Last week workers replaced the dead street tree in front of my building, it was planted in 2008. Other trees in front of the building are older, but this spot is where dogs go as soon as their owners take them outside. I’m not sure if that’s the cause of the short lifespan of the last tree or one of numerous reasons it didn’t survive.
ABOVE: Newly planted street tree in front of my building.
Hopefully this tree will last longer. I saw the workers digging out the old tree but I didn’t stick around to see how it had been planted or the conditions. I did snap a picture of a hole for a street tree around the corner just before the tree was planted.
ABOVE: Just before a street tree was planted on 16th next to the Leather Trades Lofts
Yes, the earth surrounding the hole is filled with bricks. How do we expect trees to survive when the root system has to compete with bricks and other debris?
Two downtown streets are more like alleys than streets: Lucas Ave & St. Charles St. Both are parallel to Washington Ave with St. Charles St. to the south and Lucas Ave to the north. I’m sure when early founders laid out the street grid these two had buildings facing them. in the 18th & 19th centuries.
ABOVE: St.Charles Street looking west toward 15th St., click image for aerial
In many places these two have been closed entirely as large buildings were built on the right-of-way after the city vacated it. Examples include the convention center and the former St. Louis Centre indoor mall. In recent years some lofts have entrances facing these two, such as Railway Lofts facing Lucas Ave and 10th Street Lofts facing St. Charles St. These are the exception though, not the rule. St. Charles St. runs along the back of my building, our recycling dumpsters are there as is the entrance to our parking garage.
ABOVE: Sanborn Fire map from February 1909 shows St. Charles relegated to back alley to buildings facing Washington & Locust, between 14th-15th. Click image to search Sanborn Maps on UM Digital Library
These need to stay as named streets because of the few places with entrances facing them but we shouldn’t encourage more facing them. In very dense cities you’ll see such streets as active places but we aren’t anywhere dense enough to make these safe to walk down at night. They also lack sidewalks so making entrances accessible is a challenge.
They’ve got proper names but they’re best viewed like they have been for over a century — as alleys.
I use a power wheelchair when I go out for a long “walk” or if I’m using mass transit. In doing so I stick to the sidewalks and crosswalks as best I can, I know this is safer for me. But others seem to think their chairs are vehicles. I’ve posted before about wheelchair users in the street. Recently I saw one in the street that had me and everyone on the bus in shock:
ABOVE: This guy came from Page Ave and went north on Kingshighway between the lanesABOVE: Close up we can see an oxygen tank on the chair
Really? Maybe he needs help understanding how to get around safely? He probably used to bicycle against traffic. I just don’t get it, I can’t think of a more dangerous place for him to be. The sidewalk in that part of Kingshighway is fine for use.
Delmar Blvd., like most St. Louis streets, was once very urban in form. Buildings all were built up to the sidewalk, defining the public vs. private space. This also gave pedestrians a sense of enclosure, they weren’t exposed on all sides.
For decades now we’ve chipped away at the urban form then wondered why we also had population loss, increased pollution and disinvestment. We still would have experienced population loss based on the trend to the suburbs but trying to remake the city to be like th, e suburbs didn’t work to stop the loss and now it’s preventing the rejuvenation of many areas, such as along Delmar Blvd.
Also for decades St. Louis’ “leadership” has thought that anything new — any investment — was better than no investment at all. What they continue to fail to understand is disconnected buildings set back behind parking doesn’t create anyplace special. Furthermore with old storefronts up to the sidewalk and new buildings set back the look and feel isn’t pleasant. It’s not a contiguous wall of buildings or or consistent setback common in suburbia.
St. Louis’ first planner, Harland Bartholomew, wanted to basically raze the city and rebuild in the suburban model — see his 1947 Comprehensive Plan.
ABOVE: Under construction in May 2006ABOVE: 100 Black Men of Metropolitan St. Louis on Delmar, April 2012ABOVE: On the Delmar sidewalk facing the entrance after exiting the bus pedestrians are less important than the cars.ABOVE: The required ADA access route does exist but you have to go to the side street to reach itABOVE: The building to the east is having it's front removed to make it less urban than it's been for decades.
