Mattingly Brewing Co. opens

A couple of months ago I posted about a pair of upcoming microbreweries opening this June in the Benton Park neighborhood of South St. Louis. I happy to say the the first of the pair, Mattingly Brewing Co, finally opened last week. I had a chance to take a look at the finished product and sample some of the food this afternoon. From what I have seen so far, things are looking promising. Read more

Cinco de Mayo on Cherokee

The tradition continues. Its not as glamorous as Mardi Gras or St. Patrick’s Day, but Cinco de Mayo holds its own. If you’re looking for an “authentic” Cinco de Mayo celebration instead of hitting up your local Chevy’s, you might want ot head down to Cherokee Street in the South St. Louis neighborhood of Benton Park West this weekend (May 3, 2008). Seeing as the celebration actually takes place on the 3rd of May, its not really a true Cinco de Mayo party, but its the spirit of the event that counts. Read more

EcoUrban infill in South St. Louis

I was cutting through the South City neighborhood of Benton Park West a few months back and stumbled across something that was quite a shock to me: contemporary, green infill. The specific house I came across was at 3140 Pennsylvania (picture to the left). When I took a peek inside, I was surprised how nice the place was. It had so many of the features, which I would love to see incorporated in more area developments. It turns out that this building has a been given a Platinum LEED rating (for green construction) and is the product of modular construction. This project is just the 10th in the country to be given such a high LEED rating.

The sale price of $274,900 seems a little high for the area and product, but its great to see a project like this. Design-wise, the project misses the mark on a few points, but I’m still a fan. The home isn’t all that big and I’m still not totally sold on the exterior finish. Stylistically its ok, but the quality of materials and craftsmanship outside seem to be below that of the interior. They did recently add some rather attractive aluminum trim on the exterior, which made an improvement.

The best part is that this just appears to be the tip of the iceberg. Developer EcoUrban has already constructed two additional homes at 3103 and 3105 Magnolia in the nearby Tower Grove East Neighborhood. They also have plans for twelve additional 2 and 3 bedroom townhomes in Tower Grove East. There is also rumor that they are scoping out other areas in the city for similar development. Very exciting stuff. I’ll post more details and pics when they come available. If you want to follow their progress yourself, make sure you check out their website.

City taking over Fleur de Lis site?

I have a little follow up on the situation with the Fleur de Lis project site. Kind in mind that this is only a rumor at this point, but apparently the City’s Land Reutilization Authority (LRA) was none too happy about Millennium trying to sell the site. They went through a lot of effort and spent a lot of money to secure the site from the former gas station and Hardees that formerly sat at the location and were a little peeved that Millennium was trying to make a profit at the taxpayers expense.

Word has it that there was a “Right of Re-Entry” clause in effect and that the City is calling it in. Perhaps the they will take over the site and shop the development at a more reasonable price to local developers. Anyone want to take on a big project? Please remmeber that this is only a rumor at this point. I’m sure we’ll find out more in the coming weeks.

For more information, check on my past entries on the matter:
Fleur de Lis - Benton Park project goes from dream to dead
Fleur de Lis - Property no longer for sale

Fleur de Lis no longer for sale

A little over a week ago, I posted a story (Fleur de Lis - Benton Park project goes from dream to dead) about the site of the former Fleur de Lis development proposal going up for sale. Interestingly enough, after only 27 days on the market, they just pulled the listing. All of the lots are coming up as “Canceled” in their listing status. As for what this means, I have no idea. Expect an update when I know more.

Fleur de Lis project goes from dream to dead

The red hot real estate market we were in a few years ago brought a lot of great projects to St. Louis. It also brought a lot of big ideas and dream projects. Unfortunately, many of those projects ended up being just that: dreams. One such development was the proposed “Fleur de Lis” project which was set for the southwest corner of Jefferson and Arsenal. Millennium Development & Restoration, known for their quality South City rehabs, was going to make the jump to infill and Benton Park & Benton Park West were to be transformed forever.

That was 2003. Its now 2008. One delay after another created more and more doubt about the project. City and neighborhood leaders fought over this project for years, but it looks like the fight is over. It’s not going to happen. At least not as originally intended. So we better all get used to seeing that vacant lot for some time yet.

Under the radar, the 5 lots which were to be the building ground for the project went for sale in mid-December. Here is what the listing says:

“This lot must be sold as a group with 4 other contiguous lots, MLS#’s 782705, 782706, 782710, 782713, and 782716 forming an L shaped building site on the west corner of Jefferson and Arsenal, across from Benton Park. The total price for all 5 lots is $375,000 and includes: building plans and elevation drawings, Phase 1 Environmental studies, floor plan, pro-forma statement, soil engineering report and survey. Electric, gas and telephone on site. Water main in the street approx 20ft from property line, sewer main in the alley approx 10ft from property line. An additional lot as 2614 Arsenal is also available through LRA.”

I appreciate that Millennium is trying to recoup their expenses for this failed project, but how can anyone justify paying $375,000 for this site? They procured the lots from LRA and they couldn’t even make it work. I was unable to find the exact price they paid, but it couldn’t have been much.

Which brings up another point: how are they able to sell this when they bought the lots from LRA? I thought that when a developer gets a lot or building from LRA they have to either develop the land as promised or return it to LRA. I’m certainly no expert on how they do business, but I know for a fact that they have an “18 Month Right of Re-entry” clause when they sell these properties to prevent speculation. I even double-checked on the website. So what’s the deal? Does anyone know how they are exempted from this clause?

At least the picture has become more clear here. The section of Jefferson between Arsenal & Gravois has really improved tremendously over the past couple years and this lot has become increasingly more desirable. Hopefully things will work themselves out and someone new can take over the reigns.

Cinco de Mayo along the burgeoning Cherokee Commerical District

*NOTE - This article was originally written in May of 2007 for the newsletter.

Cherokee Avenue is one of those streets that has held onto the title “up and coming” for some time now. Whether deserving of this label in the past or not, the street is slowly coming into it’s own. It has gradually found it’s own identity as a haven for Mexican-Americans and artists alike.

The 2007 Cinco de Mayo celebration held along Cherokee, just to the west of Jefferson is a perfect example of how far the area has come. The crowds during the festival could just as easily been ripped straight from the playbook of the Soulard Mardi Gras celebration, albeit on a much smaller scale. The fact that so many people showed up in this humble little corner of South City is an example of why the area isn’t so humble anymore.

Attendance figures for the event were not available as of writing this article, but the streets were full all day long. The main draw seemed to be the margaritas, authentic Mexican cuisine and artisan displays. Each year seems to bring bigger crowds and more interest in the area. As people flock to the festivities they witness the potential neighborhood possesses.

A drive through the area still shows that there is a significant undeveloped segment of the neighborhood, but the energy for improvement is there. Best of all, prices are still within reason, making the district an intriguing development target. As a commercial sector, Cherokee east of Jefferson, has already made tremendous strides and has found it’s own niche has continued to improve the residential community around it has improved as well. A similar fate might well await the improving Benton Park West portion of the Cherokee District.

There are lot of opportunities in the area and with the promising price-to-rent ratio found in the area, those opportunities could be good ones. In ten years, this area could be the “New Soulard.” Mark your calendars, that day will be here before you know it.