The legacy of density in North St. Louis

This beautiful three story Italianate home on Finney Avenue just west of Grand was probably unique in its height for the surrounding low rise residential neighborhood even when it was built. Today, it's one of the few survivors of such an era. Sitting just west of McEagle's proposed North Side project, it's likely safe from any clear-cutting that may occur. Whether Urban Assets tries to do anything with the area, though, is another story.

These time tested structures are integral in conveying St. Louis's heritage. They're great blueprints for how to rebuild tattered neighborhoods like St. Louis Place, which used to contain a lot of this very building type. McKee should take note of such properties in tackling new residential development in the NorthSide project. The new need not mock or imitate the old, but could take cues from the massing, density, and scale of these older buildings.

Lafayette Square is another neighborhood with a notable concentration of impressive three story Italianate buildings. With cutting edge new construction that is able to complement such great historic buildings, neighborhoods like St. Louis Place and Covenant Blu/Grand Center could be emblematic for their contrasting eras of architecture.

At the University of New Orleans, I'm currently enrolled in a class entitled Urbanism and Urban Design, which will verse me in the basics of Google Sketchup. I hope to produce my own ideas for complementary infill by the end of the summer semester, for what it's worth.