Foreclosure is filed on Arcade building
Written on December 12, 2009
A foreclosure notice filed Thursday is the latest financial twist for the Arcade building, a downtown St. Louis landmark whose conversion to luxury condominiums was a casualty of the nationwide housing collapse.
The foreclosure sale, scheduled for Dec. 31, is against owner Arcade Owner LLC, an affiliate of Pyramid Construction Inc. Bank of America was the lender on the Arcade project.
Pyramid, headed by developer John Steffen, was once the leader in residential construction downtown before it went out of business in April 2008.
Interior demolition of the Arcade, at Eighth and Olive streets, was under way in 2007 when work halted.
The Arcade, erected in 1917, is notable for its interior shopping arcade that runs the length of the first two floors payday loans. Pyramid planned to put about 125 condos in the building.
Barbara Geisman, the deputy mayor for development, said foreclosure "could be a step along the road to getting the building back in circulation and available for development."
Pending in the Board of Aldermen is an ordinance to approve a blighting study and a redevelopment plan for the building.
Filed in: economics.