I know this forum is about St. Louis, but this project is located directly across the river from downtown, and will benefit both sides of the river. The project has been in the development stages for some time now, and this Master Plan PDF file has just been released.
Of 3 designs, Waterfront Village was the winner for East St. Louis's Riverfront Plan. I like a few ideas, and puke at others. If the land is so valuable, then why waste so much space on parking? Build one, huge, garage and get it over with.
Waterfront Village - ?The place to live, work and play everyday?
Waterfront Village reflects a new urbanism theme of the ?urban village?, is reminiscent of traditional town planning with a grid street network, alley access to housing, and a design approach which allows neighbors to have more interaction with each other. Although traditional, it incorporates the latest techniques in building construction and materials, homeowner preferences for modern conveniences, and easy access to shopping/eating/fitness and automobile services.
The execution of this thematic approach in East St. Louis has several characteristics which are both representative of the urban village concept, yet unique to the East St. Louis Waterfront. The housing units proposed for this development would number over 400 and include both single-family attached and detached units. The single-family attached/townhome units would number 129. The single-family detached would constitute about 300 units. Due to the presence of the river floodwall and levee, the housing units would be 3 to 4 stories in height, which would provide the best opportunity for views of the Mississippi River and downtown St. Louis.
The housing units would have an architectural style reflective of a turn-of-thecentury design (Illustration APD3(a) and APD3(b). An interior courtyard would provide some private space for each occupant, yet encourage social interaction with neighbors. The units will be placed close to the street to further encourage a
sense of community. To further encourage this sense of community, the units will range from affordable housing to luxury penthouses. The luxury units would have significantly upgraded interiors, with some complementary exterior alterations to
enhance the value of the units. Upgraded features might include a fully landscaped exterior courtyard, full brick construction rather than brick veneer, upgraded floor and wall furnishings, an enhanced lighting and sound system, top of- the-line electrical appliances, a whole-unit vacuuming system, and other value
-enhanced amenities. Lastly, the upgraded units would offer the best views of the waterfront area.
The commercial areas throughout this urban village thematic approach would involve both trendy boutique shops, along with other quality small-scale retail. These would be supplemented by more basic commercial services, all featuring more upscale, designed architectural exteriors. As an example, while the area
would likely include major retailers such as Walgreen?s, the building design and site layout would deviate from the prototypical construction and provide complementary architecture to that located throughout the Waterfront.
The spectacular views which are provided along the Waterfront present a unique opportunity for a quality sit-down dining experience. These opportunities could be provided either in multi-storied individual dining establishments, or on the top floor of other commercial or office buildings. Of course, it is expected that these high-quality sit-down restaurant facilities will be supplemented by national fastfood restaurants, to attract a wider mix of consumers. It is critical to the success of the urban village concept that the exterior architecture be coordinated throughout the entire Waterfront Village.
It is expected that other types of commercial activity (i.e., hotels, service commercial) will also be present for this live, work and play concept to be successful. The placement of such uses is important to support the daytime working population and the nighttime residential population. These two groups are supplemented by the traveling public who will come to the waterfront area for shopping, dining and entertainment opportunities. The total additional square footage of new commercial development under this plan is over 500,000 square feet.
To fully support this thematic approach of living, working and playing, all three components must be involved in this mix. The work component will include commercial, industrial and office activity. The office component of this urban village approach would constitute almost 1.5 million square feet The reason for this concentration of office activity is two-fold. First, office
workers have highly-varied income levels which would support the concept of mixed-income housing opportunities. Secondly, the views of downtown provide a unique opportunity within the region. Offices would have quality exterior and interior architectural and design components in order to attract good office tenants. The office market prefer to have something unique to make a statement about their company and its resources.
The view of downtown and the Mississippi River is unequalled anywhere else in this region, and must be optimized in the development (Illustration APD5). Highquality office tenants will want to take advantage of all this location has to offer. It
is recognized that the office market is presently overbuilt in the St. Louis market. Although the office component may lag behind other elements of the waterfront development, due to a presently over-built office market in the region, this should
nevertheless be very appealing to potential tenants.
Although this particular plan de-emphasizes the industrial market, it is nevertheless an aspect of the work component. There are several suitable sites within the Project Area which are not as prime for other types of development and which could support industrial opportunities. The newly proposed industrial development would constitute nearly 300,000 square feet.
There are several other design elements which have been incorporated into the Waterfront Village. The issue of stringent architectural design standards has already been discussed. Additionally however, in order to minimize the effect of multi-story buildings on pedestrian circulation, the streetscape needs to be significantly enhanced. Such enhancements would include extensive landscaping, a short wall or berms to help conceal the rail line along the waterfront, use of numerous water elements, outdoor furniture, and lighting. All of these enhancements should be designed to preserve or create quality viewsheds toward the Mississippi River to give residents, workers and visitors a sense of
connectivity to the water, and to capitalize on this unique location.
