The Triangle, Benton Park West 9:14 AM

When my parents' neighbors in Bevo announced they were moving and put up a "For Sale" sign, I couldn't help but think perhaps urban life had gotten the best of them. Perhaps I was stereotyping just a bit--she's pregnant, and so I assumed that she was preempting the tough decision ahead when her child reached school age by moving to a better school district now.

To my surprise, she told me she was moving to the "Triangle". I was intrigued that she assumed I would know where this mysterious neighborhood was. At first, I was thinking of the Ivory Triangle in Carondelet/the Patch. Then I figured it out: that wedge of Benton Park West bounded by Arsenal on the south, Jefferson on the east, and Gravois to the northwest, forming a pretty neat triangle. She confirmed this nebulous Near South Side neighborhood to be the same Triangle in which she and her husband were undertaking a four-family rehab!

The Triangle has no shortage of Essential Red Brick St. Louis, but this Second Empire-styled commercial building and its neighbors form one of my favorite street scenes in the area, at Texas and Lynch:

Whether you call it Benton Park West, the Triangle, or something else entirely, this is a neighborhood that St. Louis should be showing off! May many more intrepid pregnant women decide to rehab forlorn homes here!

Metro Can Bring Us a United Cherokee, from Lemp to Grand 8:58 AM

Post-Proposition M in November 2008, Metro's service reductions would litter streetscapes everywhere with plastic bags placed over bus stops that, we now all know too well, read: "We Regret Due to Lack of Funding Service to this Stop has been Suspended".

Sadly, St. Louis's most exciting business district--Cherokee Street--was among those areas without transit service. Vanishing St. Louis observed at the time that "Downtown St. Louis [would] be without street level transit for the first time since before the Civil War". Likewise, Cherokee Street, the South Side's downtown, would lose its historic transit service as well, present since the 1890s in the form of an electric streetcar and later, of course, as a bus.

Today, the #73 Carondelet bus serves the eastern portion of Cherokee, between Lemp and Jefferson, which is known as Antique Row. Yet Cherokee between Jefferson and Grand is without service. This is unacceptable. All great cities, and by extension all great streets, should offer the opportunity to live without a vehicle. Living on or around Cherokee Street west of Jefferson is now made more difficult without direct transit service. Even a relatively short walk to the nearest bus stop can make a commute a headache. Living in the heart of the Cherokee District, say at Nebraska Avenue, one would have to walk six blocks to the Jefferson bus (#11 Chippewa), more than seven blocks to the Gravois bus (#10 Gravois-Lindell); nine blocks to the Grand bus (#70 Grand); and four elongated blocks to the Arsenal bus (#30 Soulard). This is not an impossible journey in any of these directions; just frustrating and inconvenient. We must press for a United Cherokee!

Image borrowed from WeLoveCherokee and edited by me.

Plus, currently, Cherokee Street and Grand South Grand seem miles and eons apart. Mostly this is due to the fact that Gravois is such a wide street with high-speed traffic. Transit has a way of healing unforgiving urban environments. If I lived in Old North St. Louis, for example, I'd likely never choose to walk the roughly one and half mile distance between Crown Candy and downtown--I'd take the bus. Without this bus service, Old North would feel like a distant planet from relatively nearby downtown--and a much less attractive place to live. Luckily, though, the #30 Soulard can get me to City Hall (to apply for a building permit to renovate my row house?) in less than 10 minutes.

The #73 Carondelet should therefore cross Gravois and connect with the city's best used bus line--the #70 Grand. At that point, it would not be a stretch for St. Louis University students (and other people who live along the long and populous Grand Boulevard) to take the #70 to the "Cherokee bus" and explore the city's most bustling commercial district.

People living in Benton Park along the #73 could then use just one bus line to get to a grocery store (the South Grand Schnucks, where an influx of shoppers might finally force the management to substantially refurbish that location. That's enough of an incentive, huh?).

 The current route of the #73 Carondelet. Can you even spot the pitifully short leg on Cherokee Street?

Now, would I love this bus to become a streetcar? Of course. But let's get the transit service restored first and see what else we can do later. Who's with me? Let's make sure Metro takes its funds from the Prop A victory and reestablishes a bus line down Cherokee in its 2010 Restoration plan!

