City Foundry STL

What City Foundry STL does

City Foundry STL is a 15-acre adaptive reuse mixed-use development in Midtown St. Louis that opened its food hall in 2022 and has rapidly scaled to become the city's #5 tourism destination, attracting 2.34 million visitors in 2025. The development features a curated 19-kitchen food hall overseen by James Beard Award winner Gerard Craft and operated by Niche Food Group, alongside 227,000 square feet of retail, restaurant and entertainment space, 107,000+ square feet of office space, and the recently opened One Foundry Way residential high-rise. Notable tenants include Alamo Drafthouse, Puttshack, Sandbox VR, The Escape Game, Museum of Illusions, City Winery, The Injection Bar medspa, and event venue 18Rails operated by Butler's Pantry.

The development is owned and operated by New + Found, a developer led by the father-son team of Steve and Will Smith, which leveraged nearly $58 million in monetized state and federal historic tax credits to capitalize the $344 million total project on a former Century Electric manufacturing site (purchased in the 1920s, near-24-hour operations ceased in 2007). The company generates revenue through tenant leasing across retail, restaurant, entertainment, and office spaces at 94% occupancy, supplemented by food hall operations and events programming. District-level taxable sales reached $60.3 million in 2025, up from $56.2 million in 2024 and $1.97 million in 2021, reflecting a 2,700% multi-year expansion.

City Foundry STL serves a diverse end-consumer base spanning local St. Louis residents, families, corporate teams, entertainment seekers, and wellness-focused visitors, while its B2B customers are tenants across more than 19 food hall kitchens, a dozen entertainment and retail operators, and office occupants including the tech startup Noise. The site is positioned adjacent to the Cortex innovation hub with MetroLink access and free parking, contributing to a live-work-play ecosystem within an area that has seen $8 billion in surrounding development and is identified as the fastest-growing submarket in the region.

Name

City Foundry STL

Legal name

City Foundry STL

Website

https://cityfoundrystl.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

City Foundry STL is a 15-acre adaptive reuse mixed-use development in Midtown St. Louis offering a 19-kitchen curated food hall, entertainment venues, retail, office, and residential space. It attracts 2.34 million annual visitors and generates $60.3 million in district taxable sales, serving local residents, families, corporate teams, and entertainment seekers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

St Louis

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Retail and Restaurant Tenant Leasing: City Foundry generates primary revenue through leasing space to retail, restaurant, entertainment, and office tenants across its 227,000 square feet of retail/restaurant/entertainment space and 107,000+ square feet of office space.
2. Events and Programming: Revenue generated through public events, private event bookings, and community programming that drives foot traffic to tenants.
3. Food Hall Operations: Management of the 19+ kitchen food hall featuring local independent food operators, with taxable sales reaching $60.3 million in 2025.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

City Foundry STL is a 15-acre mixed-use adaptive reuse development in Midtown St. Louis featuring a 19-kitchen food hall, 227,000+ square feet of retail/restaurant/entertainment space, 107,000+ square feet of office space, entertainment venues, event spaces, wellness services, and residential apartments. The company operates as a landlord/developer leasing space to tenants, manages the curated food hall destination, and hosts a robust calendar of public events and corporate team-building experiences.

Product overview

City Foundry STL is a 15-acre mixed-use adaptive reuse development in Midtown St. Louis featuring a Food Hall with 19 local kitchens overseen by James Beard winner Gerard Craft, diverse entertainment venues including Alamo Drafthouse, Puttshack, Sandbox VR, The Escape Game, Great Big Game Show, Museum of Illusions, and City Winery, retail shops, event spaces like 18 Rails, wellness services such as The Injection Bar, and residential living at One Foundry Way. The destination serves as a live-work-play community hub attracting over 2 million visitors annually, positioned near the Cortex innovation district.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Food Hall A 19-kitchen food hall at City Foundry STL featuring diverse local cuisines including Yucatecan, Creole, Mediterranean, Afro-Caribbean, Neapolitan pizza, poke bowls, Indian street food, and BBQ, overseen by James Beard Award winner Gerard Craft and operated by independent local food operators. Food Hall gift cards are available for purchase at any kitchen or online.
• 18 Rails Event Venue A 6,724 square foot event venue with standing capacity for up to 700 guests, featuring industrial aesthetics and located inside the Food Hall. Operated by Butler's Pantry, an established hospitality industry innovator.
• Connect Your Team (Corporate Event Hosting) Corporate event hosting service allowing teams to gather at the Food Hall with wristbands or gift cards for 19 local kitchen options, with reserved seating available for 40-100+ guests.
• One Foundry Way Residential Apartments Market rate apartment high-rise in Midtown St. Louis representing the first new market-rate residential high-rise in the district in half a century; part of New + Found's City Foundry development with additional residential phases planned.
• Retail Shops (Tenant Retail Program) Curated collection of retail tenants at City Foundry STL including Big Shark Bicycle Co., Candle Fusion, City Winery, Fresh Thyme, Garden District STL, Golden Gems, Luxe Redux Bridal, MoModerne, and other independent retailers.
• Alamo Drafthouse Cinema Movie theater featuring chef-inspired food menus paired with films, interactive Movie Party presentations, and dine-in service at City Foundry STL.
• Puttshack Tech-Infused Mini Golf Tech-infused mini golf venue featuring upscale bites and handcrafted cocktails served on the course at City Foundry STL.
• Sandbox VR Virtual reality experience featuring real-time motion capture technology, latest generation VR headsets, and 4 private holodecks hosting up to six guests each at City Foundry STL.
• The Escape Game Immersive escape room experience with five diverse themes featuring Hollywood-level sets, 60-minute missions, puzzles, and unlimited clues at City Foundry STL.
• Great Big Game Show Live-action immersive game show experience with real hosts, featuring 18 mini-games including trivia, strategy games, and win-it-style challenges at City Foundry STL.
• Museum of Illusions Interactive experience featuring holograms, mind-bending illusion rooms, and astonishing exhibits that puzzle perceptions at City Foundry STL.
• Fordo's Killer Pizza Wood-fired Neapolitan pizza restaurant from James Beard Award winner Gerard Craft and Niche Food Group, featuring sourdough dough and flour from northern Italy, located within City Foundry STL Food Hall.
• Chez Ali Afro-Caribbean restaurant by owner Alioun Thiam featuring Senegalese and Caribbean cuisine including jerk chicken, curry, thieboudienne, and fried plantains, located within City Foundry STL Food Hall.
• Chicken Scratch Elevated rotisserie chicken restaurant founded by Nate and Christine Hereford, featuring house-made sauces and Rotisol rotisserie oven, located within City Foundry STL Food Hall.
• Sur Este Yucatan cuisine restaurant by chef/owner Alex Henry featuring cochinita pibil tacos, tamales, and locally sourced ingredients from St. Louis area farms, located within City Foundry STL Food Hall.
• City Winery Fully functioning winery featuring intimate concerts, live performances, upscale dining, and private event spaces at City Foundry STL.
• None of the Above (NOTA) Speakeasy Sophisticated speakeasy cocktail lounge in historic underground tunnels at City Foundry STL, curated by Niche Food Group Bar Manager Fionna Gemzon, emphasizing luxury spirits and technique-driven cocktails.
• Urban Fort Play

