Vacant Service Station on Shaw Has Great Potential

About 25-30 years about ago the now-defunct magazine Metropolitan Home had an article on an old service station being converted into a private residence, if I recall it was a contest winner located in Dallas. Since then I’ve been hooked on the reuse of these structures.

In February I posted about a formerly dumpy service station on Tower Grove that is now a trendy restaurant. Recently I passed by another vacant service station just perfect for a similar transformation. I’d passed by this same location many times before without noticing anything other than its sad condition. This time I envisioned another restaurant with a patio out front.

Some of you might say no market exists for food establishments in the area but no doubt that was said before Olio, Shasha’s on Shaw, and Mama Josephine’s opened.

I’d love to see this building get a new life as a restaurant, coffeehouse, or perhaps a plant nursery/cafe.  I don’t know the owner’s intentions, or the potential environmental issues, but I know from a purely design perspective the potential is high.

— Steve Patterson

National Microbusiness Conference in St. Louis May 5-8

Microbusinesses, those with 5 or fewer employees, are an important part of the St. Louis economy. These businesses, though individually small, collectively employee much of our region.

St. Louis beat out a couple of other cities to host a national conference on microbusinesses, it starts Sunday:

Welcome to the Association for Enterprise Opportunity’s 2013 National Conference, the nation’s largest premier microbusiness event.

This year’s conference promises to be the best and most comprehensive ever. Join us as we engage senior executives, investors, bankers, practitioners, policy makers and Administration Officials in dialogue about positioning microbusinesses to create jobs and help grow America’s economy.

AEO’s power-packed program will combine large plenary style talks with small, interactive workshops to help attendees learn how to seek out new sources of capital, understand new products and services delivery models and adopt best practices that will enable long-term sustainability.

The conference will be held May 5-8 at the Chase Park Plaza Hotel in St. Louis, Missouri as we ignite the power of microbusiness to change our communities! (Enterprise Opportunity 2013 Conference) 

I talked with Enterprise Opportunity’s President & CEO, Connie Evans, at the conference kickoff earlier this week, see her respond to me here.

The public is invited to attend the free marketplace of local microbusiness event Monday May 6, 2013 from 4:30pm-7pm. Chase Park Plaza (easily reached via the #10 & #95 MetroBus routes).

— Steve Patterson

Omni Majestic Hotel Protects Pedestrian Route

In February I posted about a problem I had observed, see Bollards Needed to Protect Pedestrian Route Into Omni Majestic Hotel on Pine Street. I contacted the manager of the hotel about the problem, along with a link to my post. 

I’m happy to report the hotel has corrected the situation in a very simple manner: two planters.

Thank you to the Omni Majestic for taking action to protect the pedestrian route to your hotel.

— Steve Patterson

Missouri Needs A Better Jury System

Today is Law Day and part of Juror Appreciation Week.

I was called in last month for jury service and I was looking forward to it. For the first time I was to start on a Wednesday rather than a Monday. We were all dismissed for lunch at 11:30am and told to return by 1:15pm. At this point no numbers had been called for the first jury pool. Finally at 2pm the first group was called and my number was among those.

We get to the courtroom and the staff take care of details. The judge comes out and explains the importance of jurors but the case wasn’t ready to be heard that day after all, we were dismissed. I wanted to serve on a jury like I did last time. I wasn’t losing money by being there.

States like Illinois & California have systems available for each circuit to use where jurors can call in the day before to see if they are needed or not. Alternatively, prospective jurors can login online to see if they are needed. This lets people go about there lives. For my Wednesday service I would’ve checked on Tuesday. It likely would’ve told me I was needed since the judge thought he’d need a jury. But others might have been told to call in on Wednesday to see if they were needed on Thursday. A friend I saw on jury duty was losing money sitting there, he could’ve been working on Wednesday instead.  Missouri needs such a system so people don’t spend days just sitting there!

Here are the poll results from the poll last week:

Q: How do you feel about jury duty?

