Hospitality & Entertainment Facilities

Le Méridien Hotel, Clayton, Mo.

RETROFIT TEAM

ARCHITECT, INTERIOR DESIGNER AND STRUCTURAL ENGINEER: HOK

CONSTRUCTION MANAGER: DAE Group

CONTRACTOR: Russell

CIVIL ENGINEER: Stock & Associates Consulting Engineers

MECHANICAL & PLUMBING ENGINEER*: Murphy

ELECTRICAL ENGINEER*: Guarantee Electric

ACOUSTICS: Longman Lindsey

GARAGE STRUCTURE: EDM

FAÇADE/ENCLOSURE: Mosaic Engineering & Consulting

INTERIOR LIGHTING DESIGN: Reveal Design Group

FEE PURCHASING FIRM: Bray Whaler

ART CONSULTANTS: DAC Art Consulting (Guestrooms and Ballroom/Meeting Rooms) and Eaton Fine Art (Exterior Façade, Lobby and Bar/Restaurant)

*Design-build contractors

MATERIALS

GUESTROOM/GUESTROOM CORRIDOR AND BALLROOM/MEETING ROOM CARPET:
Lexmark/Tarkett

LOBBY & BAR/RESTAURANT CARPET: Shaw

CUSTOM LIGHTING: Innovations in Lighting, Light Annex, Mix by Trinity, Munn Works (Bathroom Mirrors) and Remington Lighting

CUSTOM SEATING: Marquis Seating

KEY FABRIC SELECTIONS: Demar Leather, KB Contract, Kravet, Opuzen, Swavelle, Wolf Gordon and Valley Forge Fabrics

TILE: Iris (Guestrooms) and Florim (Public Spaces and Guestroom Shower Floor Mosaic)

OFF-SHELF FURNITURE SELECTIONS: Arteriors Contract, DWR, Industry West, ISA Seating, Restoration Hardware, Stellar Works and West Elm Contract

WALLCOVERINGS: Carnegie, Koroseal and Wolf Gordon

THE RETROFIT

Silverwest Hotels selected HOK for the major renovation and interior design of the 300,000-square-foot Le Méridien Hotel in downtown Clayton, just outside of St. Louis. To refresh the 17-story building’s exterior, HOK provided all new glazing work; façade updates; a new window system, increasing natural light by 30 percent; and a new porte cochere, giving the building a sleek, modern feel.

For the interior, Le Méridien wanted to create a sophisticated space highlighting St. Louis and its roots as a French city. Upon entering the third-floor lobby, check-in desks echo French writing desks, accented by subtly arching standing lamps of blackened steel and polished brass. Art in the foyer uses organic shapes to create a map of the city of Clayton. The lobby also includes the Salon, a living room and informal business center for guests to gather, filled with mid-century modern furnishings along with dramatic and playful artwork.

Steps from the lobby, guests pass the Inner Parlour restaurant, which features a private dining room for events, a buffet, grab-and-go area, and bar that transitions from breakfast to liquor via sliding panels covered with abstract art. The Grand Salle ballroom features a fleur-de-lis motif and includes a pre-function area, as well as small meeting rooms on the second floor with all new finishes. Denim-blue colors and walnut wood accent the restaurant and ballroom for a Midwestern feel.

For the guestrooms, HOK’s design evokes a modern pied-a-terre. Room furnishings feature a mid-century modern influence with pops of denim-blue color and Hermes orange. Thoughtful design elements help guests unwind as if they were at home, including a large bathroom with an expanded shower, illuminated mirror and more. Amenities include a new outdoor pool on the fifth floor with a lush, open terrace overlooking downtown Clayton. HOK also converted a storage area on the 17th floor into a new fitness center filled with natural light.

The project won a 2021 Building St. Louis Award—Renovation More than $5 Million—from the St. Louis Business Journal.

BEFORE PHOTO: courtesy HOK; AFTER PHOTO: Lauren Rubinstein Photography