ST. LOUIS — The Sears, Roebuck & Co. was more than a department store for north St. Louis residents. It was a place where people met their future spouse. Neighbors can recall the names of the first Black store managers. Children at St. Roch School got their uniforms there.
After Sears started opening stores in the suburbs in the late 1950s, the Sears building at 1408 North Kingshighway Blvd. suffered a slow death, closing in 1976. It was renamed the Victor Roberts Building six years later and became the home of the Roberts brothers' real estate and development, construction, broadcasting and other businesses.
When the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis outgrew its headquarters, it didn't take long for its board of directors to decide to restore the building as the area's "crown jewel," said Michael McMillan, president and CEO of the organization, which is the largest Urban League affiliate in the country.
