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An RFP calls for new uses for Louis Sullivan’s Wainwright Building in St. Louis
Last year, Louis Sullivan’s Wainwright Building was listed for sale, raising concerns among preservationists and historians about the fate of one of America’s earliest and most influential office buildings.
Now, after acquiring the building for $8.25 million, a private equity firm is exploring potential uses for the site, prompting new questions about how the historic structure will be preserved, or transformed, for the future.
Arch to Park Equity, the real estate fund coordinated by Greater St.
Louis, Inc., issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) last week inviting developers, architects, and preservationists to submit plans for the future of the historic Wainwright Building.
The document states the firm is “looking for the best ideas from around the world to redevelop the Wainwright Building into an anchor and destination in the heart of Downtown St.
Louis.” The winning plan will demonstrate alignment with local planning guidelines, practical feasibility, and, most importantly, the greatest benefit to the growing neighborhood.
“The site offers the unique potential to catalyze the surrounding neighborhood while preserving and enhancing an architectural and historic asset,” the RFP continued.
“A successful proposal will celebrate St.
Louis’s past while providing a visual statement about its future.”
The Wainwright Building, designed by Louis Sullivan, was built in 1891 with an addition built a century later.
The 10-story, terra-cotta building predates many of Sullivan’s most well-known buildings like the Bayard-Condict Building in New York and the Sullivan Center in Chicago.
It is considered by many to be one of the country’s first office towers.
Frank Lloyd Wright called it “the very first human expression of a tall steel office-building as Architecture.”
Originally built for a local brewer, the tower on 709 Chestnut Street’s most recognizable features are its decorative elements, open courtyards, and the 16-foot ceiling and sky view roof located on its ground floor.
The Wainwright Building was landmarked in 1968 by the National Register of Historic Places and declared a local landmark in 1972.
After narrowly escaping demolition in the 1960s, the Wainwright Building was purchased by the state of Missouri in 1974 and housed government offices until its recent sale to Arch to Park Equity Fund.
Proceeds from the sale will go toward a new government facility in Chesterfield, a suburb 40 minutes west of downtown St.
Louis, with state officials citing rising costs and concerns about crime as key reasons for the move.
Arch to Park Equity Fund, however, appears confident in the neighborhood’s future pointing to “momentum” in the development in Downtown St.
Louis.
Over the past decade, the neighborhood’s residential population has nearly doubled, now surpassing 11,000 residents.
With a high concentration of office buildings and local landmarks, the area also attracts nearly 75,000 commuters and visitors each day.
The RFP highlights several key developments contributing to this growth, including the planned redevelopment of the Millennium Hotel, the construction of the Brickline Greenway on the east side of Energizer Park, a growing slate of social and cultural activities, and a declining crime rate.
Just blocks away from two of St.
Louis’s most recognizable landmarks—the Gateway Arch and Busch Stadium—Arch to Park Equity Fund wants the Wainwright Building to become a new cornerstone of St.
Louis’s Downtown neighborhood, blending historic preservation with innovative, community-driven redevelopment.
The full RFP outlines the materials consultants are required to submit.
The deadline for proposals is July 4 at 3:00 p.m.
CST.
Source: https://www.archpaper.com/2025/05/rfp-louis-sullivan-wainwright-building-st-louis/" style="color: #0066cc;">https://www.archpaper.com/2025/05/rfp-louis-sullivan-wainwright-building-st-louis/
#rfp #calls #for #new #uses #louis #sullivans #wainwright #building
An RFP calls for new uses for Louis Sullivan’s Wainwright Building in St. Louis
Last year, Louis Sullivan’s Wainwright Building was listed for sale, raising concerns among preservationists and historians about the fate of one of America’s earliest and most influential office buildings.
Now, after acquiring the building for $8.25 million, a private equity firm is exploring potential uses for the site, prompting new questions about how the historic structure will be preserved, or transformed, for the future.
Arch to Park Equity, the real estate fund coordinated by Greater St.
Louis, Inc., issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) last week inviting developers, architects, and preservationists to submit plans for the future of the historic Wainwright Building.
The document states the firm is “looking for the best ideas from around the world to redevelop the Wainwright Building into an anchor and destination in the heart of Downtown St.
Louis.” The winning plan will demonstrate alignment with local planning guidelines, practical feasibility, and, most importantly, the greatest benefit to the growing neighborhood.
“The site offers the unique potential to catalyze the surrounding neighborhood while preserving and enhancing an architectural and historic asset,” the RFP continued.
“A successful proposal will celebrate St.
Louis’s past while providing a visual statement about its future.”
The Wainwright Building, designed by Louis Sullivan, was built in 1891 with an addition built a century later.
The 10-story, terra-cotta building predates many of Sullivan’s most well-known buildings like the Bayard-Condict Building in New York and the Sullivan Center in Chicago.
It is considered by many to be one of the country’s first office towers.
Frank Lloyd Wright called it “the very first human expression of a tall steel office-building as Architecture.”
Originally built for a local brewer, the tower on 709 Chestnut Street’s most recognizable features are its decorative elements, open courtyards, and the 16-foot ceiling and sky view roof located on its ground floor.
The Wainwright Building was landmarked in 1968 by the National Register of Historic Places and declared a local landmark in 1972.
After narrowly escaping demolition in the 1960s, the Wainwright Building was purchased by the state of Missouri in 1974 and housed government offices until its recent sale to Arch to Park Equity Fund.
Proceeds from the sale will go toward a new government facility in Chesterfield, a suburb 40 minutes west of downtown St.
Louis, with state officials citing rising costs and concerns about crime as key reasons for the move.
Arch to Park Equity Fund, however, appears confident in the neighborhood’s future pointing to “momentum” in the development in Downtown St.
Louis.
Over the past decade, the neighborhood’s residential population has nearly doubled, now surpassing 11,000 residents.
With a high concentration of office buildings and local landmarks, the area also attracts nearly 75,000 commuters and visitors each day.
The RFP highlights several key developments contributing to this growth, including the planned redevelopment of the Millennium Hotel, the construction of the Brickline Greenway on the east side of Energizer Park, a growing slate of social and cultural activities, and a declining crime rate.
Just blocks away from two of St.
Louis’s most recognizable landmarks—the Gateway Arch and Busch Stadium—Arch to Park Equity Fund wants the Wainwright Building to become a new cornerstone of St.
Louis’s Downtown neighborhood, blending historic preservation with innovative, community-driven redevelopment.
The full RFP outlines the materials consultants are required to submit.
The deadline for proposals is July 4 at 3:00 p.m.
CST.
Source: https://www.archpaper.com/2025/05/rfp-louis-sullivan-wainwright-building-st-louis/
#rfp #calls #for #new #uses #louis #sullivans #wainwright #building
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