I meant to post this earlier, but forgot. At the Soulard Restoration Group's general meeting earlier this month, a quick overview for plans for a renovation of the BP station at 7th & Russell was presented.

The plan is to demo the current structures; pumps, a small convenience store(http://goo.gl/maps/km11F) , and a carwash (http://goo.gl/maps/19yE4). Afterward the station would be rebuilt with a layout similar to the Phillips 66 across the street (http://goo.gl/maps/ATlDd).

However, they would like to keep a carwash at the location, and the new layout has a convenience store being built where the current carwash is located. So the plan now is to reuse an adjacent vacant building at the corner of Allen & 7th (http://goo.gl/maps/1fz1o) as the new carwash. The building apparently once housed some sort of car-related business, which explains the garage doors on the right side of the building along Allen that are visible in the Google street view image above. The layout and car entrances already in the building apparently make a conversion to a carwash much more feasible.

While a new gas station/carwash isn't exactly exciting development, I'm glad they are finding a way to reuse a building that has been vacant for as long as I've lived in the neighborhood, rather than try to tear and down and build a new building for the carwash.

Appreciate the report.

Any plans for the 2-story building in front of the section with the garage doors?

Hell, why not make that whole building the c-store? (I have no idea how realistic this is....I just like that building.)

interesting... i can't imaging the 2 homeowners next door to the soon-to-be carwash are too happy about it though.

also, i would think that spraying water + chemicals in and around a 70+ year old brick and mortar building–not to mention the ones next door-all day long is not going to be good for its/their longevity.

also also, this is going to ruin any chance of the corner building being put to good use.

Appreciate the report.

Any plans for the 2-story building in front of the section with the garage doors?

Hell, why not make that whole building the c-store? (I have no idea how realistic this is....I just like that building.)

My understanding is that 2 story building will be part of the carwash as well. Cars will enter on the Allen side, drive through, and then exit onto the gas station lot on the other side (or vice versa). At least, that is what I took away from the discussion.

I'm not sure why they didn't just use the corner building for the C-store, maybe it is totally gutted and they just decided it would be easy to put in the necessary equipment for the carwash? Or, maybe they just decided to copy the layout across the street because it seems to be working for the Phillips 66? Either way, like you, I like that building and I'm glad it is being reused. I wondered how attractive it would be to a developer since it isn't in great shape and is right next to a gas station.