Personal Rapid Transit? 12:54 PM

I have always thought even mass transit would turn to a more "private" experience. Check out these little personal transportation pods present at London's Heathrow Airport:



Thanks, Planetizen. Do you think there's a possibility to take this concept to city streets?

(EDIT: Oops! I forgot about Morgantown's PRT, which is actually mentioned in the video! I was thinking of Morgantown's example as more of a short-car light rail system like Detroit's People Mover.)

Hip Hop and Preservation in Detroit 2:16 PM

Watch these videos and tell me you're not the least bit interested in packing up and moving to Detroit. The suffering is palpable, but so are the outcries against the continued downward spiral that the city's leadership has failed to stem. The city continues to rip the city's history and heritage down, but the economy isn't looking any better.





Thanks to my friend Karen Gadbois of the excellent New Orleans preservation-and-activism site Squandered Heritage. for alerting me to the presence of this thoughtful and intriguing duo.

Cultural Resources Recommends Approval of New Shaw Development; Denial of Demolition Permit 4:55 AM

The Cultural Resources Office has put the full April Preservation Board agenda online.

To read more about this agenda, please see my earlier post.

The main item is the proposal to construct 11 single family and 4 two family buildings on the 4100 block of DeTonty. Contained within the proposal is a proposed demolition of an existing corner structure at 4100 DeTonty. (Read the full agenda item PDF here.)

The CRO has stated that they support the new construction in Shaw, but oppose the demolition, calling 4100 DeTonty an "excellent candidate" for rehabilitation and inclusion as part of the project. I agree.

That said, what of Millennium Restoration? Why have they been booted from their original proposal for the block? The new renderings don't look quite as good as Millennium's...

NEW

From Preservation Board

OLD

From Preservation Board

I'm happy that the CRO has decided not to approve of the demolition of a sound and reusable Garden District classic home. Yet I'm wondering why Millennium was stiffed. Anyone have the answers?

If you'd like to weigh in, the meeting is on Monday (April 27) at 4 p.m. It is located at 1015 Locust, Floor 12. It should be interesting, as Terry Kennedy has abruptly shifted his role from Public Safety Chairman to Transportation. This means he's no longer on the Preservation Board. Seventh Ward Alderman Phyllis Young, then, takes his spot.

A Digest 3:48 PM

It's been a busy semester and a sparse blog as of late.

I have a lot to catch up on, and thought I would do so in rapidfire fashion:

First, the Mayor's inauguration speech. Impressive. No, really. He actually engendered a bit of civic confidence and pride. A couple standouts, though, were his calls to hire more young professionals to staff Planning and Urban Design (as well as IT and the Citizens Service Bureau), his confidence in the revitalization of North City (via Paul McKee, Jr.?), his threats against MODOT to start considering public transit, and, of course, the call to reenter St. Louis City into the County.

My suggestions? Give Planning real power in city government and then seek the professionals. Who wants to work in an "advisory" agency that has real little power? Well, okay, I would love the job, but would be extremely frustrated at the limitations of the office. Rollin Stanley surely was. The city will continue to lose these talented and energetic people if the process of government is designed to exclude them.

Re: North City, it's rumored that the Blairmont Master Plan will be introduced to the Board of Aldermen shortly...

Re: MODOT, bravo, Mayor Slay! Just think: if St. Louis City joins the County, Metro will have an easier time passing transit funding bills.

Which brings me to the next point: yes, St. Louis City entering the County is the conservative solution to undoing the Great Divorce of 1876. But it's a necessary first step, really, to the healing of a fractured regional psyche. If the City and County showed a dedication to work together to solve urban problems within both, the region could shift the dynamic away from the growing western fringes and back toward the center.

Next Up: the Walgreens coming to Lafayette just west of Tucker. Urban STL forumers who attended a recent public meeting have said that Walgreens will actually build up to the street and will add a faux-second story to better fit in with the surroundings. The new store will even attempt to match the detailing of the Georgian across the street. While I'm sure this will turn out laughable, think of the alternative: the beige or white box with way too much parking surrounding it on three sides. No thanks. I am happy to hear this news!

Next: Various local business news.

It appears that Five Bistro is moving to 5100 Daggett on the Hill (formerly Pizzeria del Piazza), leaving its Grove location empty. Yet I hear from a friend that the former El Mundo Latino restaurant at the northwest corner of Manchester and Tower Grove may be getting rehabbed as we speak. Putting that corner back in use would be a major shot in the arm to the still-struggling western end of the Grove District along Manchester.

