That's what I've been saying for years! Good thing someone agrees. Retail doesn't have to be in just one part of DT, it can be in many. BPV is one of those places.vpr611 wrote:I totally disagree with keeping Ballpark Village an "entertainment party place." It could be so much more! Could you imagine the impact of having places like City Target, Apple, Urban Outfitters, Gap, H&M, perhaps even a Kaldis coffee all sitting below 20-30 floors of residential and/or commercial?
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Haha i guess i got downvoted on my idea. BPV is a great addition. People want it to become much more. This is why i moved dowtown 10 years ago. I wanted washington to become what you want BPV to become. A mix of shopping, food, etc. SO i guess i would be jelous if this happened there when i so much wanted washington to be that destination(since thats my backyard)
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^ I hope Washington can build upon its old world charm with a mix of more high-end boutiques and independent stores (and shed more of the late night party scene).... BPV would be fine with more chain type stuff.
My concern is DeWitt's vision is apparently for just one residential tower and three office buildings (fronting Walnut). And apparently he says the condo tower won't be too fast in coming. I'd say at least three of the four building should be residential and move fast! If a company wants to come in with a new headquarters, that's great, but in general getting commitments for three office buildings is going to take a long, long time. Getting commitments for 500 or so units can be relatively quick and lift all downtown boats.
My concern is DeWitt's vision is apparently for just one residential tower and three office buildings (fronting Walnut). And apparently he says the condo tower won't be too fast in coming. I'd say at least three of the four building should be residential and move fast! If a company wants to come in with a new headquarters, that's great, but in general getting commitments for three office buildings is going to take a long, long time. Getting commitments for 500 or so units can be relatively quick and lift all downtown boats.
^I tend to agree. It's disappointing that he wants to move slowly on a residential tower.
While it's great that people are raving about this place, it'll eventually need bodies 24/7 not just during game days. It's the difference between Washington or CWE and places like Laclede's Landing or Union Station. Ballpark Village will need people living there that use it all the time to be a 365 day a year success.
While it's great that people are raving about this place, it'll eventually need bodies 24/7 not just during game days. It's the difference between Washington or CWE and places like Laclede's Landing or Union Station. Ballpark Village will need people living there that use it all the time to be a 365 day a year success.
Does anyone know who owns the lots between Paddy'O's and Kilroys? I was at the game Tues and couldn't help but think it would be great to have a row of bars/restaurants like Paddy'O's fronting 7th St. with apartments above and behind. It's a little easier to swallow than a large tower. I doubt the lot owners have any desire to do something like that though. $25 a car 82 days a year is pretty good money without a lot of work.
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The Cards will be on the road from April 13-25. It will be interesting to see what kind of crowds BPV pulls during that week and a half.
If there are conventions or other events downtown during that week and a half will we see a lot of out of towners wander down to check it out?
And will this be the time that a lot of St. Louisans come on down to see what it's all about without the game day crowds?
If there are conventions or other events downtown during that week and a half will we see a lot of out of towners wander down to check it out?
And will this be the time that a lot of St. Louisans come on down to see what it's all about without the game day crowds?
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Some blues home games will help especially some playoff games.southsidepride wrote:The Cards will be on the road from April 13-25. It will be interesting to see what kind of crowds BPV pulls during that week and a half.
If there are conventions or other events downtown during that week and a half will we see a lot of out of towners wander down to check it out?
And will this be the time that a lot of St. Louisans come on down to see what it's all about without the game day crowds?
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^Very true. Checking my baseball calendar I see the Cards are playing the Cubs in Chicago on May 3. That's also the date of the Kentucky Derby. The 40 foot screen would be a great place to watch both.
-The First Robotics championship is at the Dome 4/23 to 4/26. BPV could catch some spillover.mjbais1489 wrote:Some blues home games will help especially some playoff games.southsidepride wrote:The Cards will be on the road from April 13-25. It will be interesting to see what kind of crowds BPV pulls during that week and a half.
If there are conventions or other events downtown during that week and a half will we see a lot of out of towners wander down to check it out?
And will this be the time that a lot of St. Louisans come on down to see what it's all about without the game day crowds?
