Neglected Aloe Plaza & Carl Milles Fountain Will Be 75 Years Old In Just Three Years

On October 28 2015 we will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the final piece of the Gateway Arch.  The Arch didn’t open to the public until June 10, 1967.

On May 11, 2015 Aloe Plaza  across from Union Station will be 75 years old. Few seem to care.

I’d like to see CityArchRiver focus on the 50th anniversary of the opening of the Arch in 2017 rather than rush for a 2015 completion, although we should recognize the topping of the Arch in 2015. I’d also like us to renew Aloe Plaza for it’s 75th anniversary.

– Steve Paterson

Grand Ave MetroLink Station Taking Shape

The new Grand Ave Viaduct is moving along, it’ll open later this  year to vehicles first and then to MetroBus and MetroLink.

Originally I saw the graphics  pointing toward the platform and incorrectly assumed pedestrians would be able to cross Scott Ave and the westbound track at the center point under the new bridge, but the access point is the sidewalk to the west which I don’t think will offer much protection from rain.

Two tracks are located between the platform and Scott Ave — the westbound MetroLink and an additional track I thought was going to be removed. It’s unclear how pedestrians will get from the grade-level crossing up to platform height.

Before those transferring to/from the #70 (Grand) MetroBus & MetroLink had a flight of stairs or elevator ride. Now they’ll have to cross a plaza, Scott Ave and one or two tracks.  We shall see when it opens if this is an improvement or a fail.

– Steve Patterson

White Flight, Urban Renewal & Population Loss

It’s true that some of St. Louis’ population loss can be attributed to “white flight” which is defined as:

But we mustn’t forget other factors that contributed to population loss  and that reasons for loss from 1950-1960 are different than those from 2000-2010.

The 1939 World’s Fair in New York is a good glimpse on the views of what 1960 could become, part one sets up the vision as detailed in General Motors’ Futurama exhibit:

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNlgfkE9nWA

Part two looks at the rebuilt city of 1960:

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RtU_jNheyrQ

By 1947 St. Louis Comprehensive Plan detailed how this could become a reality here by 1970. From the introduction:

 The Plan Commission confidently predicts that by 1970 barely a generation hence-the city proper can have 900,000 population. This would be an increase of only slightly more than 10 per cent since the 1940 census, but such a growth of 84,000 calls for making proper room for the new roofs, adequate traffic ways for the added automobiles, economical plans for all the additional public and semi-public facilities to be required. Furthermore, there must be a catching-up with all the improvements perforce neglected during the long war period.

With this mindset to rebuild the city to accommodate the expected 900,000 population by 1970 they proceeded to build vast highway networks and clear many dense neighborhoods.  Thousands of residents, businesses, churches, etc were taken by eminent domain to “improve” the city. For many who were displaced it was often easier to but a home in a suburb than to try to find a house in the city.

In 1950 many city residences were overcrowded. Floor boards were placed over dirt floors to create basement living quarters and others squeezed into flats. Yet thousands of housing units were razed to rebuild entire neighborhoods and highways. Even if your house remained your business might have been taken from you. With no where else to turn, those who could afford to do so left.

The population in 1970 was 622,236, down 234,560 from the 1950 peak of 856,796 just twenty years earlier. A far cry from the 900,000 they expected to occupy the rebuilt city by 1970!

Urban renewal forced many outside the city limits. By 1990, the year I moved to St. Louis, the population was down to 396,685. In the two decades from 1970-1990 the drop was 225,551, greater than the 1950-1970 drop and a much high percentage. But the reasons were different. The massive urban renewal projects were no more but the damage they caused lasting. You had white & black flight — the middle class got the hell out.

The drop from 1990-2010 was less in total numbers and percentages.

– Steve Patterson

Poll: How Often Do You Use The Public Library?

This year the St. Louis Central Library will reopen after a $70 million dollar renovation and the St. Louis County Library is seeking a property tax increase to replace it’s main building and others (story). The library is a great resource we all pay for,  one I know I haven’t used often enough. I’m changing that this year.

Lately I’ve been checking out DVDs from the library for titles I can’t stream on Netflix. I had to update my library card since I hadn’t used it for a while.  Turns out the St. Louis Library requires everyone to update their card after each birthday.

With all this investment in our libraries I was wondering how often you use the library. Take the poll in the right sidebar and add any comments below.

– Steve Patterson

New Low-Floor Buses Make Boarding Easy

More of Metro’s new low-floor buses from California transit bus manufacturer GILLIG are on the routes I ride regularly. Eighteen months ago I was lucky to see one and now about half my bus trips are on a new bus. The old buses are worn out, used long after the expected lifespan. Any new bus would be an improvement over the old but the lower floor makes boarding and unboarding easier and faster for everyone — especially those of us using power chairs.

The old high-floor buses had a mechanical lift to bring us up to the right height. One winter I spent 45 minutes stuck on a lift when it malfunctioned, not fun.  The low-floor bus has a piece of the floor that hinges out to provide a ramp. The operation is faster than the old lifts and it can be operated manually in case of a mechanical failure. The lack of steps is great for others not using mobility devices.

Not all are pleased though, Metro says these seat 39 compared to 43 on the older “Phantom” bus. Metro hasn’t provided me with seating diagrams I requested a couple of weeks ago so I cannot verify their numbers.

I’ll just keep enjoying these new buses and hope service improves on many routes to address overcrowding.

– Steve Patterson