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ST. LOUIS — A dispute between a hotelier and labor union over organizing efforts has threatened a proposal to renovate a beleaguered downtown St. Louis hotel with an iconic World’s Fair mural.

If the $46 million project is killed, it will cause the city to lose out on tens of thousands of dollars of additional tax revenue and leave condominium residents who share the hotel property with a deteriorating building.

The dispute unfolded during the Housing, Urban Development and Zoning committee meeting on Tuesday in which aldermen were expected to vote on , which would grant the hotelier, Midas Hospitality, 10 years of tax abatement for the project.

But after three hours of debating among city officials, Midas and union members, bill sponsor Alderman Rasheen Aldridge asked to hold the bill.

“Nobody is a villain. It’s been frustrating to see the back and forth,� Aldridge said. “I want to get to a spot where everyone wins.�

The Oyo Hotel, at 400 South 14th Street, just blocks from the Enterprise Center, has been in receivership for several years after its owner, Florida developer Joseph Gillespie III, filed for bankruptcy in 2019. The property has continued to decline.

Midas officials have said that the hotel is no longer fully operational and employs fewer than 10 workers. About 70 condominiums, called the Edison Condominiums, occupy three floors of the building.

Midas plans to renovate the building and turn it into a 220-room Sheraton Hotel; 50 additional rooms are planned as Apartments by Marriott Bonvoy, a new brand that features fully furnished units akin to corporate housing, targeting both business and leisure travelers.

Midas is seeking 10 years of tax abatement, worth about $2.7 million, for the project. The rest will be privately financed. It is expected to produce $350,000 in annual taxes during the abatement, from $211,000 now, and $850,000 after the abatement ends, according to data from the St. Louis Development Corp., the city’s economic development agency.

At Tuesday’s committee meeting, it was standing room only, with labor supporters and Midas backers packing the hearing room at City Hall.

Unite Here Local 74, which represents about 2,500 city hospitality and service industry workers, wants aldermen to kill Midas’ incentive bill after Midas refused to sign an agreement saying it would not interfere with unionizing efforts. Local 74 President Kim Bartholomew said workers at union hotels have better benefits and protections.

“I want this to move forward,� Bartholomew said of the bill. “Just not on the backs of our workers.�

Midas CEO David Robert said his company is not opposed to unionizing. But the company believes the union will continue to delay the project by making further requests throughout the approval process.

Robert said the union first approached his company on Sunday, and that Local 74 has also wanted Midas to agree to a card check — which would allow workers to unionize by filling out a card rather than going through a secret balloting process.

“We won’t interfere,� Robert said. “They have the right to organize today.�

But aldermen Michael Browning, Anne Schweitzer and Alisha Sonnier remained unswayed, and said they would not approve the bill if Midas continues to refuse to sign the neutrality agreement.

It’s unclear when the bill could go before aldermen again: They discussed reviewing it later this week or waiting until its next meeting on Jan. 9.

Aldridge said he wanted Midas and labor to meet again.

But there’s not a lot of time: Robert said the hotel owner has agreed to extend Midas’ closing date of its purchase to January — the sale was originally scheduled to close on Wednesday.

And Robert has indicated his company could walk away if the abatement doesn’t pass.

That would put the building’s condo owners in the lurch.

Several residents told the committee that they worry what further deterioration could do to the property. One fears the building could become another Ely Walker, a downtown condo building that has become a safety hazard due to a lack of maintenance and oversight.

“We want to stay here,� resident Carey Evans told the committee. “Help us stay here.�

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