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Of 3 designs, Waterfront Village was the winner for East St. Louis's Riverfront Plan. I like a few ideas, and puke at others. If the land is so valuable, then why waste so much space on parking? Build one, huge, garage and get it over with.
Waterfront Village - ?The place to live, work and play everyday?
Waterfront Village reflects a new urbanism theme of the ?urban village?, is reminiscent of traditional town planning with a grid street network, alley access to housing, and a design approach which allows neighbors to have more interaction with each other. Although traditional, it incorporates the latest techniques in building construction and materials, homeowner preferences for modern conveniences, and easy access to shopping/eating/fitness and automobile services.
The execution of this thematic approach in East St. Louis has several characteristics which are both representative of the urban village concept, yet unique to the East St. Louis Waterfront. The housing units proposed for this development would number over 400 and include both single-family attached and detached units. The single-family attached/townhome units would number 129. The single-family detached would constitute about 300 units. Due to the presence of the river floodwall and levee, the housing units would be 3 to 4 stories in height, which would provide the best opportunity for views of the Mississippi River and downtown St. Louis.
The housing units would have an architectural style reflective of a turn-of-thecentury design (Illustration APD3(a) and APD3(b). An interior courtyard would provide some private space for each occupant, yet encourage social interaction with neighbors. The units will be placed close to the street to further encourage a
sense of community. To further encourage this sense of community, the units will range from affordable housing to luxury penthouses. The luxury units would have significantly upgraded interiors, with some complementary exterior alterations to
enhance the value of the units. Upgraded features might include a fully landscaped exterior courtyard, full brick construction rather than brick veneer, upgraded floor and wall furnishings, an enhanced lighting and sound system, top of- the-line electrical appliances, a whole-unit vacuuming system, and other value
-enhanced amenities. Lastly, the upgraded units would offer the best views of the waterfront area.
The commercial areas throughout this urban village thematic approach would involve both trendy boutique shops, along with other quality small-scale retail. These would be supplemented by more basic commercial services, all featuring more upscale, designed architectural exteriors. As an example, while the area
would likely include major retailers such as Walgreen?s, the building design and site layout would deviate from the prototypical construction and provide complementary architecture to that located throughout the Waterfront.
The spectacular views which are provided along the Waterfront present a unique opportunity for a quality sit-down dining experience. These opportunities could be provided either in multi-storied individual dining establishments, or on the top floor of other commercial or office buildings. Of course, it is expected that these high-quality sit-down restaurant facilities will be supplemented by national fastfood restaurants, to attract a wider mix of consumers. It is critical to the success of the urban village concept that the exterior architecture be coordinated throughout the entire Waterfront Village.
It is expected that other types of commercial activity (i.e., hotels, service commercial) will also be present for this live, work and play concept to be successful. The placement of such uses is important to support the daytime working population and the nighttime residential population. These two groups are supplemented by the traveling public who will come to the waterfront area for shopping, dining and entertainment opportunities. The total additional square footage of new commercial development under this plan is over 500,000 square feet.
To fully support this thematic approach of living, working and playing, all three components must be involved in this mix. The work component will include commercial, industrial and office activity. The office component of this urban village approach would constitute almost 1.5 million square feet The reason for this concentration of office activity is two-fold. First, office
workers have highly-varied income levels which would support the concept of mixed-income housing opportunities. Secondly, the views of downtown provide a unique opportunity within the region. Offices would have quality exterior and interior architectural and design components in order to attract good office tenants. The office market prefer to have something unique to make a statement about their company and its resources.
The view of downtown and the Mississippi River is unequalled anywhere else in this region, and must be optimized in the development (Illustration APD5). Highquality office tenants will want to take advantage of all this location has to offer. It
is recognized that the office market is presently overbuilt in the St. Louis market. Although the office component may lag behind other elements of the waterfront development, due to a presently over-built office market in the region, this should
nevertheless be very appealing to potential tenants.
Although this particular plan de-emphasizes the industrial market, it is nevertheless an aspect of the work component. There are several suitable sites within the Project Area which are not as prime for other types of development and which could support industrial opportunities. The newly proposed industrial development would constitute nearly 300,000 square feet.
There are several other design elements which have been incorporated into the Waterfront Village. The issue of stringent architectural design standards has already been discussed. Additionally however, in order to minimize the effect of multi-story buildings on pedestrian circulation, the streetscape needs to be significantly enhanced. Such enhancements would include extensive landscaping, a short wall or berms to help conceal the rail line along the waterfront, use of numerous water elements, outdoor furniture, and lighting. All of these enhancements should be designed to preserve or create quality viewsheds toward the Mississippi River to give residents, workers and visitors a sense of
connectivity to the water, and to capitalize on this unique location.
