Does anyone know whether the city has a master plan for the development of downtown between Tucker and Jefferson? What would people like to see happen in this area? How dense should it be, for example?



Union Station and AG Edwards seem like natural anchors for the district, but the way it is now, both places seem sort of cut off from the loft conversions happening a few blocks away.

I think the general plan is for loft expansion between Washington and Olive, with new mixed use infill to the south towards and about Market, while new light industrial and office parks north of Washington and about MLK.



A lot of the loft activity is already happening from around the Tap Room to the former Sporting News building. Likewise, the MLK Business Park to the east of Jefferson is an example of the City's hopes for development north of the West Loft District.



The only plan component that hasn't taken off is all the infill potential closer to Union Station, where south of Olive. The catalyst for new mixed use infill depends upon rebuilding the street grid by demolishing the massive highway ramps now between Union Station and Jefferson. MODOT conducted a study linked here, but the City stalled in its participation, such that the project is now on hold. The potential land value of the vacated right-of-way could finance necessary site preparation and capital improvements to a new street grid infrastructure, but the City has been slow to solicit private sector interest.

I wish they would build and develop in such a way that would cause Union Station and its Metro station to become the center of a busy residential neighborhood. The street leading from the Metro station should reach north into the Loft district, with pedestrian friendly businesses, creating a corridor.

Here's the project area - looks like lots of land would be freed up if this ever happens.



http://www.modot.mo.gov/images/district ... nd_map.jpe

Well heck yeah alot of land would be avalible. All those clamouring for new class A office space, look no further. With beautiful views down market of the Arch and downtown, convienet access to the highway, and more than enough space to build parking garages, its sad that the city doesn;t realise the potental such land has. Slay will bamone lossing another high profile office tenant because of a lack of office space, but does nothing to see that some of the best land out there for new office development moves forward.

I don't think the 22nd street interchange project is dead, rather on hold. This project was intended to coincide with the City's 22nd street parkway project which is now dead.



Right now the City has crumbling bridges over the rail yards at Jefferson and Grand both of which are slated for replacement (2006 for Jefferson, Grand probably in 2008) MoDOT has plans to replace the Jefferson Avenue bridge over I-64 in 2008. The City probably won't turn its attention toward that area until those projects are underway. The two city bridge projects alone will cost nearly $40 million granted ~80% is coming from the feds.



All of the ideas I've seen for residential and Class A office space are great. I think it's a great idea to revitilize the area west of Union Station to Jefferson. The parking lot west of Union Station would be a great place to start IMO. Hopefully the interchange project gets going again in the near future.

thanks a lot for those links. that aerial view of the highway ramps really says it all - i remember when i used to take lindell/olive to my office downtown, and east of jefferson was always completely desolate.



downtown west (especially the part west of 14th street) would make a good subject for a charette. if someone would be willing to do some renderings of what the district might look like with infill instead of all those parking lots, it might create additional interest beyond the activity that the presence of the tap room has helped generate. now if only i could draw...



and maybe for marketing purposes it'd be better to start calling this area Station North, instead of Downtown West. just an idea.

LouLou,



A few years ago, McCormack Baron had talked about developing some kind of plan for the redevelopment of Downtown West, so it wouldn't surprise me if they have some kind of renderings. Here's a link to an article about their plans:



http://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/stor ... tory3.html

LouLou,

Interesting that you would rename Downtown West "Station North". There is a neglected midtown section of Baltimore directly behind it's train station now being called "Station North" and is designated as an arts district. The state is giving tax benefits to artist who live and/or work in the district and to building owners that renovate buildings for art uses.



www.stationnorth.org



The train station is poorly connected to the neighborhoods because of train tracks and highways. Union Station Baltimore isn't nearly as grand as Union Station St. Louis. However, it is still used as a busy train station.



The neighborhood already had a couple of arts related businesses. There is the Charles Theatre which shows indie films. It is an old warehouse type building that has been converted with 4 or 5 small screens. And there is a small live theatre called Everyman Theatre. Other than that it is pretty crummy with lots of run down buildings, parking lots, crime problems. Yet, I believe using the arts for revival is going to work.



On their website 'news' page, they show an article from the Kansas City Star expressing envy of the Station North plan. Perhaps KC, STL, & SPGLD, & others could talk Jefferson City in to establishing arts districts in each city with tax benefits. Unless this is already being done? It would be great for Downtown West, however, I suspect St. Louis would choose Grand Center as its arts district if Missouri were to offer such a plan.

Here's what the area about the 22nd Street ramps could look like with a street grid rebuilt (also notice the acreage available to private developers for hopefully dense mixed use infill):

Great picture! Lemme make sure I've got this straight. So far, we've had:



a) a detailed plan for the 22nd St parkway

b) interest from a credible developer like Richard Baron

c) the start of significant residential loft development in the area

d) an "anchor tenant" for the neighborhood, which is the Station

e) proof from the Tap Room that business can thrive in the area

f) big expansions by a major city employer (AG Edwards) next door

g) the eventual prospect of Chouteau Lake to the south

h) more lofts and SLU projects marching eastward down the Olive corridor.



so, uh, what's the holdup? is the key to the area really the parkway project, as quoted in the Business Journal? and wouldn't a parkway running down 22nd street actually cut the area in two and detract from its potential density?