Please do any and all of the following if you support a United Cherokee, from Lemp to Grand!

Email Metro officials: restoration2010@metrostlouis.org (thanks, Paul!)


Comment on Next Stop, Metro's transit blog, indicating your support for a United Cherokee.

Contact the two alderman who could have sway over such decisions: 9th Ward Alderman Ken Ortmann and 20th Ward Alderman Craig Schmid:

Ken Ortmann
(314) 622-3287
(314) 776-0161 Additional Phone

Email here.
Craig Schmid
(314) 622-3287
Email here.
 
Tweet Metro or its orderlies (note: term of endearment) with your support!
 
Official Twitter feed for Metro: http://twitter.com/STLMetro
 
Twitter feed for Courtney Sloger, Next Stop blogger and Metro Social Media Maven: http://twitter.com/STLTransit
 
Facebook Metro and leave a wall post indicating your support for a United Cherokee. Link to official Facebook page.
 
Thanks, all, and thanks to Cherokee Street News for giving me this idea!

The Gift of Greenery: Could Every Block Have a "City Garden"? 10:05 AM

Downtown's Citygarden has been very well-received--almost universally so. A two-block segment of the Gateway Mall transformed from passive (read: boring) green space into a magnificent sculpture garden and public space. The metamorphosis came at a cost--$25 million in design and construction alone. The Gateway Foundation picked up the tab.

On the foundation's website, there is a list of projects and initiatives that the foundation has either contributed to or created. You can thank Gateway for St. Louis's three water towers' dramatic lighting, not to mention minor city landmarks like the Arch and Old Courthouse. They helped to renovate Penrose Park in North City, as well. Still, Citygarden is their crowning achievement, their greatest gift yet to the city.

I couldn't help but marvel at the construction process of Citygarden itself. Almost overnight, some worn patches of grass became lush lawns home to new and relatively mature trees. No thin, weakling trees that would take years, perhaps decades, to blossom into proper shade trees--if they survived at all.

I can't help but wonder if the Gateway Foundation could help certain St. Louis neighborhoods overcome a fatal urban design flaw: treelessness. Treelessness need not be taken literally; some blocks in certain neighborhood have quite a few trees, but they're often unhealthy, ill-placed, or simply, there just aren't enough of them.

Trees are so vital to an urban landscape that New York City, to name just one city, has conducted a census of them (the count you ask? 592,130) and a plan to increase their numbers. Of specific interest to me is the "benefits" section explaining why trees are important.

First, this note:  

Benefits are directly linked to tree size. The environmental benefits of trees arise from respiration and transpiration – the biological processes by which trees breathe and absorb water from the environment. Because these processes involve interactions between a tree’s leaves, the environment, and the atmosphere, the benefits increase as trees grow in size. In general, the larger a tree, the more canopy cover and leaf surface area (the total area of the leaf spread) it has.

This list of benefits is so sensible and actionable that I will post each segment in its entirety:

Air Quality Improvement. Leaves absorb gaseous pollutants (carbon dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, and sulfur dioxide), and capture air-borne particles including dirt, dust and soot. Trees also prevent the release of many airborne pollutants by reducing energy generation. Ground level ozone, a contributor to greenhouse gas formation, is reduced through the tree’s ability to lower air temperatures.
ANNUAL BENEFIT VALUE: TO NYC: $5.3 MILLION

Energy Savings. Trees provide shade, reducing the demand for electricity for cooling in the summer. Trees also reduce wind speeds, slowing the loss of heat from interior spaces during the winter. Trees cool the air through the process of transpiration, where moisture is converted to water vapor. An estimate for energy usage for every building in NYC was derived from data on building age, tree shading effects, and local climate. This estimate was drawn with two scenarios—with and without street trees—in order to show the difference in the resulting energy use. Local energy prices were then used to calculate the value of the impact of trees on building energy use.
ANNUAL BENEFIT VALUE TO NYC: $27.8 MILLION