-Palm and Easter Sunday might bring in out of town visitors.
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Yes! The Derby at BPV. Great idea. That will be my first step inside probably. I've passed by it twice a day for three years.southsidepride wrote:^Very true. Checking my baseball calendar I see the Cards are playing the Cubs in Chicago on May 3. That's also the date of the Kentucky Derby. The 40 foot screen would be a great place to watch both.
I wish we could get an OTB in the city. A dog or horse track would be great too. A track south of Soulard would be a great time.
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yes.... I'm betting hotel concierge and convention planners are touting the BPV as a primary place to check out at least for now.southsidepride wrote:
If there are conventions or other events downtown during that week and a half will we see a lot of out of towners wander down to check it out?
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STL Parking.pat wrote:Does anyone know who owns the lots between Paddy'O's and Kilroys?
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There's a big youth convention this weekend i believe so I'm sure they'll be all over downtown including BPV.. I went into Culinaria last night and the place was a mad house but it was great to see all these people say very good things about Culinaria... I tend to think St.Louisans take so many things for granted then when the company leaves we complain about it...
Cordish's Website has a interesting picture of Ballpark Village in it, showing in the corner phase 1 but the main view they are showing is a entrance to a Swanky Office tower. If this is a true rendering of Phase 2, BPV could have potential. Anyway, I have a Flickr page that has many BPV Pictures in it if you want to use them Flickr page is TEBAAC 2014. One of my pictures shows what appears to be hundreds of people flooding into FSMLIVE! Suckers going in there are going to be crammed like Sardines in a can 
I notice in one rendering they picture a bear and bull sculpture in front of what appears to be a new office building...really don't think we need two of those downtown!
I am starting to think that once development takes off it would be nice to see something along the lines of WalMart replacing the old Ballpark East/West garages.
http://gizmodo.com/walmart-is-downsizin ... 1563878838
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http://gizmodo.com/walmart-is-downsizin ... 1563878838
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^ Actually I can see something like that right now with the Silo Lofts.
^ or even Midtown Plaza on the other side of Ikea. Just add that great ready made trestle bike path next to the above rendering.
Roger, Not to get too far off thread topic, doesn't the massing rendering for Silo Lofts seem underwhelming? Talk about a good location to add a few more floors and units with the ground level retail along Forest Park Ave. Thinking Silo Lofts should be more in line with Mills and OPUS CWE projects instead of apartment sprawl (can't think of any other words to describe what I see in the massing renderings)
Back to the thread,
Vpr, Personally I would rather see the residential high rise tower go up next for BPV and a City Target go into a redeveloped Railway Exchange building. But first thing first for BPV, fill in the surface lots and then work towards the parking garages on either side but a great idea as a future replacement for the garages either way
Roger, Not to get too far off thread topic, doesn't the massing rendering for Silo Lofts seem underwhelming? Talk about a good location to add a few more floors and units with the ground level retail along Forest Park Ave. Thinking Silo Lofts should be more in line with Mills and OPUS CWE projects instead of apartment sprawl (can't think of any other words to describe what I see in the massing renderings)
Back to the thread,
Vpr, Personally I would rather see the residential high rise tower go up next for BPV and a City Target go into a redeveloped Railway Exchange building. But first thing first for BPV, fill in the surface lots and then work towards the parking garages on either side but a great idea as a future replacement for the garages either way
Bleh Walmart. The urban Walmarts here in Chicago don't see the kind of business Target creates. They're reviving an entire area north of where Cabrini Green , partially because a target was built in an abandoned lot.
So we're what, three+ weeks in? The crowds seem good, yeah? I haven't been but my impression is crowds have been good. Any thoughts on how much mainstream media has helped bring people to BPV since the opening? The amount of coverage on local television news leading up to and during the opening was quite a lot. And I continue to seem to see stories mentioning it practically daily. I cannot recall anywhere near as much attention concerning a downtown destination in the past many years.
In the last couple weeks I've had long time acquaintances (those who know I live downtown and never asked me anything about the city in the past) mention BPV with a genuine curiosity and interest.
