Hyatt Centric Opens in Downtown St. Louis's 1910 Shoe Building

Hyatt Hotels Corporation said Monday it has opened Hyatt Centric Downtown St. Louis, marking the brand's first entry into Missouri. The 142-room hotel sits at 1501 Washington Avenue, putting guests within walking distance of the Gateway Arch, Busch Stadium, the City Museum, Forest Park, America's Center Convention Complex and the MetroLink transit line, according to Hyatt.

The hotel occupies an eleven-story building constructed in 1910 as headquarters for the Roberts, Johnson & Rand Shoe Company, once a major force in St. Louis's shoe-manufacturing trade. Hyatt describes the structure's Sullivanesque architecture — slender vertical columns, elaborate ornamentation and Art Nouveau detailing — as a surviving marker of the era when Washington Avenue anchored the city's garment and footwear industries.

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Rooms built around the building's industrial past

Guestrooms pair contemporary furnishings with the building's original bones: high ceilings, oversized windows, abundant natural light and city views. Hyatt says the décor leans industrial-inspired, with open layouts meant to reflect what the company calls St. Louis's welcoming, down-to-earth character. Select rooms and suites include a dedicated seating area with a sofa.

Bill Tirone, general manager of Hyatt Centric Downtown St. Louis, framed the opening as a deliberate attempt to tie the hotel's identity to the building's history rather than treat it as decoration. "Hyatt Centric Downtown St. Louis gives World of Hyatt members and guests a new way to experience the city from the center of the action," Tirone said. "With a welcoming address, thoughtful spaces to gather and easy access to the places that make St. Louis special, the hotel brings the city's history forward rather than treating it as a backdrop, giving guests a downtown base with a genuine sense of place."

Dining and gathering spaces round out the property

Hyatt positions the Centric brand toward travelers it calls lighthearted and adventurous — guests who want a home base for exploring rather than a destination unto itself. In keeping with that pitch, the hotel includes dining spaces described by Hyatt as rooted in St. Louis's own food story, aimed at drawing both overnight guests and local visitors looking for a place to gather downtown.

The opening adds another adaptive-reuse project to Hyatt's U.S. portfolio and gives the company a flagship-style presence on Washington Avenue, a corridor that has drawn redevelopment interest in recent years as former industrial and garment-district buildings have been converted to hotels, apartments and office space. No additional Centric-branded openings in Missouri have been announced.