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DPZ To Hold Charette in Dardenne Prairie, MO

April 12, 2007 Planning & Design, St. Charles County 30 Comments

Dardenne Prairie, a largely bedroom suburb of St. Louis located in fast growing St. Charles County, is about to hold a week-long design charette with leading New Urbanist firm DPZ of Miami. Bringing DPZ to Dardenne Prairie has been a long effort of Mayor Pam Fogarty and 1st Ward Alderman Scott Kolbe, both seeking to create a sense of place in their community.

Dardenne Prairie originally designated 85 acres for a downtown. Ald. Kolbe on the initial stages:

“While we tested the waters – overall feedback has led to us creating a 285 acre site – I was pleasantly surprised by community feedback”

Ald. Kolbe continues on the feedback from residents, “They are craving that third place.”

The entire week is open to the public, the city has posted a schedule online here. Andres Duany, DPZ’s celebrity boss is not scheduled on the charette but will likely make an appearance at some point during the week.
Scheduled Presentations:

  • Opening Presentation on Thursday 4/19/2007; 7pm-9pm
  • “Pin-up” Review on Sunday 4/22/2007; 2pm-4pm
  • Final Presentation on Wednesday 4/25/2007; 7pm-9pm

Again, the charette is open to the public from 4/19 – 4/25. Except for some tours to be held on the first day (4/18), the event will be held at the Knights of Columbus Hall located at 2199 Post Road, Dardenne Prairie, 63368 (see map).

So what do you think?  I personally love the idea of these residents (population estimate 7,000) creating a sense of place for themselves centered on a mixed-use downtown.  This has the potential to become an interesting and livable area.

 

Currently there are "30 comments" on this Article:

  1. As a former resident of St. Charles County, I do resent the term “growth,” as St. Charles County is mostly sprawling development taken from rural farm land. I visit every few weeks and it is depressing to see once scenic areas being invaded by tract McMansions and their “luxury communities.”

    I do wish that St. Charles County would have remained rural. Given the current reality, New Urbanism is a good alternative to the status quo. With other smart growth policies, perhaps Columbia will not be in the Metropolitian Statistical Area by 2020.

     
  2. equals42 says:

    If this means that growth in the suburbs may take shape in clusters of high density “urban-lite” areas, that bodes well for regional transit. It is easier to service a population like that with regional train service and might curtail the need for eight lane highways to every new addition to the St Louis metropolitan sprawl. Anyway, any kind of planning by them is a refreshing change from the present St Chuck County methodology.

     
  3. Tyson says:

    What else can you say? I agree it’s better than the status quo, and under current planning guidelines in the region relying on individual communities to take the initiative may be the best we can hope for. I do think it’s amusing though to see these small communities wanting to create a “downtown” from scratch, these are more accurately described as “lifestyle shopping centers”, and with DPZ being involved I think we all have a pretty good idea of what the finished product will look like (the designs in their pattern books typically range from circa 1900 on one extreme to 1920 on the other). Still, if it creates some sort of center maybe it can be built on in the future and if it lessens the auto dependency of the residents there in any way it’s an improvement.

    [UrbanReviewSTL — Dardenne Prairie is no different than many suburban municipalities, the residential stock is almost entirely single family homes on minimum lot sizes.  This new downtown center will offer the chance to have different forms of housing other than the single family detached.  I understand some subsidized senior housing is part of the mix as will be some smaller “workforce” housing — those service workers need to live somewhere and we know they can’t take mass transit to get to those jobs.]

     
  4. Chris says:

    What’s next? A professional sports franchise?

     
  5. Jim Zavist says:

    I wish ’em luck – the challenge will come in the execution. My biggest fear is that DPZ will create a pattern book that results in a plastic, sanitized “downtown” that stifles all design creativity . . .

     
  6. Tyson says:

    If smaller (read:affordable) workforce housing is part of the mix then I will applaud them for that, all too often going urban simply means going upscale. A big part of the urban equation is allowing those who work in the community to live there as well. Good to hear.

     
  7. joe b says:

    Assuming they will develop some sort of the same type of project that DPZ has done in the past, they should take a serious look at the businesses that go into the storefronts.