We all know how much cool sh*t there is going on in this city but I think a lot of people in the burbs are just not as clued in and aware of it. (I feel qualified to say this b/c I was one of them growing up in West County in the late 70's/80s and knowing very little about the city until some friends took me to this cool record store in the loop and I realized there was something way better than the Camelot Music in Chesterfield Mall.)
I can't help but wonder if it got a little more positive attention from the mainstream media how much more people it could help bring to the city and enjoy all that it has offer.
In the last couple weeks I've had long time acquaintances (those who know I live downtown and never asked me anything about the city in the past) mention BPV with a genuine curiosity and interest.
We all know how much cool sh*t there is going on in this city but I think a lot of people in the burbs are just not as clued in and aware of it. (I feel qualified to say this b/c I was one of them growing up in West County in the late 70's/80s and knowing very little about the city until some friends took me to this cool record store in the loop and I realized there was something way better than the Camelot Music in Chesterfield Mall.)
I can't help but wonder if it got a little more positive attention from the mainstream media how much more people it could help bring to the city and enjoy all that it has offer.
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It's definitely drawing a different demographic. I'm seeing lots of rural folk and men in golf shirt types. Those were 2 demographics previously not supporting downtown.
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My friends in Chesterfield and beyond are pretty pumped about it - they've all been at least once.moorlander wrote:It's definitely drawing a different demographic. I'm seeing lots of rural folk and men in golf shirt types. Those were 2 demographics previously not supporting downtown.
I went there for a second time over the weekend. No game in town. Much different feel and the luster had worn off by then. Some thoughts I had the second time around....
-It is not family friendly (at least on the inside). Families can basically hang out on the ball field or at the hall of fame. Definitely geared towards drinkers.
-Looking at the architecture a second time, it feels cheap and lacking.
-I couldn't help feeling like I was in westport.
Might be the last time I go this year. It's great that it's busy, but it just isn't my cup of tea. It made me really appreciate the Cupples area with flying saucer, J Buck's, etc. Even though those restaurants are somewhat corporate, they feel so much more authentic and local than anything at BPV.
-It is not family friendly (at least on the inside). Families can basically hang out on the ball field or at the hall of fame. Definitely geared towards drinkers.
-Looking at the architecture a second time, it feels cheap and lacking.
-I couldn't help feeling like I was in westport.
Might be the last time I go this year. It's great that it's busy, but it just isn't my cup of tea. It made me really appreciate the Cupples area with flying saucer, J Buck's, etc. Even though those restaurants are somewhat corporate, they feel so much more authentic and local than anything at BPV.
They're having a Blues watch party tonight. I'm thinking of checking it out.
http://www.stlballparkvillage.com/enter ... event/2208
http://www.stlballparkvillage.com/enter ... event/2208
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Watched the Blues game at BPV on Saturday after the Food Truck event at 4 Hands Brewery.
Lots of people watching on the huge screen inside and on the astro-turf outside.
The weather being gorgeous was surely a big draw. We didn't stick around after the game but I imagine a lot of folks wandered down from Scottrade.
I think it's cool that enough people who could have watched the playoff game anywhere chose to come downtown and check it out there.
This morning I happened to be downtown and walked by BPV around 8:30-9 a.m. I'm not normally downtown on weekdays but even with everything closed it had an inviting presence that I think a lot of tourists will find appealing. Sure it's not too authentic, but STL has that in spades. You need these kinds of venues as well. A little touristy is OK. To me it means downtown has arrived. Show your friends and relatives Ballpark Village and THEN take them to the out of the way joints only us locals know about
Lots of people watching on the huge screen inside and on the astro-turf outside.
The weather being gorgeous was surely a big draw. We didn't stick around after the game but I imagine a lot of folks wandered down from Scottrade.
I think it's cool that enough people who could have watched the playoff game anywhere chose to come downtown and check it out there.
This morning I happened to be downtown and walked by BPV around 8:30-9 a.m. I'm not normally downtown on weekdays but even with everything closed it had an inviting presence that I think a lot of tourists will find appealing. Sure it's not too authentic, but STL has that in spades. You need these kinds of venues as well. A little touristy is OK. To me it means downtown has arrived. Show your friends and relatives Ballpark Village and THEN take them to the out of the way joints only us locals know about