The historic St. Louis Hotel in Calgary’s East Village, once a watering hole famously patronized by former Alberta premier Ralph Klein, re-opened its doors Friday.
Designated a historic site by the city in 2008, the building was purchased and restored by the Calgary Municipal Land Corporation as part of 20-year-plan to revitalize the East Village.
“We’re pretty proud of the fact that we’ve restored the building,” said Susan Veres, senior vice-president for strategy and business development at the CMLC. “Its structure was so compromised, it was falling in on top of itself.”
The St. Louis Hotel on December 9, 2014.
The front facade of the building, including its neon sign and white panelling, were restored to mimic the hotel’s appearance in 1949.
The St. Louis Hotel was developed in 1914 in anticipation of the extension of the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway to Fort Calgary, but locals will probably best remember it for the infamous fantasy indoor horse races that took place in the basement every Friday from approximately 1985 to 1995.
Original signage from the Cecil Hotel now lives inside the newly renovated St. Louis Hotel.
These races, as well as Klein’s patronage, have been celebrated by an art installation in the elevator of the restored building.
The building will serve as the CMLC’s head office until 2018, while the main floor will be used as a community space and can be booked for events starting on Sept. 1. Eventually, the CMLC plans to hand over space to retail and office tenants.