    Specifically, work out some sort of program where the rents have very, very affordable for the business owners. Small biz owners have enough on their hands without worrying about the high overhead of rent.

    I’d suggest having the city own all the storefronts and decide on the types of biz’s they want and then find those businesses. Throw out any comps for surrounding type of business square footage rent, create what’s doable for them and let the owners run with their plan.

    Obviously this won’t help bring in the business but could certainly help the little guy

     
  8. GMichaud says:

    As this potential project in Dardenne Prairie and New Town in St. Charles (supposedly the fastest growing community around) demonstrates that urbanism, new or old, is the wave of the future. The failure is on part of the St. Louis city leaders who have the infrastructure in place to do a real new urbanist project (although they have done everything they can to destroy the infrastructure). By the time city officials get finished suburbanizing St. Louis, the rest of the suburbs will be urbanized.
    Perhaps somehow DPZ could be convinced to do a project in St. Louis, perhaps on the North side where Blairmont is active.
    As usual City officials are behind the curve. Everyone else is ready to head another direction and meanwhile box store mania is the solution of choice, even in an historic area such as the Lafayette/Soulard neighborhood with the proposed Gilded Age development.
    All of this would be funny if it wasn’t so sad. The worse part is the closed minds of city officials and the fact the only really chance for input citizens have is in this and other blogs. Pushing through the BJC/Forest Park deal before the public vote in April demonstrates how city officials actively subvert and discourage citizen involvement. It is a sorry state for democracy.

     
  9. john says:

    Now you’re supporting more sprawl? Good ideas poorly placed will only increase auto dependency. Throw-away downtowns…good idea! At their basic level, these developments provide a means to escape and the opporunity to create new communities instead of dealing with problems at home. Let’s convert all farm land to satellite communities linked by light rail?! I guess we can have throw-away communities as well because that IS exactly what is occuring in the City and inner suburbs of the region. Jump on the bandwagon Steve and make some real dough, StL-style!

     
  10. Jim Zavist says:

    While, in a “perfect world”, we’d live without big boxes, the biggest thing missing out in New Town St. Charles is a Schnuck’s or a Dierberg’s (or a Whole Foods or a Trader Joe’s). It’s also not fair to say that there’s a total “failure . . . on part of the St. Louis city leaders, who have the infrastructure in place to do a real new urbanist project”. The infill that’s happening in the Gaslight Square area and north of Tower Grove park may be better-classified as “old” urban (single-family homes on rectangular blocks), but it IS urban, more so than 95%+ of suburban development.

    This isn’t the 1920’s. We don’t shop for groceries every day or two. The grocer, the pharmacy, the dairy and the meat cutter don’t offer delivery services, especially for small orders. Most couples have two working adults. Work isn’t downstairs or a 10- or 15-minute trolley ride away. Dry cleaners and drive-thru’s area fact of life. Retail today is what it is. Until you change shoppers’ expectations and behavior, you’re not going to change the retail architectural and urban-design paradigm.

    New Urbanism IS a good thing, but it’s not a total solution. It’s great at creating sustainable residential neighborhoods. It’s great at bringing economic and some architectural diversity to what would otherwise be a cookie-cutter world. It’s great at bringing back alleys and increasing density. It even works OK with truly “neighborhood” retail (dry cleaners, coffee shop, gift shop, etc.) But it breaks down / isn’t honest when it comes to bigger retail. (And yes, everyone in New Town shops at Schnuck’s, Direberg’s, Lowe’s, Target, Best Buy, Bed, Bath & Beyond, and, probably, Expo and St. Lous Mills!) It’s one thing to buy into your own “perfect” little world, but it’s also double speak when you leave that world and spend most of your disposable income in the traditional suburban big box world (that’s imposed on someone else’s neighborhood).