Carbon Dioxide (CO2). Trees indirectly reduce emissions of CO2 from power plants by reducing building energy use. Also as trees grow, they remove CO2 from the atmosphere and store it in woody plant tissue. At the same time, trees release CO2 as they decompose. These releases are subtracted from the total amount of CO2 avoided from power generation and absorbed by tree growth to calculate the net CO2 benefit.
ANNUAL BENEFIT VALUE TO NYC: $754,947

Reducing Stormwater Runoff. Trees help reduce flooding and improve water quality, as runoff flowing over impervious surfaces picks up contaminants including oil and metals. Trees intercept rain on their leaf, branch and stem surfaces and by absorbing water through their roots. The water that trees intercept in NYC each year was calculated using local rainfall data.
ANNUAL BENEFIT VALUE TO NYC: $36 MILLION

Property Value and Other Benefits. Research has shown that homes with a tree in front sell for almost 1 percent more than similar homes without trees. The difference in sale price indirectly reflects the value buyers place on trees and their more intangible benefits, such as aesthetics. This difference was applied to the median New York City home resale price ($537,300) to calculate the total value.
ANNUAL BENEFIT VALUE TO NYC: $52 MILLION

TOTAL ANNUAL BENEFIT TO NYC: $122 MILLION

Clearly, street trees in urban areas are necessary for the city's natural--and built--environments. Yet some of our neighborhoods aren't receiving these benefits.


Let's look at a neighborhood that is among my favorite in the city--Benton Park West. Tree coverage is passable in some places, non-existent in too many others. Check out the 2700 block of Utah Street for a good example of the conditions of the neighborhood:

 What we have here is actually a nice historic blockface typical of the neighborhood. But it looks unnecessarily barren without a proper line of street trees (it also feels barren when you're walking down a sidewalk in summer weather, baking atop unprotected pavement). This should be an in-demand block based on housing stock and location alone. 


Let's look at a street in Benton Park proper, some half mile away from the view we see above. This is the 2900 block of Lemp.

2900 Lemp is not a perfectly planted block by any means, but is similar in most respects to 2700 Utah--historic buildings, just about the same street width and setback, etc. Yet 2900 Lemp is shaded and inviting.


If our lower income neighborhoods have fewer trees, which I believe, in general, is true, then wouldn't planting some mature trees give them a leg up? As demonstrated in the New York City study, trees save households on energy costs and raise property values. Wouldn't it be great if the Gateway Foundation and their Citygarden partner the Missouri Botanical Garden could donate trees to neighborhoods such as Hyde Park and Benton Park West? Again, the trees have to be large to have an effect. Yet a mature tree costs a lot of money. This source says that a locally-available species of tree aged 7-10 years will run you at least $200 a pop. 

Still, a $25 million program focusing on a few neighborhoods that need these trees could see the planting of 125,000 trees if the $200 figure held true (not counting the costs of planting and maintenance). That would be equivalent to 20 percent of the entire city of New York's stock that that city has counted! Passing over some neighborhoods that already have excellent tree coverage (Tower Grove East in parts, St. Louis Hills nearly in its entirety), such a program to establish these citywide "City Gardens" could confer incredible benefits on the recipient neighborhoods (again, see the NYC study). And it should be noted that green projects--tree planting, park renovations, etc.--are among the least controversial projects that a philanthropic foundation like Gateway can put their name to. That said, they're also much needed and do a great service to our city.

Would the Gateway Foundation/Missouri Botanical Garden be willing to plant City Gardens--also known as full streetscapes of mature trees-- across St. Louis?

South City "Quirk-itecture" 10:00 PM

Ever pass by buildings and objects in the built environment that force you to double take?

How about this assisted living facility, appropriately titled the Silver Spur, on Texas Avenue at Utah in Benton Park West? Yes, those are wagon wheels, pitchforks, and other Western accoutrements attached to the facade. Photograph is courtesy of Google Streetview. By the way, the sign on the corner of the building reads: "Smile Pardner: You're Being Taped by the Police".

What about this home, on Missouri Avenue just north of Broadway (in Marine Villa)? The lavishly painted side of the home shown (barely) by this capture is not even the main attraction: swing around the front for some seriously strange (and oddly attractive) bulging, glassy, post-modern windows on this classic red brick St. Louis structure. For a better view, make sure to walk, bike, or drive by yourself. Photograph is courtesy of Google Streetview.

