ST. LOUIS — 2021 will usher in a new mayor for the city of St. Louis and, potentially, a new developer for its largest, vacant office building.
The former AT&T tower, at 909 Chestnut St., in downtown's central business district could have a new owner after an auction set to happen this week was called off when bondholders received an offer from a buyer.
The building, once the headquarters for AT&T and its predecessor Southwestern Bell, is the state's largest office building by square footage at 1.4 million square feet. It has sat vacant since 2017 when AT&T moved out.
Although no further details about the deal — including the buyer — are known, it could mean the start of a long-awaited turnaround for the property and the commercial real estate market downtown, which has the region's largest office vacancy rate.
The Business Journal asked the two candidates for St. Louis mayor, Treasurer Tishaura Jones and Alderwoman Cara Spencer, what they think should happen with the building:
"The AT&T building is a fantastic opportunity to bring an anchor institution to our downtown. If we’re not able to find someone to take over the entire building, we’ll need to explore multiple uses and multiple tenants. The next mayor, in partnership with (St. Louis Development Corp.), is going to need to be a champion and cheerleader for our city and help bring businesses to our downtown," Jones said. "However, I will also be intentional about our investments north of Delmar and will not lead with tax incentives where they are not necessary."
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