    That’s why I have my doubts about how successful DPZ will be in creating a “downtown” that isn’t a disneyfied catoon of an urban center. Dardenne Prairie is a classic no-place suburb. The bulk of the retail will be chain stores. The bulk of the office space will be occupied by small, service-oriented professionals (doctors, lawyers, dentists). People will have no choice but to drive there. Sure, you can create a “main street” with buildings that hug the sidewalk and fit an architectural pattern book. But look around back and the best you’ll find will be structured parking. More than likely, however, you’ll find surface parking, albeit with trees and decorative streetlights, and back doors that are really front doors. And unless something really changes, you won’t find a major employer (several hundred employees) or a major government center (courts complex or major division of county government) that generates the daily, daytime demand that sustains many service retailers in “real” downtowns.

    Like I said, I wish ’em luck, but I have my doubts. Cities are messy, and I’m not sure that true urban grittiness and diversity is a part of their goal . . .

     
  11. john says:

    You’re right GM that “city officials actively subvert and discourage citizen involvement” and that IS the real problem. The more Steve gets involved and experiences these “attitudinal problems” (I’ll bet he’s now holding back from revealing many of the real horror stories), the harder it becomes to deal with the obvious duplicity. Citizens must “pay to play” and the principles of democracy are being continually debauched to our demise. The information gathered from the public in these “charettes” is typically discarded as made evident in the obvious design failures of our most recent infrastructure projects (ie. MetroLink Ext. and the New I64).

    The name for these meetings, “charette”, should be changed to “charade”, it is more accurate. But the bigger problem is “Elected (& appointed) Officials” everywhere (local, state, federal) have learned how to play this charade on a grand scale. Just look at the County’s inner suburbs to see an incredible number of “funny but sad” circuses!

     
  12. GMichaud says:

    Actually urbanism does not have to turn into Disneyland, nor is there a real difference between new and old urbanism, the elements are the same, the real difference, to quote John McMorrough in his article City of Shopping. “The city has twice been humiliated by the suburbs: once upon the loss of its constituency to the suburbs and again upon that constituency’s return. These prodigal citizens brought back with them their suburban values of predictability and control.”
    The truth is the development does not have to be a Disneyland. Perhaps some people shop for a week or two worth of groceries, many do not, even with big box stores and autos. In part the design of the rest of the environment influences how people interact with shopping. A city reliant on mass transit will tend to cultivate short, quick stops instead of a massive grocery stock up.
    Cities can be designed to become Disneyland of course, it depends on the commitment to other lifestyles. Many European countries have laws limiting big box developments. They recognize the negative impact they have on many facets of society. So in Finland for instance their 1998 law stipulates that new commercial premises greater than 2000 sq meters receive a building permit only when the site is specially designated for that purpose in the town plan. That law has successfully limited large scale retail developments. It also insures that any big box development is integrated into the town plan. Other countries have laws also. Denmark has successfully refocused commercial development into town Centers with their Planning Act of 1997. France has a succession of laws trying to contain hypermarkets, with varying degrees of success. Belgium has significantly slowed large retail development with their Cadenas Law of 1994. Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain and the UK have all tried to integrate big box development with urban development in and around their cities. Some actions have been more successful than others.
    The point being, there is a debate, a concern, an attitude and an understanding of how to build cities. Dardenne Prairie could turn into a Disneyland, and it may without comprehensive understanding of all of the issues, but it is not a forgone conclusion. Nor is this idealistic or pie in the sky.
    Eventually America will be forced to change from the era of cheap energy into a sustainable culture if it is not done voluntarily. The rethinking of how cities and suburbs are built is a top priority. Congress and most governmental units are way behind in their policy and actions. The result we still have dead weight governmental organizations such as MoDot dragging the culture into their conceptual, but real, abyss.
    Instead what MoDot should be doing is assisting Dardenne Prairie in creating a transit system that helps the new downtown work properly. (Some above information comes from Project on the City 2, edited by Chung, Koolhaus etc. Harvard Design School, Guide to Shopping.)

     
  13. Jim Zavist says:

    Has anyone looked at Dardenne Prairie on a map? (mapquest.com + Hanley Rd. + Dardenne Prairie) It’s sandwiched between Winghaven and Lake St. Louis, west of O’Fallon’s sprawl, and bordered on the south by the 40/64 freeway and I-70 on the north. There are already multiple cul-de-sac subdivisions and a few strip shopping centers already in place, with more of both to come.

