Sherman and Loftworks' $69-million plan for acquiring and redeveloping the 500,000-sf property, one of the largest vacant buildings in Downtown St. Louis, calls for its conversion into 84 loft apartments, 91 affordable and market rate condominiums, 21,000 sf of retail space, three art galleries and its three levels of parking.

The entry into the St. Louis market marks a major step in the regional expansion of Sherman Associates. Long active in the Twin Cities, the 25-year-old firm has completed more than $250 million worth of development in Minneapolis, St. Paul and Des Moines, IA. One of its largest projects to date is its redevelopment of the historic Sears tower on Lake Street in Minneapolis into loft apartments and condominiums, many of them high end. Sherman Associates also has major redevelopment projects planned in Kansas City, MO and Milwaukee, WI.

George Sherman, president of Sherman Associates, says his firm has the opportunity to "restore this grand lady to her former glory while bringing new energy and urban living choices to Downtown." The massive building once housed the Scruggs-Vandervoort-Barney department store, which closed in 1967. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the building's exterior features an ornamental terra cotta façade.The residential portion of the building will include one, two and three bedroom condominium units, with three-level penthouse lofts with rooftop decks on the top two floors.