ST. LOUIS, MO — Kwame Building Group (KWAME) has been selected as the MLS4THELOU Ownership Group’s representative and program manager for St. Louis’ new Major League Soccer (MLS) stadium. Located in St. Louis’ Downtown West area, the new St. Louis MLS stadium is scheduled to open ahead of the 2022 MLS season.

KWAME is serving an integral role in the pre-construction phase, including project planning and scheduling; value engineering and budgeting; selecting project partners and maximizing MBE/WBE participation; coordinating with the city and utility companies; and other project management. The Mortenson|Alberici|L. Keeley Joint Venture has been selected as the pre-construction general contractor. The architects include a partnership of St. Louis-based architecture firm HOK and Snow Kreilich Architects.

St. Louis-based KWAME has a track record of large, complex projects in a range of industries including sports complexes, major airports, light-rail systems, hospitals, education facilities, community centers and government facilities. KWAME previously partnered on the joint venture construction management team for the St. Louis Cardinals Busch Stadium, which opened in 2006.

“KWAME and the ownership group share a commitment to quality and local community engagement for this monumental project,” said Anthony Thompson, CEO of Kwame Building Group, Inc. “KWAME is honored to contribute its nearly 30 years of experience representing owners on large scale projects in the areas of complex design management and construction program management.”

The KWAME project team will be led by Vice President Nonyameko Waddell and Program Manager John Lloyd of Unlimited Partners. Lloyd brings 30 years of experience, including work on the St. Louis Cardinals Busch Stadium and seven other major stadium projects.

The MLS project team has been working closely with public officials to expand the footprint of the proposed stadium site to approximately 31 acres. The open-air stadium will have a seating capacity of 22,500 with the ability to expand to 25,000. The project also includes construction of the team’s headquarters, a practice facility and the Downtown West District of mixed-use retail, restaurants and gathering spaces to be used year-round.

KWAME is concurrently working on major construction projects in St. Louis and nationwide, including the $1.7-billion addition to the Washington State Convention Center in Seattle; numerous new construction and renovation projects under the Dallas Independent School District’s $1.6-billion bond program; and projects at the Seattle Sea-Tac Airport, Maryville University, St. Louis University Hospital and St. Louis Lambert International Airport.