    The DPZ exercise IS a start. The “good news” is that they realize that there are better answers. The challenge will be implementation. As The P-D article points out, “At that point, the city of about 7,000 people will have a full set of drawings to market to developers . . . [Mayor] Fogarty and city staffers plan to take the final town center concept to the International Council of Shopping Centers’ annual convention in Las Vegas next month. At that convention, developers and communities from around the nation try to woo retailers.” Bottom line, it’s still the “market” – no tenants = no project.

    DPZ is good at packaging “designer” retail experiences. I just don’t believe anyone can package a true, big D, “Downtown”. They evolve over time, driven by demand and reinvention. They happen at transportation and governmental hubs. They require significant densities. Downtown St. Louis and Clayton have it. East St. Louis used to have it. University City and the City of St. Charles probably do, along the Loop and in the historic area, respectively. “Old Town” Cottleville, O’Fallon, St. Peters and Wentzville don’t. The old farm-town core is still there, but the center of commerce long ago moved out to the “highway”.

    Dardenne Prairie’s in the same boat. Yes, they can create and define shopping nodes surrounded by residential areas – see suburban-anywhere USA. And, yes, Dardenne can include a city hall and government offices in their “downtown”, but without the critical mass that a county seat and/or a major employer (hospital, university, 300+ emplyee private-sector employer), their little d “downtown” will be just another cute shopping district. Walkable, yes. Parking hidden in back, yes. “Characters” and poor folks, probably not. And without them, is it truly a “downtown”?!

    [UrbanReviewSTL — A couple of readers have already commented after you but I need to add a few notes here.  I think the idea of “downtown” has changed over the decades and it certainly varies upon the scale of where it is located.  I don’t think DP has any aspirations of creating a downtown to rival St. Louis or Clayton.  Will it attempt to rival that of Kirkwood or Ferguson?  Perhaps.  

    As you note, DP is fully surrounded — we are not talking edge development — that is another 10 miles away at least.  They do have a large open area which is undeveloped currently but like most of St. Charles County it will get developed in some manner.  The question became, how will it get developed?  I’m going to take some of the credit here for the direction DP is now going — I began lending books to and talking with Alderman Scott Kolbe about urbanism.  We visited Winghaven (failed attempt at urbanism),  New Town and downtown St. Louis.  I met Mayor Fogarty and she was on board as well.  Early talks were modest — a few changes to their zoning code and an attempt to take the likely suburban development.  As Kolbe & Fogarty talked with New Town’s Greg Whittaker and others they quickly realized they had a golden opportunity within their city limits. 

    Will downtown Dardenne Prairie be some magical downtown of yesteryear?  No!  Will it provide an opportunity for existing residents to walk or bike to the store?  Yes!  Will it provide forms of housing that currently do not exist in DP?  Yes!  Will it create more density, mixing of uses, and connectivity than had they not adopted DPZ’s standard code for the area?  Big time!

    I personally am eager to see what the DPZ team comes up with.]

     
  14. john says:

    Yes JimZ that is exactly right. StL leaders purposely support segregation over integration, especially in transportation designs. The DPZ exercise is just that and hopefully nothing more. Developing these islands of escapism further exacerbates current negative trends. Perhaps the good news “is they realize there are better answers”… however, wrong place! The StL region has density-shopping-entertainment centers to which you correctly point out many examples. Unfortunately these are becoming more “island-like” and disconnected, especially for pedestrians.

    Most people in the StL area look at the developments along Brentwood Blvd as Claytonian but they are not. At one time, many destinations in western section of Richmond Heights (Galleria, Boulevard, etc.) and the northern section of Brentwood (Square, Promenade,etc.) were easy to walk to but NO MORE! MetroLink stations have been designed to decrease neighborhood pedestrian traffic and MoDOT’s designs have purposely isolated neighborhoods and has made pedestrian travel more difficult while making it easier for cars.

    These areas will become much denser and will have two new major office complexes (at Dale and Hanley), new hotels (Brentwood and Clayton Rd), and new stores (Boulevard). Unfortunately the policy makers/designers/leaders are making it harder for pedestrians to access these developments. The current plans for the New I64 and the Hanley Road corridor will create more isolation.