Quantifiable outcome

• 2.34 million visitors in 2025 (6.9% YoY increase)
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• STL Bucket ListcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 May 2025City Foundry partners with STL Bucket List to co-produce the Live Art Market series and community events. The May 21, 2025 Tornado Relief Night was a collaborative effort to raise funds and engage volunteers for community cleanup efforts following devastating storms.
• New + Found (Development Company)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNew + Found, led by Steve and Will Smith (father and son team), is the developer and operator of City Foundry STL. The Smiths oversee the development, leasing, events programming, and ongoing evolution of the 15-acre destination.
• Butler's PantrycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerButler's Pantry operates 18Rails, the 6,724 square foot event venue within City Foundry with standing capacity for up to 700 guests. Butler's Pantry is described as an established innovator in the hospitality industry.
• Niche Food GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNiche Food Group, founded by James Beard Award winner Gerard Craft, operates multiple food hall concepts including Fordo's Killer Pizza and None of the Above speakeasy. Niche Food Group Bar Manager Fionna Gemzon curates the cocktail program.
• Cortex Innovation CommunityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCity Foundry is located near the Cortex innovation hub, St. Louis's tech district. The proximity creates a live-work-play ecosystem, with 3,100 employees within 3 miles and tech startup Noise as an office tenant.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Industry City: Brooklyn adaptive reuse mixed-use complex featuring food hall, retail, offices, and event spaces on a former industrial waterfront site. Closely matches the adaptive reuse + food hall + entertainment + office model.
• Ponce City Market: Adaptive reuse mixed-use destination in Atlanta featuring a curated food hall, retail, offices, and entertainment on a former industrial site. Operates an analogous live-work-play destination model targeting urban experience seekers.
• Chelsea Market: Iconic NYC food hall and retail destination in a converted factory building. Closely comparable curated food hall/retail model serving as a daily visitor destination with mixed local and recognized food vendors.
• The Battery Atlanta: Mixed-use entertainment district anchored by Truist Park in Atlanta featuring dining, retail, offices, and entertainment venues. Comparable destination development combining entertainment, curated dining, and live-work-play positioning.
• Time Out Market: Multi-city curated food hall concept featuring top local chefs and restaurants under one roof. Operates an analogous chef-curated food hall destination model with rotating tenants and dining/entertainment mix.
• Assembly Food Hall: Multi-vendor food hall at Fifth + Broadway in Nashville featuring 30+ local kitchens and bars. Comparable curated food hall concept serving as an entertainment/dining anchor in a mixed-use urban district.
• Pearl District (Hotel Emma): San Antonio mixed-use adaptive reuse of a 19th-century brewery into a culinary, retail, hotel, and residential destination with the Cellar Mixology and Hotel Emma. Comparable adaptive reuse food and entertainment anchor.
• Bottleworks District: Indianapolis adaptive reuse of a former Coca-Cola bottling plant into a mixed-use district with food hall (The Garage Food Hall), boutique hotel, retail, and entertainment. Directly comparable adaptive reuse mixed-use model.

Regional players

• Found North (or comparable St. Louis mixed-use): Regional St. Louis area mixed-use and food hall concepts (such as those operating in nearby neighborhoods like the Grove, Tower Grove South, or Cortex-adjacent developments) that compete for the same Midtown discretionary visitor base.

Broad incumbents

• Eataly: Multi-location Italian marketplace concept combining retail, dining, and experiential food venues. Comparable as an established curated food destination with multiple restaurant concepts under one roof, though more retail-product oriented.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/cityfoundrystl
• Facebookfacebook.com/cityfoundrystl
• TikToktiktok.com/@cityfoundrystl
• Xx.com/drafthouse
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/city-foundry-stl

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about City Foundry STL