ST. LOUIS (KMOX) - Cardinals president Bill DeWitt III says they are ahead of pre-leasing projections at One Cardinal Way.
KMOX News rode the construction elevator to the 10th and 17th floors of the residential tower with DeWitt, who says 40 percent of units are already claimed.
A similar project by development partner Cordish Companies in Kansas City was only 25 percent leased at this point.
DeWitt says those signing to pre-lease include young business professionals, travelers who often visit St. Louis (not just for baseball he says), and corporate groups securing units for employees or entertaining.
"We're underserved in the downtown market for high-level residential," DeWitt III says. "It's just a unique product in St. Louis right now."
Lease rates range from about $1,400 to more than $7,000 a month.
He says even the Cardinals themselves are eyeing a few units, possibly to house players like a mid-season trade acquisition or minor leaguer who may just be a temporary resident in St. Louis.
"As you know, we have a lot of players that come up and down from Memphis during the season and we house them usually in hotels. We'll continue to do that, but we've talked about incorporating maybe a unit or two," he told KMOX.
When finished, the 29-story tower and its 297 apartments will be home to some of the best views of not just Busch Stadium, but the hustle and bustle of downtown and the Mississippi.
"I love it in terms of the movement," DeWitt said. "You're seeing a barge go down the river, cars criss-crossing on 64, cars moving away from you on 70, Broadway they're moving down away from you... and you can't hear any of it."
We also peered out the window of a living room, where the balcony overlooks a barbecue area and infinity pool, which in turn overlooks the baseball field. Rooms are still being formed with steel and drywall.
While construction workers are averaging a new floor to One Cardinal Way about every ten days, other elements of the $300 million phase two to Ballpark Village are closer to completion, beginning with the office building.
"We start rolling our openings in about a month and go all the way through to Opening Day," when residents might start moving in, DeWitt says.