    Bottom line: Islands (segregation) lead to more problems not less (integration).

    [UrbanReviewSTL — John, the real problem total is not so much that the leaders created this situation but more that our region is so fragmented politically.  We are second to Pittsburgh in political subdivisions.  Each municipality, or island, creates its own zoning which often competes with their neighbors.  What other municipality in our entire region has taken the step that DP has done by hiring DPZ (at great cost btw) to bring urbanism to the center of their community?  St. Louis certainly hasn’t!  St. Louis’ zoning code is now far more suburban in character than the code for 285 acres of DP.  That is not right!  In fact, in St. Louis we don’t have an equal code for even a small section of our city such as a commercial street or development area like the old Pruitt-Igoe.  

    As far as transportation goes, I hope that collectively leaders in St. Charles County can put together a bus system similar to that of Madison County Transit.  If so, places such as DP, O’Fallon, St. Peters, New Town (technically in St. Charles city), St. Charles and so on can be  connected via transit.  Just as Madison County Transit connects to MetroLink in East St. Louis as well as running an express bus into downtown, I hope that a St. Charles County bus system could at least get their residents to the Hanley MetroLink Station along (I-70).   Having core areas such as a “downtown” DP will help facilitate transit in the land of suburban cul-de-sacs.]

     
  15. TM says:

    I don’t think you necessarily need characters and poor folks to make a place a downtown or center. yes these things exist in a lot of traditional downtowns (which is what I think you’re talking about when you say “big D” downtown). This will simply be a place where Dardienne Prarie can center future growth, whether it be retail, governmental, or residential. To the extent that it gives people the option of walking to do shopping and use other services, or at least doesn’t force them to drive from parking pod to parking pod, it’s a positive thing. To me the interesting question is not whether this development is a “true” downtown (whatever the heck that is) or not, but whether this place will survive if the doomsday scenerio hits our economy because of oil prices as some think it will. Under such a scenerio would DP’s new center serve as a transit hub or would it simply wither and vanish as the whole area, which as you say is surrounded by conventional suburban development and sandwiched between two interstates, becomes economically unfeasible to live in?

    I do like your distinction though between a “cute shopping district” and a downtown that serves as base for large employers. If DP could lure some of the large employers you mention to their new center, then I think it could weather most economic storms. But to the extent that this new center is just a retail district in a largely bedroom community, you could see it suffer proportionately under the kind of economic shift mentioned above.

    [UrbanReviewSTL– Good questions/points.  We don’t really know what will happen as fuel prices rise and our economy gets shaken.  Some do predict a crisis on the order of the great depression.  Others aren’t so sure.  

    Any development which mixes retail, government, residential and office uses is more sustainable in such a scenerio than all those completely separate from each other and reachable only by car.  Where is the equal area in St. Peters, O’Fallon, or Lake St. Louis?  All those have far more commerce and jobs but they do lack an identity.  In 20 years, Dardenne Prairie may be thanking themselves for this decision to create a place.

    I’m working on a post on the very subject of a future economic crisis based on peak oil.  We can already assume that 100% population of St. Charles County will not abandon their homes (and mortgage obligations) and relocate to the city of St. Louis.  Some think the auto culture runs so deep many will stay in their auto-centric world long after it is wise to do so.  The person that owns a large 4-bedroom 3-car garage McMansion in St. Charles County may downsize to a townhouse in the new downtown DP as an alternative to moving to the city.  This could come out of where they work, where family lives and simply because that is where they grew up. 

    I believe we will see a certain segment move closer to the core of a region, others will stay where they are but focusing on remaking their communities to rely less on the car and finally we will have a group that will continue on the auto path until bankrupt.]

     
  16. john says:

    Yes Steve the area is fragmented but the leadership HAVE made the problems worse. Every municipality is a governmental island and the leadership is working hard to keep it that way. The merger talks between Clayton/Richmond Heights were rigged by leadership to fail (take a look at the details and this conclusion is obvious).

    Major infrastructure decisions have led to more problems for pedestrians, not less.

