By Nathan Rubbelke

Law firm Baker Sterchi Cowden & Rice LLC is relocating its office within downtown St. Louis, with plans to take an entire floor at the Deloitte Building.

Baker Sterchi is moving from Broadway Tower, 100 N. Broadway, to the Deloitte Building at 100 S. 4th St. It will occupy the Deloitte Building’s ninth
floor, leasing 22,800 square feet. The timeline for the relocation wasn’t
immediately known.

Baker Sterchi specializes in civil litigation defense. It ranks 20th among St. Louis’ largest law firms with 36 local licensed attorneys. It has 77 local employees and a total headcount of 194. In addition to its downtown office, Baker Sterchi has locations in Belleville; Edwardsville; Seattle; Kansas City; Portland; and Overland Park, Kansas. Baker Sterchi occupies about 22,000 square feet at its downtown office at 100 N. Broadway, said Paul Larson, whose Larson Capital Management has ownership in the building.

“Baker Sterchi’s move to the Deloitte Building underscores our commitment to providing our team with the best possible environment as we continue to grow. The investment in this property, along with its strategic location and thoughtful upgrades, positions us for long-term success in the heart of downtown St. Louis,” Michael B. Hunter, member in charge of the law firm’s St. Louis office, said in a statement.

The 12-story, 260,000-square-foot Deloitte Building is owned by Los Angeles based investment manager Stanton Road, which says it is currently adding new
amenities at the downtown tower. It is adding the “The Outpost” to the
building to include a fitness center, 100-plus person conference facility, tenant
lounge and grab-and-go food choices. It said the new amenities are slated to be
completed by the end of 2025.

Terms of Baker Sterchi’s lease weren’t disclosed. Marketing materials for the
Deloitte Building list the asking rate at $17.75 per square foot. Stanton Road was
represented by brokers Brandon Wappelhorst, Nick Fiquette and Tom Bajardi
of Sansone Group in the lease transaction. CBRE brokers Rick Messey and Rollie
Fors represented Baker Sterchi.

Baker Sterchi is the second firm in recent months to sign a lease to relocate
within downtown to the Deloitte Building. Health insurance provider Anthem
Blue Cross and Blue Shield in Missouri said in December it’s moving from its
longtime office at 1831 Chestnut St. in Downtown West to the Deloitte Building,
where it’ll occupy just under 50,000 square feet. The Deloitte Building lost
major tenant Polsinelli in 2024 when it moved to Clayton. Law firm Polsinelli
had about 110,000 square feet at the Deloitte Building.

“With Baker Sterchi Cowden & Rice’s relocation, there’s been 72,800 square
feet of leasing at the Deloitte Building in the last six months, the most net new
absorption of any Class A property downtown. We’re pleased to help drive the
clear momentum in the area,” said Timothy T. Ronan Jr., founder and
managing partner of Stanton Road Capital, in a statement.

The downtown submarket has office vacancy of 25.3%, according to first
quarter research from CBRE.

The Deloitte Building is located adjacent to the vacant Millennium Hotel, where
redevelopment is being pursued. The Gateway Arch Park Foundation, which
has the former hotel property under contract to purchase, in February selected
Baltimore-based Cordish Cos. as the site’s redeveloper. Cordish has unveiled a
proposed $670 million redevelopment plan.

Broadway Tower, where Baker Sterchi is currently based, in 2020 was acquired
for $19.9 million by a partnership including Larson Capital Management and
Robert Hermann, head of Hermann Cos. The new ownership, following the
acquisition, spent $18 million to upgrade the building’s common spaces. Larson
CEO Paul Larson said Wednesday there are plans to renovate Broadway Tower’s
top floors for more amenity space for its tenants. Larson said the building
sought to retain Baker Sterchi but it would have required the law firm to
remain in its same suite as it completed office renovations, which Larson added
is “not ideal.”

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