A Great Rehab

I saw this great house under renovation on Geyer, just south of I-44. It is still a work in progress, but will be truly spectacular when it is finished.

House Under Renovation

Anachronistic Sign

Golly Geez, Wally, a whole $10!?

St. Stanislaus

Having survived the demolition of Pruitt-Igoe and apparent eternal damnation, it comes as a surprise that the parishioners decided to "pull the plug" on their venerable school next door to their parish church.Or perhaps it's not surprising at all; while I am not going to get into theological issues, I do greatly respect that the church has stuck it out, even when buildings were literally collapsing around them.But to be honest, there's something a bit too suburban about the whole place, surrounded by iron fencing (which is understandable, considering the neighborhood) and some very ugly "cultural center" buildings behind the church.To be honest, the church, while technically being able to boast about staying close to their "roots," has pretty much physically turned its back on the city around it.Yes, I know, the school had sat unused for decades, but it wasn't hurting anybody, was it?

A Unique Building Off North Broadway

North Riverfront Warehouses

Rebirth of Fourteenth Street

The Fourteenth Street Mall is being redeveloped, removing the failed pedestrian mall that killed the street in the first place, and restored and new buildings are going up everywhere in the neighborhood. This Saturday is the Old North St. Louis House Tour.

Random House Collapses

Finding myself in Old North St. Louis, I discovered that a couple of houses had collapsed mysteriously over the weekend.This one is right in the middle of other inhabited houses.The other one is right in the middle of the Old North redevelopment area, and sits right next to successfully rehabbed houses.If you look carefully, you can see that there are still dishes in the cabinets on the second floor.

Wainwright Tomb

High Street, Jefferson City

I had an opportunity to photograph Jefferson City's downtown, which is centered on High Street.High Street illustrates the pluses and minuses of a downtown that remained semi-viable through the suburbanization of America. One one hand, the buildings are occupied, but unfortunately they are often plastered with ridiculous vinyl and metal coverings--to make them look "modern."Admittedly, some of these 1950's sheathings do have their kitschy appeal.

United Bags Company

This great ensemble of buildings anchors North Broadway in front of the St. Louis Market--the real market in the city where produce is delivered and sold to grocery stores and the like.The current occupant of the three buildings is a bag company of some sort.The street wall is well preserved along this stretch, giving a sense, at least to the east, of a thriving city.While I don't necessarily approve of the red aluminum in the windows, I am glad to see that the buildings are occupied. The bronze cornice brackets are particularly wonderful features. These buildings may have originally been early refrigerated warehouses for the city.See an aerial view here.

Vacant Lots

The best things about vacant lots is that you can dump as much garbage in them as you want and not have to worry about it.

Wright Street: Almost Completely Gone

I probably shouldn't have gone back to the 1900 block of Wright, because what I saw there was even more depressing than when I visited two months ago. What had once been a somewhat viable block a mere year ago is now reduced to future "urban prairie."Above is all that is left of this house, which I photographed before. You can see the ruins here, at the old post.Above was the location of the powder blue house and its neighbors, now obliterated. See them here.But by far the most disgusting demolition on the block was started by the city on a building that could have been saved, easily. See my original post here, and then view the sad remnants below. Unbeknownst to me originally, the long block, as others have named the apartments, were technically two buildings, built next to each other to give the impression of one long building. Unfortunately, with its mate demolished, the remaining half is now in an alarming state of near collapse, most likely the result of brick rustling.Above and below, the elegant doors to the apartments sit open, ripe for criminal activity.Below you can see the ghost left by the adjoining building, with some of the original cast iron from the fireplaces still intact.The ruins are perhaps almost as terrifying as the butchered houses over on Montgomery (which, by the way, have been put out of their misery by the city), with a huge gaping hole that looks likes it will contract and engulf the street below.
I tried to capture in images the bulge of the outer walls that look like they could collapse at any moment.

Wasteland

This is the outlawn of the Bank of America in the Central West End, showing how even the most urban neighborhood in the city can be scarred by suburban land use, right on Euclid in the heart of the area.

The Loop

Tower Grove Park Superintendent House

I was able to tour the inside of the Tower Grove Park House, which is restored back to its original appearance.The house sits in a grove of trees, surrounded by the park.I would find it a little unsettling to live in the middle of a park in the city, with no neighbors.Check out an aerial view here.

Random Mansions in Compton Heights

North Side of Lindell Blvd Between Taylor and Newstead in the Central West End

My artistic pastiche interpretation of the streetscape on this critical block. Click on the image for a larger version. This is the urban fabric threatened by the demolition of the San Luis Apartments.

Lost Opportunity

So apparently the Skyhouse development has been cancelled. Too bad for the historic, if maligned buildings that once sat on the corner--the proposed site of the new tower.As can be seen above, the hole in the ground is now starting fill up with garbage.On a more positive note, it is a great opportunity to see how foundations in St. Louis's past were constructed.Note: this link to the Post-Dispatch article won't last forever. Uh, guys, in the future could you wait to knock down buildings until you're certain your project is going to go through? That block of Washington could have definitely supported a rehabbed storefront.

San Luis Apartments

I scouted out the San Luis Apartments on Lindell on Saturday afternoon; the weather was beautiful and only interrupted by dead rechargeable batteries in my camera. These are my photos of the building, which is one of the newest buildings on the block. There is continuing coverage at Ecology of Absence. On Tuesday, I will present a pastiche of what will be lost if the San Luis is demolished.











The Archdiocese has purchased and plans to demolish this building for a parking lot; you be the judge of whether this building should be spared.