Built St. Louis: Recalled to Life
The Merchandise Mart

Behold! One of the greatest treasures of the Washington Avenue garment district is this, the Merchandise Mart. Hewn from massive rusticated blocks of granite at street level, with terra cotta details far above, this building holds a truly commanding position on the street, filling an entire city block.

The scale of this building is truly immense. The sheer size of the granite blocks at street level boggles the imagination.

The great old warehouse was abandoned and unused for many years; however, renovation began in the summer of 2001. The building has been converted into 213 apartments, which began opening at the end of 2002. True to the building's scale, it's the largest residential project downtown in many years. The work was done by HRI, also responsible for the convention hotel at the old Statler just down the street; it is the largest of numerous loft conversions happening in the old garment district of Washington Avenue.

Next site