913 Locust As Narrow As It Looks

Squeezed in between two taller buildings is the structure at 913 Locust St. The building is only 23 feet 9 inches wide, the full width of the lot.

According to city records (Geo St. Louis) it was built in 1900 — after the building on the right but 13 years before the building on the left. Like many buildings downtown it got a new appearance during the 20th century. Anyone out there know more about this building?

– Steve Patterson

Local Green Projects Received Awards

Green design is becoming more and more commonplace such that competition for awards among many green projects is now crowded. Last week I attended the Growing Green Awards hosted by the USGBC Gateway Chapter.

One award winner stood out to me because of the horrible condition the building was in prior to the renovation work. The 1928 building was a power house supplying heat to downtown buildings until 1980, when it was abandoned.

AWARDEE: Cannon Design

When Cannon Design chose to relocate their office – they were presented with an opportunity that allowed them not only to reuse and restore a unique and historic structure in the City of St. Louis but also redevelop a Brownfield site and develop an interior space that supports the most forward-thinking workplace while still maintaining the historic integrity of the architectural features. Almost 99% of the existing walls, floors and roof structure were reused while 92% of the construction waste was recycled. While many sustainability measures were taken during the restoration of the former steam generation plant, the one with arguably the biggest impact was Cannon’s commitment to reusing an existing building and identifying the reuse as an opportunity for creation rather than an hindrance of a vision.

Operational Excellence Nominees: Joe Abernathy – St. Louis Cardinals; Barnes-Jewish Hospital; Cannon Design; Graybar; Novus International; Tarlton

For more information on their office click here. Read about all those who received awards here. Congrats to all the nominees and winners.

– Steve Patterson

Scooter Sales Were Up In Big in 2011

Last year motorcycle sales were basically flat but according to the Motorcycle Industry Council models that sipped gas saw big increases:

Collectively, the dozen leading brands included in the MIC’s Retail Sales Report were up 0.3 percent in 2011, compared to the year before. Fuel-efficient models did especially well. Among these brands, scooter sales rose 11.8 percent and dual-purpose bike sales were up 14.2 percent. The MIC will announce first-quarter 2012 sales for these particular brands, which represent most of the market, on April 20. (Source)

This means other models saw decreases for the total market to remain flat. The scooter I had for nearly three years was great transportation, the miles per gallon was around 80-90!  The last year I owned it I didn’t have a car — it was my only motorized vehicle.

I’ve not kept up on scooters since I had to stop riding in 2008 but there are many models available. Interestingly Honda lists the 2009 Metropolitan as the most recent version of that model.

Laws vary from state to state (list) but I liked that Missouri didn’t require registration of low speed 50cc models like my Metropolitan. Like using transit riding a scooter required you to adjust shopping trips, namely more frequent smaller purchases. The scooter did give me 24/7 mobility on my schedule.

The scooter I had couldn’t exceed 30mph or so. As a result I didn’t venture out of the city often. When I did it was on weekends or I took back routes to reach my destinations. Depending upon where you drive and your storage options a scooter might be a good choice for you.

– Steve Patterson

Readers Resist Transit As Gas Prices Rise

I’m not sure if its a love of cars/driving or a dislike of transit but readers in the poll last week indicated it will take a lot to get them to give up driving and use transit.

Q: How Expensive Must Gas Get Before You Take Transit Instead of Drive?

1. I already take transit and/or bike: 39 [33.05%]
2. I’ll never take transit: 17 [14.41%]
3. Other: 16 [13.56%]
4. $10+ 14 [11.86%]
5. $6 – $6.99: 13 [11.02%]
6. $5 – $5.99: 10 [8.47%]
7. $7 – $9.99: 6 [5.08%]
8. $4 – $4.99: 3 [2.54%]

Wow, really? This tells me we can jack up taxes on gasoline to fund dramatically better transit and most of you will keep driving. Missouri should raise fuel taxes to be on par with neighboring states like Illinois (41.2¢/gallon). The average for the 50 states is 30.5¢/gallon but Missouri is at 17.3¢/gallon, slightly above Oklahoma (Source).

The high number of “other” answers were mostly those feeling guilty and/or defensive about driving:

1. I can’t take transit to work, not a choice
2. When I can get from St. Louis County to St. Charles County
3. I will just work from home
4. It rarely goes where I need it to – despite proximity to multiple bus routes!
5. I take transit and walk. 🙂
6. I’ll be riding my scooter
7. When it doesnt take 2 hrs to travel, the same distance I can drive in 20 minutes
8. When it’s cleaner and safer, maybe I’ll consider transit.
9. i live 3 miles from work, it’s still not an issue for me.
10. Tranist is not an option in my current job.
11. I’d take transit now if there was better coverage near my home.
12. I don’t have convenient transit access
13. My job requires me to have a car.
14. transit is not an option for my commute
15. i’ll take it when it runs 24/7b

Do people only go from home to work and back? No, we don’t. We go to events, shopping, dinner, etc. I’d imagine many of you have made changes to your routines:

Nationally, 84% of those responding to an AAA survey released earlier this month say they’ve changed their routines as a result of soaring fuel prices. Better planning — combining errands into a single trip — was the most common way cited. (USA Today)

It will be interesting to watch as prices continue to rise.

– Steve Patterson

22nd Street Interchange Should Be Completely Eliminated

Over the last year or so the ramps on & off I-64 (Hwy 40) at 22nd have been closed as MoDOT makes repairs to infrastructure. Paul McKee’s plans for this area called for a nice boulevard and new on/off ramps at the highway. I don’t think the ramps are needed at all.  See aerial.

I use 22nd to get on and off the highway but taking Jefferson Ave is no big deal, I’ve had to do so often over the last 12-18 months when the ramps have been closed.

The Jefferson Ave overpass and exits should be rebuilt. Right now on/off ramps only serve the interstate west of Jefferson. I’d add ramps to serve the interstate east of Jefferson and create a single point intersection.  Rather than maintaining this little used, little needed infrastructure the land could be developed.

Such a development could make Union Station part of a new neighborhood of offices and apartments.

– Steve Patterson