The Hotel Majestic St. Louis

The Hotel Majestic St. Louis in St. Louis, Missouri, United States (formerly known as the DeSoto Hotel and the Omni Majestic Hotel) is a restored 91-room historic hotel built in 1913–1914. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.[1]

The Hotel Majestic St. Louis
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Building in June of 2008.
Location	1017-23 Pine St. and 200-10 N. 11th St., St. Louis, Missouri, United States
Coordinates	38°37′43″N 90°11′45″W
Built	1913–1914
Architect	Harry F. Roach and Albert B. Groves
Architectural style	Renaissance
NRHP reference No.	84002653
Added to NRHP	January 26, 1984

The Majestic Hotel has 72,000 square feet (6,700 m²) of space,[2] nine stories and 109 feet (33 m) tall at its maximum height, and is based on a steel frame. It also has brick curtain walls and concrete floors. The hotel was designed as a tri-part structure, including a base, shaft, and capital, and is divided by the use of white terracotta.[3]

Following major renovations over the course of 2018 and 2019, the hotel is planned to debut in August 2020 as Le Méridien St. Louis Downtown.[4]

History

Majestic Hotel

First opened near the end of September, 1914, the hotel is one of St. Louis' few hotels which date from before World War I. The building's Renaissance Revival design is an example of common styles in St. Louis architecture in the 1920s. The hotel was built to serve middle-class guests, but it had advanced fireproofing, two restaurants, and a rathskeller.[3]

In 1913, construction for the hotel began, replacing a three-story building. The hotel cost about $250,000 to build. However, it is unclear who designed the hotel. Plans for the hotel give credit to Harry F. Roach, while building permits list the architect as Albert B. Groves.[3] Both men were well-known St. Louis architects who had each designed various other hotels, but were never in partnership.[3]

DeSoto Hotel

The Majestic Hotel was later renamed the DeSoto Hotel and still served guests until 1979, when it was announced that the building would be replaced with a parking garage due to the high cost needed to restore the building so it could meet more recent building codes. However, the hotel was given to new owners, and they planned to renovate the building for office space.[3] However, a joint venture by Eugene Wolff, Dick Deutsch, and Southwestern Bell,[2] called Majestic Associates, used $7 million to restore the building into a luxury hotel, called the Hotel Majestic.[5] Southwestern Bell also spent $15 million in 1987 to renovate the building. Robert G. Pope of Southwestern Bell was in charge of this renovation.

Crowne Plaza, Omni Majestic Hotel & Le Méridien St. Louis Downtown

In 1996, the hotel was sold for $4.3 million to Bray & Gillespie LLC, which operated it under the Crowne Plaza brand.[2] In 1997, Omni Hotels acquired the hotel from Crowne Plaza and rebranded the property as the Omni Majestic Hotel until 2016, when Omni Hotels & Resorts sold it to Iowa-based Hawkeye Hotels.[6] Hawkeye has been conducting a major renovation of the hotel throughout 2018 and 2019, and will introduce Marriott's Le Méridien brand in St. Louis upon completion in August 2020.[7]

References

1. "MISSOURI - St. Louis County". www.nationalregisterofhistoricalplaces.com. Retrieved 2010-01-02.
2. McLaughlin, Tim (18 March 1996). "Majestic's new owners, Ritz, Hyatt sprucing up". American City Business Journals, Inc. Retrieved 2010-01-03.
3. Stiritz, Mary M. (August 1, 1983). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination: Majestic Hotel / DeSoto Hotel" (PDF). Missouri Department of Natural Resources. Retrieved January 2, 2010. (16 pages, with 3 photos from 1915 and 1983)
4. "Modern Hotel in St Louis | Le Méridien St. Louis Downtown".
5. Sraeel, Holly (1 June 1991). "Hotel Majestic, St. Louis, Missouri". Stamats Communications, Inc. Archived from the original on 2 November 2012. Retrieved 2010-01-03.
6. "Omni Hotels Acquires Crowne Plaza Majestic Hotel In St. Louis". Breaking Travel News. Retrieved 2010-01-03.
7. https://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/stlmo-le-meridien-st-louis-downtown/