HOME2 SUITES

In 2020, 3CDC acquired the building, located at 618-624 Race Street, from the Kim family. Former home of The Chong, Inc., a business owned and operated by the Kims since 1993, they made the decision to close their business and sell the building in the early months of the pandemic. Unfortunately, the building faced several challenges to redevelopment, including complex land leases underlying the real estate, as well as modifications made over decades to the physical building that inhibited development opportunities.

Despite the mid-century exterior appearance of the building, 3CDC’s development team discovered that the building dated back to the 1800s, with a rich history. It once housed a furrier, a furniture company and a five and dime store until 1951 when Butler Brother’s department store moved in and conducted a major interior remodel, removing the building’s fifth and sixth floors and covering the original exterior with a Terrace Plaza Hotel-inspired wall of red brick. A few short years later, Kroger on Race at Shillito Place opened there. With knowledge of its history, development staff performed the due diligence required to qualify the building for state and federal Historic Preservation Tax Credits to help aid its restoration and removed the brick veneer that hid the original Victorian-era storefront.

In 2024, 3CDC sold the building to Keystone Management Group to fully redevelop the property and operate it as a Home2 Suites by Hilton. The project, which includes the recreation of the previously lost fifth and sixth floors, began construction in September of 2024 and is expected to be complete in August of 2026. Upon completion, it will include a 109-room extended stay hotel with 2,000 square feet of street-level commercial space. Keystone plans to add four stories to 614 Race St. and two stories to 616 Race St., bringing the total size of the building to over 84,000 square feet. 3CDC is providing bridge financing for the historic tax credits its acquired for the project.