None of this will encourage investment and improvement of the area, it’ll likely accelerate disinvestment and abandonment. I hope to live long enough to see the 100 Black Men of Metropolitan St. Louis building razed and replaced with 2-3 urban buildings.
Yesterday I posted about the challenge of bringing back the area around the 5th & Missouri Station in downtown East St. Louis.Today I’m focusing on the next station to the east on the light rail line: Emerson Park.
Construction on the St. Clair County MetroLink extension from the 5th & Missouri station to the College station in Belleville began in 1998 and opened in May 2001. The extension added eight new stations and seven park-ride lots. The total project cost was $339.2 million, with the FTA and St. Clair County Transit District sharing the burden at 72% ($243.9 million) and 28% ($95.2 million), respectively. Local funding was provided by the St. Clair County Transit District as a result of a 1/2 cent sales tax passed in November 1993.
May 5th marks the 11th anniversary of the Emerson Park station and the area has seen considerable positive change, but planning mistakes were made.
The Good:
New housing, lots of it, has been built and more is under construction now. From last year:
Today marked the groundbreaking of a $17 million development in East St. Louis adjacent to the Emerson Park MetroLink Station, Jazz @ Walter Circle. The $17 million development is a public-private partnership between the East St. Louis Housing Authority (ESLHA), Hampton Roads Ventures and Dudley Ventures, and is the first in the nation to combine public housing development funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development with New Market Tax Credits. (NextStopSTL)
This station has seen a steady flow of new construction over the last 11 years.
ABOVE: NW corner of Bowman Ave & N 15th St on April 27, 2007, click image for aerial in Google MapsABOVE: The same corner 5 years later on April 19, 2012 with Jazz @ Walter Circle under construction. Click image for more information on this projectABOVE: Central City Apartments across Bowman Ave from the Emerson Park Station in April 2007ABOVE': A typical street in the Parsons Place development just notheast of the Emerson Park Station, April 2007ABOVE: Park in the center of the Parsons Place development
I’m thrilled with how much has been built in the last decade around the Emerson Park Station. The new senior housing over storefronts will be outstanding for this neighborhood.
The Bad:
As you might expect, mistakes have been made in the past and that continues. Where to begin? Parking is a good place, this station has three parking lots with a total of 816 parking spaces! This is the 2nd highest number of spaces at Illinois MetroLink stations, Fairview Heights has the highest with 853 spaces. The parking is divided among three lots — the main lot and two overflow lots.
ABOVE: 816 parking spaces divided among three parking lots, click image to view aerial in Google Maps
The lot to the far right should go away immediately or at least be significantly reduced in size, it serves as a barrier between the new housing to the east of the station. I first noticed the disconnect when I drove there and walked around in April 2007 before I was disabled.
ABOVE: At the end of Parsons Ave looking across the parking lot at the Emerson Park station. Why doesn't the sidewalk continue? April 2007ABOVE: Same location as viewed from the opposite side, not friendly to pedestrians, difficult pushing a stroller and impossible in a wheelchair. April 2007ABOVE: Looking toward Parsons Place after leaving the Emerson Park Station. Not exactly inviting. April 2007ABOVE: The walkway leaving the station is nice and wide but a newly built crosswalk across N 15th is off to the left rather than a direct line. April 2012ABOVE: In April 2007 the connection was more direct, but the crosswalk and curb ramp was still indirectABOVE: Now the amount of concrete is greater and a new pedestrian bridge takes pedestrians over the interstate. Bleak! Shade trees and seating would have been nice here.
In 2007 this east overflow parking lot had a few cars but on my recent visit it had none. Even if it’s 100% full on days the Cardinals play at home it shouldn’t be allowed to separate the nice newer housing from transit. Huge fail. Who’s fault? No clue, but nobody figured out that a continuous sidewalk would figuratively and literally connect housing to the station.
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