University receives donated building from St. Louis natives Joe and Loretta Scott
Joe and Loretta Scott Law Center from Saint Louis University on Vimeo.
Since dropping out of the U.S. News and World Report top 100 schools of law in 2010, falling from a Tier 2 university to a Tier 3, the Saint Louis University School of Law has searched for revitalization.
University administrators hoped that would come with a planned $35 million expansion of the current School of Law building at Morrissey Hall. Those plans were delayed due to a faltering economy.
Expansion appeared years away, but on Tuesday, the School of Law received a boost as SLU announced that the school will move into a donated 11-story, 260,000-square-foot building in downtown St. Louis. The move will make SLU the largest educational institution located in downtown St. Louis with the school’s more than 1,100 students, faculty and staff.
“We are really excited about our new home. This is a great opportunity for students and alumni to be in the heart of the legal community in St. Louis,” said Annette Clark, J.D., dean of the SLU School of Law. “This move opens up so many opportunities for our students.”
St. Louis businessman Joe Scott Sr., the founder and current owner of Scott Properties, which owns and manages more than 2 million square feet of office space in the St. Louis region, and his wife Loretta donated the building, located at 100 N. Tucker Blvd. In recognition of the donation, SLU will name the building the Joe and Loretta Scott Law Center.
“The donation of this building is a true blessing,” SLU President Lawrence Biondi, S.J., said in a press release. “Thanks to generosity of Joe and Loretta Scott, we can now realize our dream of creating a modern space that reflects the outstanding teaching and scholarship taking place in our School of Law.”
SLU plans to open the new Law Center in August for the start of the 2012-2013 academic year. The building currently features seven occupiable floors, a main lobby, an enclosed, three-story parking garage and a ground-floor auditorium.
“We are honored to donate this facility to Saint Louis University, and we are excited to see it put to great use as the home of SLU’s renowned Law School,” Scott said in a press release.
The buildings transition from an office building to the Law Center will be designed and developed by the Lawrence Group Architects, the firm that designed and developed Hotel Ignacio and several other University properties.
Clark said that the plans are in the developmental stage, but a lot of emphasis will be placed on designing the facility to meet the direct needs of law students. Some of those needs include more state-of-the-art technology including video conference rooms and small collaborative legal spaces.
“Students will be instrumental in this planning process ahead and so far, we have received a lot of positive feedback on this move,” Clark said. “The needs of our students are always our first priority.”
The Law School hosted a question and answer session on Wednesday night to address the concerns of law students about this move and to gather further feedback. Law students were informed about the move in an email sent by Clark on Tuesday morning.
Aaron Moores, a 2nd year law student, was “surprised” when he heard the news.
“We have been told for years that a renovation was coming, but I was really shocked and surprised when I heard about the move,” Moores said. “The current building is outdated and it will be really neat being downtown.”
Moores said he was concerned about studying away from the Frost Campus due to being away from dining facilities and the Rec Center.
“It will be an adjustment for sure and it will be weird not having the campus around us,” Moores said.
A shuttle system is believed to be in the works to transport students to and from the Law Center and the Frost Campus.
Faculty members were equally surprised by the news and some faculty were even more surprised of the University’s plan to move into the new facility by August.
“This is a great opportunity for the Law School to get a building that is up to 21st century standards, but I think the timeline for that is a bit optimistic,” McDonnell Professor of Justice Peter Salsich, Jr. said.
SLU is not the first university to have a law school located in their cities’ downtown law community. Fordham University, Georgetown University, Loyola Marymount and the Loyola University of Chicago all have downtown law centers.
“To be right in the heart of the legal community will be a huge benefit for SLU Law,” Professor of Law Michael Wolff said. “I think it is terrific to be able to walk to all the courthouses and major law firms.”
The Law Center will be located next to the Civil Courts and near the Thomas F. Eagleton U.S. Courthouse.
“The move of our Law School to downtown St. Louis will be a major highlight of my nearly 25-year tenure as president,” Biondi said. “This is truly a momentous day for Saint Louis University and our School of Law.”