As reported by Sauce Magazine, this nifty building in Benton Park will be host to a wine bar called Ernesto's. Check out the Streetview from 2007 and then look at the massive rehaul the building underwent.


Photo Source: St. Louis Investment Realty

Now, did I call the Patch neighborhood's coolness or what? The Post-Dispatch is reporting that a partnership between Steins Broadway, Inc. and Rothschild Development may transform the former Coca Cola Syrup Factory into 77 new lofts and the home of Lemp Beer! Awesome news.

Lastly, the Kiel Opera House is coming back to life, finally (well, I suppose we should wait and see, but it appears a done deal). This is nearly 100 percent positive news--except the parking situation. The talks are that the adjacent Abrams Building will be hollowed out and turned into a parking structure. It's time the city showed leadership on this issue. Not every development should receive its own garage. Surely the city's new Tucker/Clark garage could service most able-bodied patrons; the rest could benefit from set-asides from the Scottrade Center attached garage.

That's it for now.

New Neighborhoods? 1:20 AM

Every once in a while, I do a post so nerdy and nuanced that I know I'm the only one who cares.

With that out of the way, it appears the city has recognized two unofficial neighborhoods within (but not a part of) its official list of 79: Compton Hill/Reservoir Square (within Compton Heights) and Parkview (within Skinker-DeBaliviere). Parkview is actually mostly located within University City.

Given the number of unofficial neighborhoods strewn across the city, I'm wondering why these two got special recognition?

I will say, though, that the "Reservoir Square" neighborhood sounds so "big city". I like.

(I can't find the original link to the list of neighborhoods that include these two unofficial ones, but you still see how their websites are hosted by the city?)

Amberg Park 6:18 PM

Amberg Park, located in the newly minted Dutchtown West neighborhood, is a wonderfully-sized urban park (2.76 acres).

It is large enough to be appreciated as an open, green space. Yet it's also small enough that one can see to its urban edges at nearly all sides.

Its edges are better than most St. Louis parks, too.

From Dutchtown

On the northwest and southwest corners of the park, there is retail frontage. While the Express Lane Market on the southwest corner (Gustine and Keokuk) has generated some controversy among neighborhood residents, the presence of these retail spaces could really transform this neighborhood park into a truly urban amenity.

Urbanist author Jane Jacobs once said of neighborhood parks that their life came from their surroundings and the people who use them; parks themselves could not confer vitality. In so many St. Louis neighborhoods, parks were developed solely for the purpose of providing their residents with an "oasis" in the middle of an urban environment. The parks themselves are often flanked only by residential structures. Without active edges along the park (meaning, places where people shop, work, play, and live), they're rarely used continuously. They can actually then become forbidding, empty places--unfortunate gaps in the urban fabric--despite their inherent beauty.

However, since St. Louis has tumbled in its population, and has planned for decades for the car and not the pedestrian, many neighborhoods are no longer dense enough or walked often enough to truly support these parks. When commercial uses exist adjacent to a park (think, the southwest corner of Gravois Park; the northeast corner of Fountain Park, etc.), they're usually either abandoned or have been converted to residential use.

I see potential in Amberg Park, however. Its residents are mobilized to clean up the park and make it safer for its users. It's got a series of somewhat dense apartments lining its edges, especially to the west, where an impressive twin set of multi-family Tudor building provides a pleasing visual symmetry and anchor. It's also got two commercial spaces that could be used someday to enliven the green space they overlook.

I welcome the Dutchtown West neighborhood's vigilance and dedication to make their neighborhood a better and safer place to live. It's (by my unempirical observation) one of the densest and most diverse (read: urban) places to live in the city. It's also just a short walk or bus ride away from the South Grand Business District. I hope that the Dutchtown West neighbors can take this "right-sized" park and show the rest of St. Louis how great small scale urban parks can be. They are truly a rarity in the city.

St. Louis, Maryland? 11:48 AM

From Miscellaneous Items

From Miscellaneous Items

Tho above screen captures are from the Maryland Transit Administration's Red Line Corridor Transit Study for the Baltimore Region. Their 3-D animated renderings must be seen to be believed! Check out the videos here.


If Metro were able to produce such renderings, maybe it could get St. Louisans to literally see the possibilities. Then again, if St. Louis were in transit-friendly Maryland, and not car-ownership-is-next-to-Godliness Missouri, maybe we'd already have a transit system to brag about.