^ Surely they don't have $$ to build a new VA hospital, but I think it might be a better land utilization to have the feds to swap the VA site for the Pruitt-Igoe site... I'm not sure how much of a catalyst the VA has been for the area and allowing the site to be available for mixed-use redevelopment would be helpful. Meanwhile, we'd get a new VA hospital and a difficult site infilled with a quality use.
^ With VA way way over budget with their new Denver area hospital I doubt you will see any new hospitals in the VA mix.
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Plus its seems WAY premature to wish away the VA when there is so much land available for infill. That's the very definition of putting the cart in front of the horse.
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^ Sure there is lots to infill for the moment but the VA parcels sit at a critical juncture along Grand where if we had better land utilization we could erase a bit of that divide with North City. But we can't do anything with it. N. Grand should be dense at least all the way up to the Rock Church/Page but as chaifetz recognizes the VA building and surface lot are a challenge for eventual progress spreading north of Delmar. And again you'd get the benefit of activating a difficult P-I site.
Anyway, its just a land use exercise that I think would be ideal but as I acknowledged there probably is no money for the VA to do even if it were in need of a new hospital. Best we'll probably could wish for is a sensitively designed expansion and leaving the Palladium alone,
Anyway, its just a land use exercise that I think would be ideal but as I acknowledged there probably is no money for the VA to do even if it were in need of a new hospital. Best we'll probably could wish for is a sensitively designed expansion and leaving the Palladium alone,
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Wishing away the parking lots north of Delmar on one thing. I have a imaginary plan for each up to Bell. Wishing away the entire VA hospital makes no sense. No one wishes Barnes or SLU hospital would move. The problem isn't the hospital, it's their parking plan. If they built a decent sized garage on the North side of Bell the issue would be resolved and the parking on Grand could be redeveloped into better uses.
In my imagination...
-The VA builds a new 5-10 story building between the current hospital on Grand to house new doctors offices.
-The old Blumeyer block is reclaimed as mid-rise veterans housing.
-The large lot south of Franklin on the east side of Grand is used to construct a second mixed use garage for Grand Center venues allowing the parking around Powell hall to be redeveloped.
-The smaller lot next to the Palladium is used as the location to build a new theatre, clad entirely in opaque black glass, and becomes the home for the new Black Repertory Theatre, symbolically located north of the Delmar divide in the heart of St. Louis arts district.
In my imagination...
-The VA builds a new 5-10 story building between the current hospital on Grand to house new doctors offices.
-The old Blumeyer block is reclaimed as mid-rise veterans housing.
-The large lot south of Franklin on the east side of Grand is used to construct a second mixed use garage for Grand Center venues allowing the parking around Powell hall to be redeveloped.
-The smaller lot next to the Palladium is used as the location to build a new theatre, clad entirely in opaque black glass, and becomes the home for the new Black Repertory Theatre, symbolically located north of the Delmar divide in the heart of St. Louis arts district.
^ Tweet from Slay says - "One of the nicest Grand Center buildings will announce a new anchor tenant today and a plan."
Hearing from Twitter that "Bull Moose" is welcomed to Grand Center. From a quick google search it seems like it is a "Manufacturer of carbon steel welded mechanical and structural tubing. Headquareters in Chesterfield, Missouri, USA." My guess is the corporate headquarters of this company is relocating from Chesterfield to the Grand Center. Very interesting if this is the case.
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Yes; and it sounds like an expansion which is why Jay Nixon is speaking. Awesome.
@GovJayNixon announces Bull Moose Industries chooses #stl @GrandCenter for new HQ & making investment in new hotel
^ New Hotel and new HQ....sounds awesome!
Also looks like foreign investment. Project to cost $76 million.
Cool, but I'm confused.
Nixon's Twitter account says downtown.
I know suburbanites tend to refer to St. Louis City as "downtown".
Where is this going and if in Midtown where?
Nixon's Twitter account says downtown.
I know suburbanites tend to refer to St. Louis City as "downtown".
Where is this going and if in Midtown where?
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I'm assuming either Palladium or Missouri Theater building. Hotel would work in the theater for sure. But would that impact the rumored BB Kings?
https://governor.mo.gov/news/archive/br ... e-new-jobs
"This expansion also includes the renovation of the Missouri Theater building, the last of Grand Center’s historic buildings to be rehabbed. Along with Lawrence Group CEO Steve Smith, Caparo will invest in the overall development of the facility. The multi-use development is expected to be the future site of a 145-room boutique hotel, a full-service restaurant, two 3,000-square- foot banquet rooms and separate meeting facilities, a ground-floor coffee shop, a bakery and yogurt store, and a 150-vehicle parking lot."
So BB. Kings is out (maybe it was seen as a direct competitor to downtown blues museum?) and apartments are out (new apartments on infill lots in the future?). Sounds good, only disturbing piece is the 150-vehicle parking lot, is this until more demand for a mixed use garage? I hope the lot is permanent. Then again there are enough lots around for infill development in the future. Would love to see renderings.
"This expansion also includes the renovation of the Missouri Theater building, the last of Grand Center’s historic buildings to be rehabbed. Along with Lawrence Group CEO Steve Smith, Caparo will invest in the overall development of the facility. The multi-use development is expected to be the future site of a 145-room boutique hotel, a full-service restaurant, two 3,000-square- foot banquet rooms and separate meeting facilities, a ground-floor coffee shop, a bakery and yogurt store, and a 150-vehicle parking lot."
So BB. Kings is out (maybe it was seen as a direct competitor to downtown blues museum?) and apartments are out (new apartments on infill lots in the future?). Sounds good, only disturbing piece is the 150-vehicle parking lot, is this until more demand for a mixed use garage? I hope the lot is permanent. Then again there are enough lots around for infill development in the future. Would love to see renderings.
new mention of BB. Kings or apartments in article....I would have liked to see apartments.chaifetz10 wrote:I'm assuming either Palladium or Missouri Theater building. Hotel would work in the theater for sure. But would that impact the rumored BB Kings?
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Looks like the garage would go on the empty lot to the East, where the circus is currently set up.
Great.
The city gets another energy firm.
But I hope the rendering of the HQs and hotel is tweaked before construction.
The city gets another energy firm.
But I hope the rendering of the HQs and hotel is tweaked before construction.
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Anyone else thinking this infill shown is for a Lawrence Group Phase II and not part of the initial project?
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What about the little house behind the MoTheatre Building. I wouldn't want it to hold up the project but it be nice if they made provision to relocate it as they were planning for that house west of spring.
More info from stltoday:
http://www.stltoday.com/business/local/ ... 64a85.htmlTransforming the building, once base for the city health department, will cost $51 million and be finished in 2017, said Steve Smith, chief executive of the Lawrence Group. It also will include a restaurant, coffee shop, bakery, yogurt store and roof gardens.
Smith will share ownership of the building with the Caparo Group, the British parent of Bull Moose.
About 200 people in total will work in the building, said Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon, who spoke at Thursday’s press conference.
A second phase is planned to include a new 150-unit apartment building and 500-car garage behind the current building at a cost of about $25 million.
I don't think there is a house to the east of the Theatre Building. Just a parking lot where the theatre used to be. Are you thinking about the red brick house that sits to the east of Powell Hall?STLEnginerd wrote:What about the little house behind the MoTheatre Building. I wouldn't want it to hold up the project but it be nice if they made provision to relocate it as they were planning for that house west of spring.