I think the holdup is getting the interchange revamped. The parkway is long dead, but I don't think it was ever really necessary. All they need is some good signal timing along 21st and 20th. Driving down those roads can be absolutely brutal. Better yet get rid of the stoplights altogether until traffic volumes can justify them in the future.

wouldn't a parkway running down 22nd street actually cut the area in two?

I think the existing on- and off-ramps west of Union Station way more significantly divide the area currently than how a redesigned 22nd Street would function. IOW, the proposed "parkway" would be a significant improvement over what highway-spaghetti is there now.



If you look at the map in my previous post, you'll see that the 22nd Street "Parkway" has the potential to really be just an urban boulevard, even with a roundabout, and more intersections than the Grattan Street Parkway on the near-southside ("Truman Parkway"). Ironically, both Grattan and 22nd Street Parkways are left overs from the fortunately failed I-755 concept from the misguided days of urban renewal and interstate expansion that sought to run a highway from City Hospital to Old North St. Louis to the west of Downtown.



But rather than forever live with the spaghetti-ramps leftover from the failed I-755, both the 22nd Street project at I-64 (US 40) and Grattan Street project at I-44/55 can help rebuild the street grid and free up land for infill development in these leftover holes. With the Grattan or Truman Parkway project now complete, Lafayette Square will see infill on Dolman, a former cut-thru, as well as the former I-44/55-dumped-upon Lafayette. Likewise, the potential blocks freed from the 22nd Street ramp-mess will hopefully allow the west loft district to connect with Union Station and AG Edwards by opening up infill potential in this neglected corner of Downtown.

informative as always, thanks a bundle for that, southslider. i always wondered why there were so many ramps in that area.



to the private developers and city officials reading this: please make the area north of union station a priority if possible. if it starts to look like a cohesive neighborhood, i'd move there in a heartbeat.

Here is what I fail to understand. The MODOT is looking at simply replacing the bridge over 40 at jefferson, yet to me, the area must be done as a whole. The 22nd St parkway could be a barier with lots of traffic and very wide if poorly designed, in the same ways Tucker or Jefferson currently act a barriers. Why build two streets, Jefferson and 22nd, that would seem to have similar goals? Seems to me like MODOT and the city should get together and work out a solution that takes better advangtage of the size and capacity of Jefferson to accomidate traffic in the area.



Btw, Seems like a fun change would be as follows:

Development of all land in the map area above west of 21st street.

Chestnut is blocked off by develoment west of 21st under both plans. Here could be a fun change... allow market to swing north slightly and split 2st into markets and chestnut. Always have liked those triangular lots... St. Louis needs more

Can St. Louis please see some parking garages in this area with direct entry and exit from the highway. They have some in Minneapolis and I love them. This could be a great area for it and provide all the highway access any suburban office folks would want.

Thanks for the clarification on the Truman Parkway. Yes, it is substantially complete between Lafayette and Chouteau, but north of Chouteau, it still will be tied into 18th Street along Ameren UE.



Just as the opening of Truman (fka Grattan) allowed Dolman to no longer be a cut-thru, as well as traffic calming along 14th through King Louis Square, you can expect 18th to be reopened south of Chouteau once the piece of Truman opens north of Chouteau. There is a great pocket commercial area, only recently seeing revitalization at 18th and Chouteau that has had its street closed off for years now. Also, the redesigned ramps from I-44/55 along Lafayette will allow Lafayette Square infill to march eastward towards City Hospital and Bohemian Hill.



Now, if only 22nd Street could be redesigned. Sure, many of the uses west of Union Station towards and including Ameren UE are isolated auto-oriented developments, but fortunately, the loft boom has made residential a hotter market now than office or hotel, such that new residential infill would likely be the higher return on blocks between Market and Olive. South of Market towards I-64 (Hwy 40), however, new Class A office space would likely desire the direct highway accessibility. Hopefully, surface lot parking can be limited, or at least not located along Market Street and points north.

True, some of the downtown corporate campusses are rather fortress-like. But at least they built (and expanded) their fortresses downtown, rather than Chesterfield. I'm still dissappointed that Express Scripts passed on downtown.

^^yes, good to have these office campuses at the fringes of downtown. ideally they'll serve as bridges, rather than barriers, to the surrounding areas when the ramp improvements are complete and the street grid is partially restored.



one of the things that's always held downtown back is the feeling that it's an island cut off from the city's neighborhoods by highway overpasses, railway sidings and vacant lots. imagine what it might be like some day to cycle from your apartment in downtown west, past union station, through the chouteau lake greenway, across a revived chouteau ave. and up the hill to lafayette square.

LouLou wrote:imagine what it might be like some day to cycle from your apartment in downtown west, past union station, through the chouteau lake greenway, across a revived chouteau ave. and up the hill to lafayette square.

That is it exactly.

Urban Review St. Louis wrote:

southslider wrote:With the Grattan or Truman Parkway project now complete...

Actually the Truman Parkway is not yet done. 18th street next to Ameren will be redirected to become Truman Parkway.

That portion should start construction next spring. Truman Pkwy will extend north to tie into around Gratiot. 18th street will be vacated between there and Chouteau.

Looks like they were trying to pull a Kansas City on us.