    Zoning has been used by leadership to favor office complexes where there were once homes. The next step is to create wider roads to serve the new office workers (ie Hanly Road). How many more examples do you need?

    Yes Steve it is good that DP spent money to help leadership appreciate and understand how planning/zoning are critical variables to successful communities. However DP is an geographical island which will require more CO2 to be serviced. Busses are HUGE polluters! You know because you bike. Just ride behind one for ten minutes on a StL summer day…they are creating a disaster for StL! Let me know when you’ll attempt it so I can check the obituaries to see if you survived.

    [UrbanReviewSTL — Certainly, leadership is now without flaws but the problem is not new.  Pedestrian & bike access continues to get worse, not better.  But right now people in DP have little choice but to get into their vehicles and drive elsewhere for services.  

    Yeah, I’ve biked behind a few of those diesel buses before.  If St. Charles were to start a transit agency I’d hope they’d look at electric or hybrid versions.  And yes, still worse than walking or biking but better than everyone in their own SUV.] 

     
  17. Jim Zavist says:

    Steve – I credit you with reaching out to and educating suburban leadership, and I credit DP’s leadership with “getting it”. I, too, wish them luck and look forward to seeing what the charette yields (even if I have my doubts). There is precedent for suburban areas rethinking things and getting denser, but they’re few and and far between. Suburban Lone Tree, CO. (http://www.cityoflonetree.com/) has embraced TOD because they’ve been guaranteed a light rail line by 2016 (which coincides well with their development projections). They, too, have leaders that “get it”.

    The challenge for DP will be developing the “drivers” needed to successfully implent the plan DPZ comes up with. They will have the “rooftops”, current and planned, combined with appropriate demographics, to attract a certain level of retail investment. County government is securely ensconced in downtown St. Charles (good for them, bad for DP). Will DP embrace the concept of developing a significant, non-retail employment base in their new downtown? Or will NIMBY rule, with concerns about the impacts traffic and “outsiders” will bring?

    St. Charles County has yet to embrace public transit. As a part of this plan, will DP have the cojones to define a transit corridor that may (or may not) be filled in twenty or thirty years? Or will surface streets be the only answer? (The freeways are already nearby.) The two “comparable” downtowns you noted (Kirkwood & Ferguson) grew up around train stations. The U City Loop grew up around a major streetcar terminus and transfer point. Having to provide parking is the biggest hurdle in creating density in the suburbs, and without true, mixed-use density, DPZ-style new urbanism IS just a feel-good charade.

    Transit is very much a “chicken or egg” problem, especially in “the land of cul-de-sacs”. It’s going to take a leap of faith to fund a bus system. It’s going to take an even bigger leap of faith to fund a rail system. But there is a way to make it happen – embrace the idea of “virtual” density. Suburbanites may not like buses on their local streets, but they will drive to a station that offers frequent, reliable rail service (that’s where the term “station wagon” comes from). Put an end-of-line station further west (either west or east of Wentzville) with parking for several thousand cars just off I-70. (Provide enough parking and you can attract enough riders from “further out” to justify enough frequent service to attract enough riders.) Put another big structure (or lot) near the the intersection of K & N. Connect the dots and you can then justify assuming that TOD can actually happen in “downtown” DP. Continue east and provide service to Progress Point, Gumbo Flats, the existing Highway 40 office corridor, the hospitals at 270 & 40/64, West Port and connect to the existing rail line at Lambert and you’ll have a viable (and marketable) system. Short of that, you’ll just have good intentions and a lot of hot air . . .

    [UrbanReviewSTL — It is really hard to say what the outcome will be in 5, 10 or 15 years.  I just know DP’s past development patterns (and most of the county) were not sustainable and should not be continued. 

    Transit in such a suburban area is a whole big mess.  It would be interesting to study who lives in St. Charles County and try to figure out where they travel to and from.  Not everyone heads to downtown St. Louis or even St. Louis County.  And when they do visit St. Louis County it is likely in many different areas (Clayton, Westport, 270 & Manchester, etc..).  I’d bet many could use transit within the county — not going out of the county toward the regional core.]

     
  18. ct says:

    My aunt’s 120 year old home and 4 acres, that they’ve owned for 40 years, is smack in the middle of this “downtown”. They don’t want to move.

