The owner of the hotel hopes to enhance its Old World charm by serving tea and adding more period-style couches and chairs in the lobby. Also, the guest rooms, cafe, banquet rooms and meeting rooms also will be remodeled and new furniture, wall coverings and carpeting will be added throughout. Other changes include expanding the fitness center, adding safes in guest rooms, increasing the number of king-size beds and installing computer hook-ups in many rooms.

The hotel's 2003 average occupancy rate was 70%, better than the average rate of 55.6% for the St. Paul market. The Saint Paul Hotel's average nightly room rate was $140 last year. The priciest room costs $625.

Last year, Mobil Travel Guide's rating of the Saint Paul Hotel fell to three stars from four. The hotel's revenue has been flat since 2001.

Lucius P. Ordway built the Saint Paul as the city's "million-dollar hotel" using architects Reed & Stem, who designed New York's Grand Central Terminal. The Saint Paul Hotel is now Downtown's second largest hotel after the Radisson Riverfront.

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