1. I go and want to serve 58 [50.43%]
2. I show up (if called) but don’t want to be called 29 [25.22%]
3. Other: 14 [12.17%]
4. If called, I try to get out of it. 5 4.35% 4.35%
5. Unsure/no opinion 4 [3.48%]
6. I don’t care 3 [2.61%]
7. I don’t vote, so I don’t get called. 2 [1.74%]

The 14 “other” answers from readers were:

1. would love to go but never get called
2. I have no problem serving. But saying “want to serve” is a bit of a stretch.
3. Love it! After voting, it’s the most important way we act as a democracy.
4. never been called
5. I’ve lived in the city for 4 years and still haven’t been called. I want to go!
6. Dont vote, get called anyway
7. I’ve never been called, but would go.
8. I have never been called for it.
9. Considering who I’ve seen picked, I hope I never face a jury trial in stl city
10. I go – depends on the case
11. Reform. Current system has too many uneducated people making critical decisions.
12. I do vote, but haven’t been called.
13. Never been called!
14. It’s my civic duty.

I like serving and I think others would too if we only have to show up when we are needed for a jury pool.

— Steve Patterson

Coming Soon to Kingshighway & Delmar: More Low-Density Sprawl

The site of the former National/Schnucks at Kingshighway & Delmar, long vacant, has now been cleared for new development. I’ve viewed the site as an opportunity to build a dense urban project, ideally connected with a Delmar extension of the future Loop Trolley. But current plans may delay dense development of the 4+ acre site for at least the next 20-30 years.

But ALDI doesn’t need over 4 acres! Looking at city records online I see The Roberts Brothers has divided the site into three parcels, with ALDI buying one of the three.

The boundaries of the three parcels is intriguing, my guess is so all three can have automobile  entrances facing Kingshighway, or at least a Kingshighway address.  This new store will be part of three recently announced locations also including Creve Coeur & Des Peres (source).

My assumption is this Kingshighway & Delmar location will replace the ALDI less than a mile to the north at Kingshighway & Page (1315 Aubert).

Below is a look at a few ALDI locations in the area, showing size of parcel, year built, and the building size:

The most recently completed ALDI on the list above is the 7701 Olive location. I visited that ALDI in May 2006, shortly after it opened.

This is how ALDI builds US locations from coast to coast. For example, in late 2010 a blogger noted the design for a dense Washington DC neighborhood (see Terrible Aldi design shows need for new parking zoning). As with so many retailers, they’ll do the cheapest design they can, barely meeting minimum standards. If we want/expect better we must demand better — raising the minimum. Retailers will meet the improved standard as long as they can get sales & profit growth.     ALDI does have a few urban locations, but only in super-dense places like Queens, NY.

And before anyone says ALDI and Trader Joe’s are part of the same company let me clarify their relationship.

The [ALDI] chain is made up of two separate groups, Aldi Nord (North – operating as Aldi Markt), with its headquarters in Essen, and Aldi Süd (South – operating as Aldi Süd), with its headquarters in Mülheim an der Ruhr, which operate independently from each other within specific areas.

[snip]

Both Aldi Nord and Aldi Süd also operate in the United States; Aldi Nord is owner of the Trader Joe’s chain while Aldi Süd operates as Aldi. (Wikipedia)

Thus the ALDI we see in the US is NOT related to our Trader Joe’s stores. Another difference between our ALDI stores and our Trader Joe’s is the latter is willing to go compact in dense, walkable areas. For example, the Trader Joe’s I visited in 2009 located at 1700 E Madison St, Seattle, WA.  The store is located on the ground floor with sidewalk entrance, a level of structured parking over the store and four levels of housing over that.

Madison St. in Seattle still has low-density development, like the gas station across from the Trader Joe’s, but one property at a time it is getting more urban. As it gets more urban it attracts more people, increasing the need to be more urban.

Back in St. Louis, we do the opposite. We continue to build low-density sprawl, then scratch our heads wondering why more people don’t walk, use transit, or why our population declines. I’m not suggesting development patterns are the reason for our population decline in the past, but it is a factor today.

A single story ALDI surrounded by surface parking on this corner is totally inappropriate given the context to the east and south.

— Steve Patterson