The view looking east along Olive. The buildings in the foreground were demolished in the late 1990s.

A February 19, 1999 Post-Dispatch article detailed some aspects of Trampe's plans:

"...Even in its woebegone state, this old skyscrapter retains a certain shabby majesty. And a certain dream, now residing on the shoulders of a 46-year-old developer, Stephn L. Trampe, of Owen Development in Brentwood, to maybe recaptuer the fleeting glory the old building once had.

"Trampe has a $22.5 million plan to breath new life into the Continental, with most of the money going to converting it into a residential building with 101 apartments and monthly rentals ranging from $550 to $4,400 for the two-floor townhouse at the top. His plans include some comercial properties, including a restaurant, on the first and second floors.

"Not long ago, Trampe applied for a $12 million loan guarantee from the Department of Housing and Urban Development and hopes ot get $6 million in state and federal tax credits.

"The city's Land Reutilization Authority owns the building and will sell it to Trame for $1, if all the financing and due diligence checks fall into place."

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