The dueling griffins on this too-cute Itaska Street cottage are one of the many notable attractions on a stretch of Dutchtown road that certainly deserves its own post. Interesting little South Side castles dominate Itaska from Virginia to Grand, but none are as fantastically decorated. Image courtesy of Google Streetview.

This blog has actually already covered the next entry: the "Tree-House" in Compton Heights. When the homeowners' favorite tree succumbed to the elements, they swiftly outlined its shadow onto the facade of their building to mark its historic position prior to its removal. Photograph by me.

When I passed by this structure on the 2800 block of Missouri in Benton Park last December, I wondered if it was a home or a street-fronting garage for nearby condominiums. Let's see though...it was decked out for the holidays while surrounding structures were not. Who would only decorate their garage and not the main house? It also had its own mailbox and an address prominently displayed. It looks like it could have been a former auto body shop or something of that nature and might now be residential. It's a real head scratcher! Check out the Google Streetview of the property here. Photograph is mine.

All across the city there are dozens of examples of quirky structures that lend real character and "weirdness" to their host block. Do you know of one not shown here? If so, submit a picture and I'll add it to the list! North City and Central Corridor (and elsewhere!) examples are permitted; I just named the topic after where all of my examples came from.

Does St. Louis Have a Signature Architectural Style? 7:33 PM

Some cities are known for a particular brand of architecture.

New Orleans has its Creole cottages and shotguns; Baltimore's known for its Italianate-influenced row houses; Brooklyn for its brownstones; Chicago for its skyscraper innovations; and so on.

Does St. Louis have a signature style? I suppose the most numerous building type would be a fight between the red brick, foursquare house of the early 20th century and the so-called "bungaloid"--a skinnier, more pared down version of the California bungalow that arrived a bit later on the scene. I guess the best signature St. Louis architectural feature would be the ubiquitous red brick building in general, but I was looking for something more specific.

I could be exaggerating their presence, but St. Louis seems to have lots of Second Empire homes (with their beautiful tiled mansard roofs).

I'd like to elect them our signature style because I think they're some of the most beautiful. I'm especially a sucker for the Second Empire storefront. Check out this Benton Park West beauty at Texas and Lynch--recently renovated, too! Scroll down the street to see the "before" shot, which contains an earlier Google Streetview image of the building in its vacant state.


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Or maybe we should just celebrate having so many different styles to choose from. That sounds better.

A Benton Park West-Cherokee Street Rift? 2:22 PM

“Most of the neighborhood residents in BPW don't go down to Cherokee street because they don't agree with what's happening or not happening in that stretch.”
by Bill Byrd

Believe it or not, that's a featured quote on Cherokee Street News. Other quotes, including one from me, praise Cherokee's unique renaissance, its civic culture, and its one-of-a-kind offerings. Yet this one clearly stands out. It's a very strong statement. Anyone care to give some background?

What Would Jefferson Look Like with a Median? 1:21 PM

Discussion over at Urban St. Louis forums has been lively over how to improve the stretch of South Jefferson near Arsenal.

I thought I would do a quick SketchUp rendering of what Jefferson would look like with a median--which was proposed by one of the forumers. Pictured is the segment of South Jefferson just south of Crittenden. Mattingly Brewery calls the southeast corner of this intersection home.

Here is a current view, via Google Streetview. This view looks southeast toward Mattingly from Crittenden.

And here is a SketchUp view of the intersection with a median:

And here are some extra shots. If I had more time, I would have added streetlights, trashcans, another road segment, etc. This is all I have for now though.

The above renderings show Jefferson with one lane of travel in each direction as well as one dedicated parking lane. I'm guessing that this would substantially slow the flow of traffic on Jefferson and make the commercial spaces along the stretch much more inviting. In addition, the median would be a great placeholder until the proposed Southside Metrolink extension got here (so please excuse the old growth trees that I placed in the model!).

June Preservation Board, Proposed Demolition: 3020 California 5:33 PM

Photograph obtained from the City of St. Louis.

3020 California, in the Benton Park West neighborhood, is a resource within the Gravois-Jefferson Streetcar Suburb National Register District.

