I’d Love an Urban Plant Nursery in Downtown St. Louis

In the first months of this blog, three years before I moved downtown, I posted about what Washington Avenue was missing. In the eight years since many of the types of stores I listed have opened, though some closed as well. A florist & kitchen store are examples of two types of stores that opened and closed.

One retail type that didn’t occur to me at the time is a nursery.

Living downtown for 5+ years now I see a need for a nursery that can easily be reached without a car. Potted plants for indoors, bedding plants for the balcony, seeds and  other supplies. In addition to residents, office workers might like a small plant to brighten their desk. Paperwhites anyone?

Such a business could transform a dreary & forgotten space. All that’s needed is a fenced area that gets some sun & rain plus access to water & power.

There may not be a sufficient market for such a retail business downtown, it would most certainly be seasonal. Still I hope some green thumb reads this and considers it.

In the Central West End is the very nice, but pricey, Bowood Farms and associated Cafe Osage. Both are great but they’ve made a substantial investment in the location which is reflected in the prices. Still, when I had a car I’d go there as well as the former gas station turned nursery of University Gardens.

— Steve Patterson

Bollards Needed to Protect Pedestrian Route Into Omni Majestic Hotel on Pine Street

I’m used to building entrances being oriented to auto driveways, such is the case at the Omni Majestic Hotel at 1019 Pine St.  This hotel does have a pedestrian sidewalk to get from the public sidewalk to the entrance.

The design flaw is that it’s too easily overtaken by vehicles and used as additional parking, as happened on the morning of February 12th when I attended a breakfast meeting in the restaurant off the lobby.

This SUV was here when I arrived and when I left an hour later.  Though the driveway and sidewalk are different colors, the fact they are level encourages drivers to park here.

A couple of tasteful bollards are needed to keep the walkway open, a link to this post will be sent to the Omni.

— Steve Patterson

Construction Vehicles Break Up Bleak Area

Walking next to One Memorial Drive/Gateway Tower is about as bleak as it gets in St. Louis. Look to the east and you can see the Old Cathedral and Arch, but right next to you is rock and a tall blank wall. The other day at least a few vehicles parked on the beige rock added some visual interest.

I’m an advocate of on-street parking because it creates a nice fixed barrier between traffic and pedestrians. Conversely, I generally oppose parking between sidewalk and building because  it creates a fixed barrier limiting pedestrian access. Here the area nearest our big national monument is so dismal the vehicles were a welcomed sight. The contempt  for the pedestrian in 1966 is clearly evident. Pathetic!

— Steve Patterson

Progress At 1010 Locust Street (aka Bride’s House)

The economy isn’t prefect but it is slowly improving. Smaller developers are still working on manageable sized projects such as the 4-story building at 1008-10 Locust St., known by many as Bride’s House.  In August 2011 I posted about the building (see What a Handsome Bride).  The 1886 building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2010, read the application here.

In November 2012 the good news came that a local couple bought the building to rehab:

The biggest exterior change will be restoration of the street-level facade with separate entrances for a first-floor store and offices on the upper floors. The work will involve removing green granite panels installed in 1950. Cook hopes to reuse the panels in new shower stalls built for office tenants. He also plans to sell the two large “Bride’s House” signs over the current entrance.

The second floor remains available, but a retailer plans to occupy the street-level space and a marketing firm will lease the top two floors, said Patrick McKay, the Hilliker Corp. broker who represented P&F in the building’s purchase. (stltoday.com)

Earlier in the week I was passing the building and spotted workers removing those bland granite panels.

This project has me more excited than Ballpark Village phase one.

— Steve Patterson

Arch Construction Started 50 Years Ago Today

Half  a century ago work began on Eero Saarinen’s stainless steel Arch.

The Gateway Arch was designed by Finnish-American architect Eero Saarinen and German-American structural engineer Hannskarl Bandel in 1947. Construction began on February 12, 1963, and ended on October 28, 1965, costing US$13 million at the time (approximately $95,900,000 in 2013). The monument opened to the public on June 10, 1967. (Wikipedia)

Demolition of 40 city blocks began on October 10, 1939, leaving a large area vacant for over two decades.

Fast forward to today and we have efforts to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the last piece of the Arch being placed on October 28, 1965. This month they will report the progress:

CityArchRiver 2015 partners will host the third annual Report to the Community on Thursday, February 21. The report will provide the latest news and updates on the project to transform the Arch experience by making it safer and more accessible for visitors.

Representatives from CityArchRiver 2015 Foundation, the National Park Service, Haley Sharpe Design, Missouri Department of Transportation and Great Rivers Greenway District will discuss progress to date and describe new developments. Representatives will be available to answer questions and take comments during an open house immediately following the program.

(snip)

The Report to the Community will be held at the Ferrara Theatre in the America’s Center at 701 Convention Plaza, St. Louis, Mo. 63101. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. with the presentation scheduled from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. After the event concludes, attendees are invited to participate in the open house in the lobby from 7:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. (Press Release)

I’m looking forward to hearing the latest on this project to address connectivity issues with the site.

— Steve Patterson