The Gateway Arch Foundation has several irons in the fire — and soon, cranes in the sky.
After celebrating 60 years of the Gateway Arch’s construction last year, the foundation and its partners have begun the planning process of reimagining the former site of the Millennium Hotel, studying I-44 near the Arch parkgrounds and expanding the national park to include East St. Louis.
The Millennium Hotel, built in 1968, is currently under demolition. Ryan McClure, executive director of the Gateway Arch Foundation, told St. Louis on the Air that the foundation opted for a clean slate rather than rehabilitation to open up more possibilities.
“[The Millennium Hotel] takes up two city blocks. That causes this physical and psychological barrier between Busch Stadium and the Arch grounds. When you start with a clean slate and figure out how to reconnect that area to Busch Stadium and the Arch grounds, the possibilities are immense.”
In January, the Gateway Arch Foundation, along with partners from the Metro East Park and Recreation District, announced plans to expand Gateway Arch National Park across the Mississippi River to include the Malcolm W. Martin Memorial Park in East St. Louis. While blueprints have yet to be drafted, McClure said that Malcom Martin’s purchase of the land always included the intention for it to become part of the Arch grounds.
“There's a parcel just south of [Malcolm W. Martin Memorial Park] that the City of East St. Louis owns. That was a former industrial site. It needs to be remediated and cleaned up … and they're already working with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources on that,” McClure said. “The Gateway Geyser was there for years, and it was very costly to maintain. I think the Metro East Park and Recreation District made the right decision to shut that down. [Now] we can really reenvision what this looks like for the future.”
McClure said the Gateway Arch Foundation’s work is dependent on the St. Louis community — and it’s their responsibility to deliver plans that support the entire region.
“We need to be showing progress for St. Louis. Everybody that's coming into Downtown in that direction sees it. Come opening day of Cardinal season … [they] are going to see a crane in the air starting to take [the Millennium Hotel] tower down. That is progress. We hope that gives the community hope, inspiration and a belief that we can do hard things and make big things happen as a community.”
For more with Ryan McClure and future plans for the Gateway Arch National Park, Downtown St. Louis and East St. Louis, listen to St. Louis on the Air on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or click the play button below.
“St. Louis on the Air” brings you the stories of St. Louis and the people who live, work and create in our region. The show is produced by Miya Norfleet, Emily Woodbury, Danny Wicentowski, Elaine Cha and Alex Heuer. Layla Halilbasic is our production assistant. The audio engineer is Aaron Doerr.