It is up for demolition on this month's Preservation Board Agenda, prompted by none other than the City of St. Louis Department of Public Safety.

This multi-family unit is exactly the type of property that made mass transit work so well in the City of St. Louis's heyday. Today, in an emptied city, density is vilified and multi-unit properties are seen as unsavory attractors of low income persons, and by extension crime. Many sit vacant, as the costs to redevelop are higher in such large structures and the payout for a rehabilitated building is lower than a single-family home.

Let's hope that 3020 California, located in the oldest section of the Benton Park West neighborhood, can survive to see a time where its density will be welcomed and its location near transit lines celebrated.

Amazing renovation on California at Cherokee 1:00 AM

I am officially jealous of the mofo who gets to live in this stunningly rehabbed unit, right off of St. Louis's most urban and diverse and interesting commercial spine.

It's 3409 California. Here's the Craigslist posting.




Pre-Renovation Google Streetview Capture.

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In Memoriam III: 2620 and 2622 Arsenal 8:34 PM

A nice duo of buildings was destroyed for Millennium's proposed Fleur-de-Lis at Benton Park development (for parking, if I recall correctly). The status for this project has recently changed from "Dead" to "Possible", rebranded as the Hydraulic Brick Lofts. The Urban St. Louis forum thread has more details.

Even so, wouldn't it have been nice to leave these buildings standing? Surely a site plan could have been devised for either development that would have respected these structures? If not, can't we just make sure we don't demolish anything until we're ready to build?

2622 Arsenal

Demolished March 2005
Cost: $10,500.00

2620 Arsenal

Demolished March 2005
Cost: $12,500.00

The site now:


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Couldn't their execution have been stayed? This is what $23,000 buys?

20th Ward still witnessing alcohol-sales showdown 1:28 PM

Another interesting piece from the South Side Journal -- 20th Ward Alderman Craig Schmid has budged a bit on his "Dry Ward" stance. Instead of the original 50 percent food-sales requirement in order to serve alcohol, he now supports a 35 percent rule.

A lot of the present controversy erupted when Steve Smith, owner of the popular Royale bar on Kingshighway, wished to open another bar--this time, no food to be served at all--on a stretch of Cherokee Street within the 20th Ward. Schmid's ordinance prohibited it, and he would not budge, much to the chagrin of the St. Louis community who a) likes to drink, b) likes to drink in interesting settings, and c) likes activity and believes "eyes on the street" will enliven and make the host block more safe.

Critics contended drunks import trash, noise, vandalism, and violence into a neighborhood that does not need any more of those things.

I think Schmid's heart is in the right place, but I also think it's time to let this area mature. Schmid hasn't updated his views on Cherokee Street since the 1980s, when its decline began. Today, Cherokee is a dynamic, but struggling district that needs investment like that which Steve Smith is willing to pour in. The new bill sponsored by Schmid is a start.

I do wonder what the actual neighborhood concensus is, however.

What are your thoughts?

Upcoming exhibit showcases impressions of Cherokee Street, Benton Park West 1:14 PM

Recall my earlier post about children from the College School in Webster Groves observing and reflecting upon the Cherokee Station business district and surrounding neighborhood.

It seems that Cherokee Street is a hit with students whose instructors want them to witness a 21st Century diverse neighborhood.

The Photography Project, sponsored by the Public Policy Research Center at UMSL, equipped children ages 8 to 18 with digital cameras and set them about exploring the Benton Park West neighborhood.

The project is about capturing, with photography, the diversity of human experience through the eyes of a child. It's also about bringing strangers together and, thereby, inspiring a level of comfort and safety perhaps missing from the neighborhood at present.

UMSL is hosting an exhibit of the children's work. More information is below. Click here to read the South Side Journal article.

What: "Point-Of-View: Cherokee Street and Benton Park West Neighborhood" photography exhibition

When and Where: Sept. 16 to Oct. 26 at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, 362 Social Sciences & Business Building. Hours are 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Oct. 25 to Jan. 10 at the Cherokee Business Incubator, 2715 Cherokee St.; hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Admission: Free

For more information, call:

(314) 516-5273.

And if you can't wait to see some of the photography, it's already up on Cherokee Street Photos website. Here is an example from a child named Andre. Enjoy!