ballpark Village and will create a special hospitality experience for downtown."
"We are thrilled that Loews Hotels & Co has chosen to enter the St. Louis market with Live! by Loews – St. Louis, MO," stated Kitty Ratcliffe, President of Explore St Louis. "Loews properties are more than just hotels, they are destinations, and we know the prestige of the Loews name will draw more people to our region to explore what our great city has to offer."
Designed by internationally-acclaimed HKS Architects Hospitality Studio, the hotel's exterior architecture and interior design will be influenced by local St. Louis character and the rich history of the St. Louis Cardinals, including inspiration used for Busch Stadium. On the exterior of the building, a 6-story mural will artistically show the footprints of Busch Memorial Stadium (Busch II) and the current Busch Stadium, a celebration of old and new. Throughout the interior of the hotel, designed elements will be carried through by locally-inspired artwork, fabrics and textures.
Live! by Loews – St. Louis, MO will provide guests an unprecedented upscale experience that blends sports and entertainment with first-class hospitality. The hotel will feature 216 luxury guestrooms, including 19 suites, as well as superior amenity space including:
Great Room and Outdoor Terrace:
The Great Room is a sophisticated lounge that offers both indoor and outdoor guest experiences providing the opportunity to enjoy premier food and beverage offerings, private dining options, and an impressive digital AV experience that showcases sports, entertainment and art.
Located on the first level of the hotel, the Great Room flows from an intimate indoor lounge area to an outdoor terrace featuring an indoor/outdoor bar called the Gashouse Gang, a nod to the baseball team of the St. Louis Cardinals in 1934. This heritage of the Gashouse Gang will be celebrated on an exterior wall where the names of each player from this team will be honored in a custom piece of art. The outdoor terrace will feature significant seating with fire pits and gas lanterns.
Open Display Kitchen and Wine Bar:
This dual-purpose area on the first floor will offer two unique guest experiences. During the day, an open display kitchen will offer breakfast and brunch options and at night, the space will become a chef-driven wine and cocktail bar where guests will be able to enjoy a careful selection of wine, craft cocktails made by the finest mixologists and farm-to-table menu options.
Bourbon Bar:
Designed with the soft amber glow of whisky in mind, guests will be able to enjoy a highly exclusive selection of bourbon within this special amenity space on the first floor. The Bourbon Bar will offer the perfect place for guests to unwind, as well a one-of-a-kind private event space for intimate parties. One-hundred-year-old traveling trunks used to transport Cardinals equipment are incorporated into the room's wood work and add a special historic element to this space.
Second Level Terrace Bar:
Located on the hotel's second level amenity deck, the Terrace Bar will boast incredible views of Busch Stadium, downtown St. Louis and the Gateway Arch. An upscale bar and lounge area, the Terrace Bar will feature an exclusive cocktail menu, as well as significant seating with fire pits and an expansive media wall. The Terrace Bar will be partially covered by a permanent roof, allowing guests to still enjoy an open-air atmosphere.
Grand Ballroom, Meeting and Special Event Space:
Also located on the hotel's second level, Live! by Loews – St. Louis, MO will feature 17,000 square feet of meeting and special event space, showing off the same incredible views of the St. Louis skyline. The east side of the Grand Ballroom features all glass doors which will be able to open up to an exclusive event lawn. Live! by Loews – St. Louis, MO will also feature an Executive Board Room and several break out meeting rooms.
Additional Four Star Amenities:
Additional four star amenities include a porte-cochere entrance with 24-hour valet services, concierge services and fitness facilities.
Live! by Loews – St. Louis, MO is part of the 700,000 square foot second phase expansion of Ballpark Village that will also feature a 29-story luxury high-rise apartment tower, One Cardinal Way, the first Class-A office building built in downtown St. Louis in nearly thirty years, anchored by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), as well as a three-story retail pavilion anchored by Onelife Fitness. Just as the first phase of Ballpark Village created more than 1,000 construction jobs and 1,700 permanent new jobs when it opened, the second phase of Ballpark Village stands to create 1,500 construction jobs and more than 1,000 permanent new jobs.
