Private Gate Blocks Public Sidewalk in Midtown, Ties to the Castle Ballroom

Often I encounter annoying things as I make my way around the city, dismissing many as flukes. I took photos of a gate blocking the public sidewalk on November 28, 2012 and again on March 7, 2014.

This is the side gate for 2840 Locust St., owned by Barry Adelstein & Scott Gundolf. Years ago the renter of the property was Michael McMillan, former alderman, license collector, and cureently head of the Urban League of St. Louis. To my knowledge he still lives here. This property is directly north of the neglected Castle Ballroom.

The owner of the Castle Ballroom is SAG PROPERTIES LLC, with tax bills sent to 2840 Locust St.  Documents show Scott Gundolf is the President of SAG Properties LLC.   He’s also a licensed real estate broker with One West Associates, Barry Adelstein is also a licensed broker.

Just what is the relationship between Michael McMillan, Barry Adelstein, and Scott Gundolf? McMillan’s close associate, Marlene Davis, became the 19th ward alderman when he was elected to the office of license collector. Adelstein was a partner with Marlene Davis in a failed midtown bar, Gene Lynn’s, which closed in 2008.  Davis was forced to file for bankruptcy in 2010.

Did these associations help get officials to look the other way regarding maintenance of the Castle Ballroom building? And to a lessor degree, feel like it’s ok to block the public sidewalk with a private gate? But wait, there’s more!

The real estate deal in question involves the old Castle Ballroom at 2839 Olive, which Rainford says Reed bought and sold for a large profit, before helping the developer who bought it get a taxbreak. Reed’s campaign says sale was profitable, because it happened during the 2004 market peak; and the tax break was sought by the alderman in that ward, passed unanimously by the board, then signed by Mayor Slay. (KMOX)

A tax break? There’s much more to this, I suspect! Plus I don’t want the gate left open blocking the public sidewalk.

— Steve Patterson

#97 MetroBus on Locust…Temporarily

Metro’s #97 MetroBus route is commonly known as the “Delmar”, and it does go down Delmar west of Vandeventer. It also runs on McKnight, Ladue, Maryland, Central, Shaw Park, Meramec, Old Bonhomme, Vandeventer, Enright, Spring, Washington, and 14th. The route doesn’t include Locust St., but utility construction on Washington Ave meant the #94 & #97 buses had to be rerouted.  The #94 got pushed a block north to Delmar and the #97 got pushed a block south to Locust.

I took the image above right after I exited my building. I love seeing buses going up and down my street! What I haven’t seen during the last couple of month of the reroute is temporary bus stops. Bus routes have flexility that streetcar routes don’t, but that flexility comes with the responsibility to mark stops. The current alert doesn’t mention stops:

#97 Construction at Washington and 20th Street – Revision #4

DETAILS: Due to construction at Washington and 20th Street, the following reroutes will be in effect for approximately a month.

REROUTE DETAILS: #97 DELMAR

EASTBOUND: Regular route to Washington and 21st, right on 21st, left on Locust, Right on 14th to regular route.

WESTBOUND: Regular route to 14th and Locust, left on Locust, right on 21st, left on Washington to regular route.

Stops on Washington at 14th/15th, 16th, 18th, and 20th are all closed with no visible replacements. — Steve Patterson

Poll: The Number of Stop Signs in St. Louis is…

St. Louis is known for the St. Louis stop:

an action where you come up to a stop sign look both ways but never actually make a complete stop

People complain about them but many also request they be added at their corner. In the poll this week I’d like readers to finish the statement “The number of stop signs in St. Louis is…”

The answers range from not enough to excessive, appearing in random order in the poll in the right sidebar. The poll results and my thoughts on Wednesday March 19th.

— Steve Patterson

Neglected Castle Ballroom to be Razed

In June 2011 I posted about the Castle Ballroom on Olive in Midtown. I’d hoped to spark the interest of someone to buy and renovate the building.  Here’s how the building looked at the time, followed by how it looks now:

Here’s the story:

In November, severe weather caused one of those walls to collapse. Building inspectors have since concluded that the vacant structure at 2839 Olive Street, which is on the National Register of Historic Places and considered one of the city’s last remaining buildings with a deep connection to the black community in Midtown St. Louis, is a public safety hazard and must be demolished. (stltoday)

Another important part of history will soon be gone. The front facade could be stabilized, but I don’t know who’d pay for that. Plus the bricks have been painted so I’m not sure it’s worth saving. If the St. Louis Streetcar moves forward we may see a new building go up on this site. I just hope something like a drive-through restaurant or a one-story retail store like a Dollar General doesn’t get built on this site.

— Steve Patterson

Chippewa Road Diet, Bike Lanes, Pedestrian Lane

Late last year Chippewa got a road diet using paint, not concrete. Four traffic lanes were reduced to two with a center turn lane, and a bike lane was added in each direction.  Under the railroad bridge between Gravois & Meramec was the part that confused me, with a wide lane to the right of the new bike lane. The other day I was finally in a place where I could get some photos.

Because of the railroad tracks pedestrians haven’t been able to  walk in an east-west direction along Chippewa. Up top the tracks are a barrier and the underpass was designed decades ago only for vehicles.  Online I found Chippewa Bike Lanes: A Review:

The pedestrian lane under the viaduct seems like a creative and appropriate solution to the problem of pedestrian connectivity along aging infrastructure. It is important that the pedestrian lane be separated from automobile traffic, and the traffic cones are obviously a temporary fix. We look forward to seeing the permanent configuration, and will update this post as the project evolves. 

Hopefully the traffic cones are just temporary, but replaced with what? The excellent images on the post Chippewa Bike Lanes: A Review show how lanes shift, with the risk of motorists ending up driving in the bike/pedestrian lanes.

— Steve Patterson.