Nineteen year ago I started this blog as a distraction from my father’s heart attack and slow recovery. It was late 2004 and social media & video streaming apps didn’t exist yet — or at least not widely available to the general public. Blogs were the newest means of …
The new NGA West campus , Jefferson & Cass, has been under construction for a few years now. Next NGA West is a large-scale construction project that will build a new facility for the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency in St. Louis, Missouri.This $1.7B project is managed by the U.S. Army …
Book publisher Island Press always impresses me with thoughtful new books written by people working to solve current problems — the subjects are important ones for urbanists and policy makers to be familiar and actively discussing. These four books are presented in the order I received them. ‘Justice and …
This post is about two indirectly related topics: the new Siteman Cancer Center building under construction on the Washington University School of Medicine/BJC campus and an update on my stage 4 kidney cancer. Let’s deal with the latter first. You may have noticed I’ve not posted in three months, …
One of the great things I love about dynamic cities is the diversity of choice when it comes to dining. These cities have a range from affordable street food to cloth napkin fine dining.  Here in St. Louis we’ve got the latter nailed but we are lacking on the former. Street food, in my view, is a prerequisite for achieving the 24/7 downtown our leaders speak about.
Last year around this time I wrote on the same subject. My intro was:
Bustling sidewalks and numerous food vendors are hallmarks of great urban streets. Food vendors sell everything from hot dogs, pretzels, nuts, ice cream, water/soda, kabobs and all sorts of other street food. In St. Louis our laws severely limit food & other street vendors leaving our sidewalks less than lively than they could or should be.
Downtown St. Louis has a limit of 10 vendor permits. Outside of downtown there are only a couple of spots where vending can legally take place.
This week’s poll (upper right of main page) is about street vendors.
Flower vendor in Philly
So take the poll and use the comments below to share your thoughts on the subject.
Hot dog vendor in Toronto
Newsstand in NYC
Food vendor in Philly
Street vendors come in all shapes and sizes. Some form of regulation is certainly necessary but I feel we’ve gone too far by limiting the number of permits to 10 for the central business district. I’ve never seen all 10 out at the same time.
If you agree that downtown and other parts of the city could benefit an increase in the number of street vendors, please take a moment and contact 7th Ward Alderman Phyllis Young. Politely ask her to introduce legislation before the Board of Aldermen to allow more street vendors so that we can begin to activate our sidewalks.
Today (4/3/09) at 4pm Mayor Slay will officially open The Old Post Office Plaza. This is more open space in a downtown with too much open space but not enough quality urban public space. And though it may look like it, this plaza is not public.
This 3/4-acre plaza is owned, not by the city, but Downtown Now/The Partnership for Downtown St. Louis. The plaza is to the North of the Old Post Office, across Locust between 8th & 9th (map).
Don’t confuse this new private plaza with the private plaza one block East, that unused plaza will soon become another parking garage.
The plaza is considered a key piece of the emerging Old Post Office Square, which includes the renovated Old Post Office building across the street at 815 Olive St. and Roberts Brothers Properties’ planned $70 million, 24-story residential tower adjacent to the Roberts-owned Mayfair Hotel at Locust and Eighth streets. (source, August 2007)
The plaza’s designers, BSN Architects of Toronto, describe the project:
The winner of an invited architectural competition, this new public Plaza celebrates the adjacent historic Old Post Office of St. Louis and actively engages the surrounding urban form. A dramatic three dimensional armature is proposed to provide substantive user amenity and involve the public in the unfolding urban drama of the revitalized downtown. Its morphology incorporates surrounding built features into a dynamic stage for public life inspired by an operatic interpretation of the myth of Daedalus and Icarus.
Yes, some architects actually talk like that.
A year ago the project hit a snag which delayed completion:
Underground construction debris has caused design changes and a three-month delay of the Old Post Office Plaza.
Construction crews working on the $8.2 million Old Post Office Plaza at Ninth and Locust streets downtown hit a snag in recent months when they uncovered concrete, steel and other debris beneath the ground.
The St. Nicholas Hotel, built in the 1850s, was formerly located on the site. The hotel was demolished in 1974, but remnants were left behind. “They simply let it collapse into the ground,” said Kozeny-Wagner President Pat Kozeny. “There’s structural steel, even the building’s elevator.” (source, March 2008)
In August 2008 construction was well underway:
A couple of days ago it now looked like:
As you can see it is mostly a hard surface plaza. This, I believe, is appropriate for an urban context. Except for the fact we already have the Arch grounds, Kiener Plaza, Gateway Mall, Baer Plaza, etc… We need less open space to help create more urban space. This block, like all the others, used to be filled with buildings.
When it came time to renovate the Old Post Office a 2nd time, the need for immediately adjacent parking was cited by potential tenants. So although this site existed to the North of the Old Post Office, we instead raze the marble-clad Century Building which was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Some said a garage could not be built on this site. I say BS.