    [UrbanReviewSTL — This is simply a master plan for the future — it is not a proposed development.  Also, they list a number of structures that are historic that the designers are attempting to work around.  The basic idea of the plan is to establish a set of guidelines to that when persons such as your aunt sells the property to a developer (and they all are) then the new project must help contribute to the big picture.]

     
  19. Kara says:

    St. Louis City hired DPZ for a new urbanism project back in 1990 to create the “Gate District” (formerly Lafayette Town).
    http://www.dpz.com/project.aspx?Project_Number=9002&Project_Name=Gate+District+St.+Louis

    The project suffered from lack of communication and agreement with the residents and it has been only partially implemented.

    Neighborhoods and cities are complex organisms, created over time and constantly changing due to the people that live there. City government can affect the city positively and negatively due to their policies and level of interference, and these are the areas that should be considered and changed if necessary (building codes, zoning, etc). Otherwise neighborhood and city growth and character should be left to evolve naturally by the residents and not be created by one sole developer or design firm.

    [UrbanReviewSTL — Yes, the designs at the charette had a copy of this plan as part of their St. Louis research.  They also had numerous books on St. Louis.  From the DPZ link above: “The Urban Code developed by DPZ assured that all new development would share the site planning values of the existing neighborhood, and the Architectural Code regulated the form, texture, and character of all new developments.”  I major reason the plan did not move forward is the city did not adopt their Urban & Architectural Codes — this could have been done as an “overlay” of the existing zoning within the project area.  That would have established guidelines so that as a developer I would know the owner of the parcel next door would also be held to the same standards.  Without such an assurance, it is hard to convince developers they should do something others than a suburban model as our current codes encourage. 

    Also keep in mind that area has had numerous plans. Thankfully an early 70s plan went nowhere because it called for the nearly complete destruction of the entire area bounded by Grand, I-44, Jefferson and Chouteau.  It would have been a disaster moreso that what we have now.] 

     
  20. john says:

    MoDOT working with DPZ? Is this why the issues of the New 64 being so quickly ignored?
    http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/stcharles/story/CB222A1CA3E8356E862572C7001671B1?OpenDocument
    The city is pressing the Missouri Department of Transportation to rethink plans for a section of the Page Avenue extension slated to run just north of its proposed downtown area.

    [UrbanReviewSTL — Actually, this was my idea.  It was clear too much traffic clutters up Hwy N which will be the center of the new downtown.  I suggested a boulevard feel in the existing right of way as opposed to a highway.   I don’t think MoDot has seen any drawings yet and I don’t see them agreeing to the nice parkway design that DPZ came up with.  One DPZ proposal suggested narrowing the right of way, making it very green, and selling building lots on the edges for more housing.  Selling the lots would fund the parkway.  Financially prudent and so much more bike & pedestrian friendly!]  

     
  21. john says:

    Well good luck Steve out at DP but what about all the same issues here in old St Lou? The latest issue of Gateways (back page) has an article titled “Great streets lead to great communities”! Mentioned are the SEVEN great characteristics of great streets… put the article here and use it as a checklist! Everyone can then rate local streets/boulevards and offer “efficient-finacially prudent” suggestions! They opened the door, now let’s GO THROUGH IT!!!!

    [UrbanReviewSTL — I’d love to work on issues in St. Louis but the leadership here is hell bent on keeping the status quo.  They don’t want any new thinking, they don’t want a master plan with form-based codes that resolve development conflicts.  In DP the Mayor, the board of alderman and many citizens are collectively coming together to shape the future of their community for the next 20-30 years.  It is all very positive, a refreshing change from how St. Louis city operates.  Interestingly, one of the few persons voicing opposition is a former city alderwoman who lives in DP in a big house with a 3-car garage located on the end of a cul-de-sac.]

