News-Leader finalizing move to Hammons Tower office; exits longtime downtown building
The Springfield News-Leader will soon have a new home, leaving the building at 651 Boonville that has housed the newspaper's operations for 88 years.
Final negotiations are underway for the News-Leader to lease and move into office space on the 11th floor of Hammons Tower in Springfield, where news, sales and regional finance teams will work. The former property was sold in August to Springfield QOZ Self-Storage LLC, which will convert the building into a drive-through storage facility.
The newspaper's teams will continue to work remotely, as many have throughout the pandemic, until the new location's contract is finalized and the move is complete. Employees continued to work in the downtown building until Oct. 31 through a leaseback agreement, and as of Monday a temporary warehouse is handling circulation.
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"It was bittersweet leaving the property at 651 Boonville (as I was taught by former editors, the 'North' is unnecessary, as there's no South Boonville)," said Amos Bridges, the News-Leader's editor-in-chief. "This corner of downtown has been home to Springfield's newspapers for almost 90 years and holds wonderful memories for the folks who reported and published history here.
"But just as our predecessors at the Leader and Press, the Daily News and others did, we're adapting. Rather than a shift from typewriters to computers, or manual typesetting to digital publishing, this time we're updating our workspace to better support a modern news operation."
The Boonville building has been the newspaper's headquarters since 1933, when Springfield Newspapers, Inc. published the Springfield Leader and Press and the Springfield Daily News. A fire destroyed much of that iteration in 1947, after which it was rebuilt. Three decades later, the papers were bought by Gannett Co., and in 1987 became the Springfield News-Leader — all while occupying the rebuilt building between Chestnut Expressway and Tampa Street. The building was expanded in 2002 with a new printing press.
“We take great pride in covering and delivering news and information to the communities we serve, including the greater Springfield area," a Gannett spokesperson said Tuesday. "While our office space needs have evolved, we remain fully committed to serving our readers and advertisers well into the future.”
Print production for the News-Leader currently takes place at a sister facility in Columbia, which also produces the Columbia Daily Tribune's pages — a move announced last year. Two former press supervisors in Springfield, Tom Tate and Mike Brame, now oversee the combined Columbia operation. Advertising and reporting remain local.
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"Our commitment to the Springfield community hasn't changed, and the News-Leader staff is excited to continue providing accurate, essential reporting that keeps readers informed and holds those in power accountable," said Bridges, who has worked at the newspaper since 2004 and as head editor since 2019. "We look forward to doing so from a new office that provides a more elevated view of Center City."
The new mailing address for the newspaper is 901 E. St. Louis St., Suite 1100, Springfield, Mo. 65806. Visit help.news-leader.com/contact-us for information on how to get in touch with the News-Leader and its staff.
Galen Bacharier covers Missouri politics & government for the News-Leader. Contact him at gbacharier@news-leader.com, (573) 219-7440 or on Twitter @galenbacharier.
This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: News-Leader finalizing move to Hammons Tower; former building sold