Hardscape plazas can be interesting. No doubt Dundas Square (Wikipedia, map) in Toronto was an inspiration:
Above: Dundas Square in July 2006
Dundas Square is a wonderful urban space – very dynamic. When I visited Toronto in July 2006 my hotel was just a couple of blocks away. I saw the space on normal days as well as packed for a large annual event.
I haven’t been in the Old Post Office Plaza yet because it has been fenced off as construction was being completed. I’m looking forward to experiencing the space this afternoon. I did roll by along the sidewalk on the South edge:
It is shiny & new. It is more interesting than the old collection of surface parking lots. But from the outside looking in I could see (not see?) one glaring omission: bike parking. Holding large events in a vibrant urban area naturally draws crowds on bikes. Well designed spaces make sure cyclists have a place to secure their bikes. Such was the case at Dundas Square:
Yet this new $8 million + facility doesn’t have a single bike rack that I could see. I guess everyone is expected to drive to the plaza to help justify the garage that replaced the historic Century Building?
The ribbon cutting is 4pm today with activities this weekend.
Tax credits can be an effective tool to accomplish certain goals. For example, the federal mortgage deduction is meant to encourage home ownership. But in truth the fed is subsidizing home ownership. Tax credits are a trade off — a credit in exchange for something of value.
But an amendment tacked on to Missouri’s jobs bill (SB45) could severely limit the state’s Historic Preservation Tax Credit that has helped St. Louis, Kansas City and towns throughout Missouri since taking effect on January 1, 1998. The landscape in Jefferson City is changing daily so I know I don’t have the latest. But know that the very tax credits which have been a key player in renovation projects downtown and throughout the city, may get limited. We need this tax credit to continue the redevelopment of historic buildings in St. Louis and in communities across the entire state.
As of Monday, the St. Louis region has a smaller mass transit system:
MetroBus and MetroLink light rail service has been drastically scaled back due to budget limitations at transit agency, Metro.
The issue, like many, is very complex. The short take is Metro has too little money to provide the limited services we used to have. Rather than more frequent service, to make transit more attractive, we are getting less.
How did this come to be? Metro’s expensive legal battle (& loss) over the most recent MetroLink expansion is an easy scapegoat. But the fact remains that public subsidy of the private car has been ever increasing while transit agencies must fight for crumbs.
The Bi-State Developmemt Agency, known as Metro since February 1, 2003, has been underfunded since its formation sixty years ago in 1949. Forty-six years ago today, April 1st 1963, Bi-State took over transit routes from the St. Louis Public Service Company and “14 other local bus operators” as part of a $26 million dollar bond issue (Source: Streets & Streetcars of St. Louis: A Sentimental Journey by Andrew D. Young).
Capital funds are easier to find than operating revenue. Public mass transit is an important part of every strong region. We need to fix our system and soon.
I’ve grown tired of living downtown in a walkable environment with a street grid of short blocks [mostly] filled with wonderful architectural gems. So I’m moving to Wentzville MO (map) where I’m guaranteed to never encounter a street grid, interesting architecture, pedestrians, etc.
I don’t like having to decide how I’m going to get from place to place (walk, bike, transit, drive, etc). In Wentzville the decision will be easy — the car! I may have to get a Hummer to help save G.M. Besides, with my new commute I’ll need a comfy vehicle. Gas is cheap today so why not?
Plus no more eating at locally owned restaurants, I’m going for chains now. That way when I leave Wentzville to travel I can be assured to get the exact same meals, regardless of what city I’m in. Don’t want to take a chance on anything different. I’ll still go to the local pub, Applebee’s Neighborhood Grill & Bar. It is just down the street a few miles in front of Wal-Mart.
I love my new ranch home that features a 3-car garage and 14 gables. Vinyl siding and a bit of brick on the front will be awesome! The four bedrooms will come in handy because, as of today, I’m no longer gay. I’m going to get me a wife and kids. And with kids you must raise them in the “country.” Wouldn’t dare expose them to those of different races or incomes. Going to the Mexican chain off I-70 is diverse enough.
And you get so much house in Wentzville. I’ll have the previously mentioned four bedrooms, three living areas and three dining areas plus the basement. Granted none of the dining areas will seat more than eight for dinner but we’ll all be eating in the “family” room in front of the big screen. I’m finally going to get that riding lawn mower I’ve always wanted so I can mow the 3 acre lot. I’ll have plenty of trips to Home Depot in the Hummer to get fertilizer to keep the lawn perfectly green and free of weeds. While I’m at Home Depot I’ll get a water purifier – how do chemicals get in our water supply?
I’ll take the whole family to events downtown, like wholesome concerts at the new Chaifetz arena on Compton. Yeah, when you live in Wentzville, anything in the City is downtown. Ah, the good life.
Happy April Fool’s day everyone! Like I’m going to trade my life for the above.
AARP Livibility Index
The Livability Index scores neighborhoods and communities across the U.S. for the services and amenities that impact your life the most
Built St. Louis
historic architecture of St. Louis, Missouri – mourning the losses, celebrating the survivors.
Geo St. Louis
a guide to geospatial data about the City of St. Louis
