The owners are the problem at Skinker and Delmar.
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^ that was part of my thinking for why a nicer use of the building may be an interim solution.... seems like they want a big payoff so infill may not come for some time but if something could be work out for a decent lease term with a place like Byrd & Barrel or Gus's that might be win.
There are plenty of empty storefronts in traditionally-built buildings that could house one of them.
This parcel could be many times more productive and we shouldn't settle for less.
Hopefully no one leases it and the owners buckle.
This parcel could be many times more productive and we shouldn't settle for less.
Hopefully no one leases it and the owners buckle.
Byrd & Barrel is an adaptive re-use of an old Popeyes, and an excellently done one at that. (Actually, I have to admit I've never been inside, but I've had their food a number of times.)
I'll bemoan our car culture as much as any of you, but it's also a reality, and a drive through can be convenient. A cool drive-thru with great food is even better.
I know the Church's Chicken building isn't great architecture. And I know a nice mixed use building there would be so much better.
But we all constantly advocate adaptive re-use of buildings over demo constantly on here. It may not be our #1 desire for this site, but I don't think we should root against it if it's done well. And B&B would do it well.
And by the way, they liked and retweeted my tweet about them needing to expand to this location. Doubtful that means anything, of course.
I'll bemoan our car culture as much as any of you, but it's also a reality, and a drive through can be convenient. A cool drive-thru with great food is even better.
I know the Church's Chicken building isn't great architecture. And I know a nice mixed use building there would be so much better.
But we all constantly advocate adaptive re-use of buildings over demo constantly on here. It may not be our #1 desire for this site, but I don't think we should root against it if it's done well. And B&B would do it well.
And by the way, they liked and retweeted my tweet about them needing to expand to this location. Doubtful that means anything, of course.
There are two drive thrus up the street.
It would be a travesty if any wealth were put into rehabbing this building. It produces $29k/acre in property taxes. The building with Pinup Bowl in it, only one story, produces $80k/acre. There would be a great productive building on this location already but for the owners.
It would be a travesty if any wealth were put into rehabbing this building. It produces $29k/acre in property taxes. The building with Pinup Bowl in it, only one story, produces $80k/acre. There would be a great productive building on this location already but for the owners.
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Big Shark will be leaving the Loop.... I wonder if these leaves the opportunity to include that parcel into an expanded tower project.
File this under "ironic".
Parking crunch prompting Big Shark to close Loop bike shop
http://www.stltoday.com/business/local/ ... 27dff.html
Parking crunch prompting Big Shark to close Loop bike shop
http://www.stltoday.com/business/local/ ... 27dff.html
The old Jimmy's Cafe in the Demun neighborhood? It's the right distance.Big Shark is close to finalizing a deal to operate a store 1.5 miles southwest of the Loop store in St. Louis County. The store will have about 7,000 square feet of space, Weiss said, similar to the size of its existing Loop store that will close in April.
If there's one type of business that doesn't rely on parking, you'd think it would be a bike shop. According to Joe Edwards, the building is poised to be used for something cool. I definitely like the building and hope it isn't gobbled up by the tower footprint.
^Sounds from the P-D article like Big Shark is moving to the Millbrook (née Williams) Pharmacy / Hi-Tec Copy Shop retail center. Too bad they couldn't find something they felt comfortable with in the Loop.
I'm hesitant to advocate parking so close to transit, but for the time-being it might make sense to convert that quasi-industrial lot across the alley from Big Shark & Gokul to parking. It would adhere to the model along the northwest end of the Loop of contiguous street-facing development with extensive surface parking behind, which the neighboring Pageant already employs.
I'm hesitant to advocate parking so close to transit, but for the time-being it might make sense to convert that quasi-industrial lot across the alley from Big Shark & Gokul to parking. It would adhere to the model along the northwest end of the Loop of contiguous street-facing development with extensive surface parking behind, which the neighboring Pageant already employs.
Big Shark is moving to the old Hi Fi Fo Fum redev site on Big Bend from what I've been told. Great site for them
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^That would put it right by Mesa Cycles. I'd love to see the Hi Fi Fo Fum site put back in use.
The building is being converted into a 750 seat comedy and music venue.
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^ whoah... wouldn't there need to be an expansion for that?
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Paul Hohmann said that in the comments of the NextStL article 2 months ago about Big Shark vacating the space:
"Joe Edwards said that the concert venue would fill a niche between the Duck Room and Pageant in size and would have max capacity of 750, but probably average attendance of around 450-500."
"Joe Edwards said that the concert venue would fill a niche between the Duck Room and Pageant in size and would have max capacity of 750, but probably average attendance of around 450-500."
Yeah, but in today's PD article Edwards makes it sound like he's assessing his options and has some interest in the space but isn't sure what will be going in there yet. Obviously the two states aren't mutually exclusive and Edwards could just be more selective in what announcements/information he releases in an article about Big Shark (he obviously likes to have a big to-do about every Loop announcement).
Hopefully it's the 750 seat venue, but that also might not be a done deal.
Hopefully it's the 750 seat venue, but that also might not be a done deal.
There are over 500 parking spaces in the lot behind the Pageant and the Metrolink lot.
^^Hope plans haven't changed. His presentation at the Nov 30 meeting was very "this is what I'm doing" not "I might loose Big Shark. I'm thinking abut this"
wabash wrote:it might make sense to convert that quasi-industrial lot across the alley from Big Shark & Gokul to parking.
You're absolutely right. Not really sure what I was on/thinking there. Maybe just trying to give the Big Shark guys the benefit of the doubt. But there is some seriously sad irony when a bike shop with a streetcar being built outside, next to a parking lot, and with three other parking lots within a single block, and a mass transit station within two blocks, and a 200 apartment high-rise with 150 BIKE parking spaces being constructed next door, bemoans a lack of parking.quincunx wrote:There are over 500 parking spaces in the lot behind the Pageant and the Metrolink lot.
Also, if that lot did become parking I fear it would never become anything else, as the store owners would cry foul at losing it. Something should go there though. That construction materials yard / cinderblock loading dock bunker doesn't really cut it anymore.
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I'm not sure where I've been, but the Artworks building opened a few months ago... I guess technically just outside the East Loop but still nice to see.
I've never been to Mesa Cycles. Bummer for them. That building is perfect for a Cyclery on the scale of Big Shark. I've dreamed about my own business taking over that building, while munching on a sandwich from Fozzies, numerous times.
For what it's worth, in my one experience with Big Shark, I had to have a car because I was dropping off a non-functioning bike. I can't imagine I'm alone in that regard. There are probably a lot of use cases in which you'd only be biking to Big Shark in one direction. For the other you may well need your car. And maybe both.
Sure. That's a very transit oriented part of town. And yet, let's also be realistic.downtown2007 wrote:Metrolink is right behind the store.
I live in Tower Grove South. In a bind, I could navigate the Metro system (buses and trains) and be home in probably an hour.
Or I could hop back in my truck and be home in 15.
I'd like to see it get harder to drive places, but I don't think that's a switch we can just turn off. Especially when the frequency and reach of our transit system is so mediocre.