     
  22. john says:

    FANTASY “DOWNTOWN” DISEASE SPREADING! I suppose every developer wants to create their own fantasyland downtown, even in hideous Chesterfield:

    http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/business/stories.nsf/story/2F7C2BA228829FE3862572D7006D4938?OpenDocument

     
  23. Ben H says:

    So, Chesterfield wants its piece of the cultural institutions.
    The quote from the developer incorrectly implies that parks, libraries, and possibly the symphony are part of the zoo-museum tax district which includes the city and county. Only the Zoo, Botanical Garden, MO History museum, Science Center, and Art Museum are part of it. The city and county support their own park and library systems.
    http://mzdstl.org
    The developer complains that all are located in the city. True, that is the very reason the city/county cultural tax exists. It was set up in the 60’s as the city’s tax base began to erode, so County residents could support the regional cultural institutions they still claim as their own. Over time, the tax district has become less and less of all the institutional budgets, now the majority of money comes from members dues, parking, special exhibit fees, etc.
    The history of all these institutions is in the city, I tend to recoil at the idea of asking them to split their focus to some next-big-thing Chesterfield development.

     
  24. john says:

    Oh so true Ben and it just another example of many of how the Culture of Political Division secures an uncertain future for all. It’s like a bunch of “where-did-you-go-to-high-schoolers” fighting over limitted resources when they’re isn’t enough to split. This was side-splitting humor: “His goal is to make it a true downtown, a pedestrian-friendly live and work area…” just after the parking lots are completed?

     
  25. LisaS says:

    I don’t know if Ben is correct that the tax district has become less of the institutional budgets, especially given these quotes from the Business Journal last year (http://stlouis.bizjournals.com/stlouis/stories/2006/05/22/story2.html):

    “The Zoo’s ZMD revenue increased about $3 million last year to $19.1 million. That money accounts for nearly half of the Zoo’s $46 million annual budget, with the rest coming from individual and corporate donations, concessions and gift shop sales, train rides, educational grants, and other sources.”

    “The Missouri Historical Society, which runs the Missouri History Museum, took in $9.4 million in ZMD funds last year. That accounted for about 66 percent of the museum’s $14.3 million annual budget.”

    Mostly, I’m fascinated by the forces that make the suburbs (Chesterfield, Creve Couer, St. Chas County) that for so very long have reveled in their lack of urbanity suddenly feel the need to acquire some semblance of it. Very interesting.

     
  26. Ben H says:

    It is an interesting phenomenon. Chesterfield is notable because its basically a case of the way-out having to compete with the even-farther-out.
    when i dabbled in urban history in school, i was shocked to discover that Chesterfield, or at least part, is actually a planned community. (Previous, my idea of post-war suburbs was strictly disconnected subdivisions along a too-small farm road). It has a mall as city center; a mini ring road, multi family just outisde the ring road, single family farther. Much of it built by one developer. In a way its kind of nice, there’s a lot of tall grass fields that look sort of rural. 5 minutes west, and in the past decade the longest strip mall in the US tilted up. Ive read in the suburban paper that many business owners on the artery Manchester blame the strip mall for percieved decreased sales, and i remember it cited as a reason in the P-D for adding the “lifestyle center” to Chesterfield mall (“lifestyle center” and “mall addition”, i cant find a difference). I think thats what is happening in Chesterfield and other places, even St. Charles. There will always be somewhere farther west with bigger strip malls. To distinguish itself, a big-time development needs to project an image of more sophistication than the jerkwater just west. Combined with that is a trendy popular affection for the “storefront”, such as it is, and the idea that storefront is something rare and exceptional (rare being defined within the regionally agreed upon boundary of civilization, west of 170).

     
  27. john says:

    NYTimes has a story on Chesterfield Commons, flood plains, and the warning that all taxpayers will be burdened with the next bailout. A comment from A.A. Busch IV: “We always realized that there would be fringe development, but we never envisioned after 1993 that anyone would try to build major levees and enclose thousands of acres.”
    http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/15/us/15flood.html?_r=2&hp&oref=slogin&oref=slogin
    THF Realty Inc. used Missouri’s tax program, known as tax increment financing, to build what is said to be the largest strip mall in the country on land in the Chesterfield Valley area of St. Louis County that was submerged in the floods of 1993. The shopping center, which cost $275 million to build, opened in 1999 and now has more than two million square feet of retail space, mall officials said.

     
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