SW Garden Neighborhood Association Didn’t Know About Preservation Review Process!

The Southwest Garden Neighborhood Association, where St. Aloysius is located for now, was unaware the City’s Preservation Board would make a decision on wether to grant the demolition permit or not. The association was told the Archdiocese was insisting the buildings be torn down. Some time back they gave their approval to the new home proposal.

I see this all too often, a volunteer association gives their approval for a redevelopment only because they think no alternative exists. Today they are realizing the process was not as it was explained to them.

First, we have the idea that it would be too painful for the neighbors if the church was reused. This is partially true, the neighbors don’t want any sort of institutional use on the site (either in the existing buildings or in new). This has some validity due to parking & traffic concerns on the narrow streets. But the question of Eastern half of the site being renovated with the Western half receiving new construction was never discussed as an option.

If the church really wanted the buildings razed why didn’t they apply to the City of St. Louis for a demolition permit? They didn’t do that, instead they sold the land and buildings intact to a private developer. This is now a former church owned by a private company.

The whole mess leading up to this smells of business as usual backroom politics. This is because the players involved know the proposal cannot stand on its own against the criteria of the City’s 6 year-old Preservation Review Ordinance. To get their way they had no choice but to manipulate the process in their favor. The staff recommendation to the Preservation Board for Monday’s meeting is not the staff recommendation they’d give without political pressure. This is the ugly St. Louis politics that disgusts me.

When it comes to renovating and attracting new residents to St. Louis we are our own worst enemy.

[UPDATE 12/17/05 @ 7:30PM – It seems the SW Garden Neighborhood Association gave their approval not recently, but back around April or May of this year. Those who have followed the church closings will note this and other churches weren’t “suppressed” until the end of June. The properties were then put up for sale. But the deal for the new homes was already done prior to the sale process. Basically, the opportunity for a rehab-minded developer to buy the properties never existed.]

– Steve

City Posts Agenda Regarding St. Aloysius Gonzaga

The City’s Cultural Resources office has posted the agenda for Monday’s Preservation Board meeting. This includes an application to demolish the beautiful former church complex known as St. Aloysius Gonzaga. Click here to see the detailed review of this loved complex and how the applicable Preservation Review Ordinance applies (including drawings of proposed houses and site plan).

Couple of facts to keep in mind:

From the enabling legislation: “Sound structures with apparent potential for adaptive reuse, reuse and or resale shall generally not be approved for demolition unless application of criteria in subsections A, D, F and G, four, six and seven indicates demolition is appropriate.”Subsection “A” & “G” are not applicable in this case. Subsection “D” does not warrant demolition because reuse potential does exist for the structures and the developer has not demonstrated any financial hardship. Subsection “F” also does not make demolition appropriate as the new project does not exceed the quality of the existing structures.
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Preservation Board to Determine Fate of St. Aloysius Gonzaga Complex

Last month the St. Louis Preservation Board, appointed by the mayor, rubber stamped the demolition of the Doering Mansion on the bluffs overlooking the Mississippi River. That same rubber stamp will likely be pulled from the political desk drawer to approve the razing of the St. Aloysius Gonzaga complex for 23 single family homes.

From the Suburban Journals on 9/28/2005:

Father Vince Bommarito, the priest of St. Ambrose Parish, said there was a conscious decision to not have the buildings of St. Aloysius remain intact.

“That church is actually older than St. Ambrose. People are committed to the brick and mortar. To turn that over to somebody else would be difficult for the people to handle in the long run,” Bommarito said.

St. Aloysius Parish was made part of St. Ambrose Parish when the archdiocese closed St. Aloysius at the end of June.

Huh? It would be difficult to see someone else reuse their old church so leveling the site is somehow better? The neighbor I spoke to is glad the area will be used for residential but likes the old buildings and trees. When I spoke to her today she was under the impression it was a done deal. With that pro-demo rubber stamp awaiting the preservation board it might be a done deal. But I’ve never let political pressure stop me from speaking my mind before.

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‘Work Zone’ Speeding Ticket Dismissed

This afternoon was my court date for the speeding ticket I received on November 4th in an unmarked ‘work zone’ (see post). In short, I got a ticket for doing 56 mph in a 45 mph work zone on I-55 which is normally 60 mph. When I got to the judge I didn’t have to say anything:

“I’m dismissing the ticket. I’ve got 35 pictures here from others showing the work zone was not marked.”

Cool, I thought. I was glad that I didn’t just pay the fine and I’m also glad I didn’t pay an attorney to plead the case to some lesser charge. But then I thought about all the people, like myself, that were inconvenienced as well as the burden to the city courts. I think the contractor that was hired by MoDot to resurface this portion of I-55 should pay a fine to the city to cover these costs.

Since worker safety is the ultimate goal of having work zone laws, I think this situation needs to be investigated to determine why this particular work zone (which is still ongoing) is not properly marked as such. Laws requiring contractors to post reduced speed limits are either missing or lax or it could be that MoDot just doesn’t enforce the rules. If this contractor didn’t follow the rules then they should pay some fines to a fund to help the families of road workers killed or injured on duty.

– Steve

A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To Suburbia

Today, while driving out to Manchester & 141, I decided to stop at the Target store in Kirkwood. The parking lot was packed. I bought a new car two weeks ago (Scion xA) so I wasn’t interested in parking close to the door and getting dings.

I backed into a space on the extreme edge because large SUV’s nearby would make visibility when leaving a challenge. As I walked across the large parking lot it really hit me how dated this two-year old store seems since it lacks any underground parking like our city location at Hampton & Chippewa. I don’t visit places with large parking lots often so it was quite a reality check. We’ve really come a long way by having our new Target with the bulk of its parking underneath the building.

I’m still trying to shop locally. I just had to get a new knit cap due to the cold, I spent $1.99 on a new one. I resisted buying anything else. If you know of a local store with good knit caps please comment below.

– Steve