I was just contacted by Benjamin Muchoki, the current owner of the Knickerbocker Lofts. He is currently in the process of developing the final two lofts in that building.



He explained that these units were saved as raw space by the prior building's owners with plans to build a large 2000 sq. ft. loft. Since the single loft was never constructed, Benjamin is in the process of building two seperate 1000 sq. ft. units that are available as pre-sold condo's (allowing the buyer to influence the final design). Both units are expected to sell in the mid-$150,000's.



related link: <A HREF="http://www.stlouislofts.com/507north13t ... ckerbocker Lofts - St. Louis Lofts</A>

I wish these guys the best but I have a feeling they are getting into bed with the wrong person. I know people who live in Glasser's buildings and would never do it again. Also, Glasser tends to just sit on property and either not develop it or develop it, but do it in a way where he cuts corners. Just seems that he does not have the best reputation.



And I find it funny that the M-Group speaks of not doing the "cookie-cutter" lofts and will separate themselves out by doing "high-end" lofts with granite tops and stainless appliances. Just FYI, granite and stainless are the standard downtown. I wonder if these guys have really looked at all downtown has to offer. To me, there is nothing "cookie-cutter" about it. Each project seems to have its own feel and look to it.



Not trying to slam anyone here, but the tone of the article was that they think of Glasser as some sort of Loft God and just hope they enter in with open eyes. To end on a positive though, I love to see the young and ambitious getting involved in things. Just hope they truly want to be a part of revitalizing downtown and not just looking to make a quick buck at someone else's expense.

I was thinking the same thing.



Their approach is an interesting one - they're basically just "flippers" right now, but if they're able to get their other two projects off the ground, that will be great.



I wish my dad had a lot of money that he could give me to develop loft projects.

Just met Ben Muchoki last week... these guys are probably much smarter than you all think. He was very sharp and mature beyond his years. While we all sit here and talk about how these guys are teaming up with all the wrong people and are goin to fail, they are learning from a seasoned and sucessful real estate veteran. Im sure there were plenty of people that thought trump would fail because of his age... that was years ago, and i think he might have made a few dollars since then.



as for mr. glasser, there is a nice anti-sam article in the RFT (5/4/2005). one thing to think about though... sam and his partner dave jump came to st louis when it was a *hole (yes i said it!). they saw something no one else did. they believed in the city long before anyone else, but because they made millions in the process, they are the bad guys. check the facts, Jump & glasser bought buildings when no one else would. no one believed in the city! Jump then invested in developers like McGowan Brothers Development (you know, the good guys that made washington ave happen). Sam glasser and Dave jump saved City Museum (investing millions to save it from foreclosure), developed a charter school and opened the first daycare in the city (downtown childrens center) ALL OF WHICH IS HERE TODAY! Sam and Dave sound like real bastards, dont they? who needs schools, daycares and museums? i think st louis would be better off if these guys had stayed in new york. And who wants a developer/investor who is willing to mentor young developers anyways? RIGHT??

Baloney.



Jump is obviously a VERY sharp businessman, but he's no saint. To say that he bought building when no one else would is irrelevant. He saw the tide turning downtown before other people did and saw an opportunity to buy buildings and hold on to them until the area improved - a great business move, but he's contributed very little to downtown (I admit, I didn't know about his involvement in the City Museum - that is a good thing). Had he not purchased those buildings, they most likely would have been purchased by developers who would have actually done something with them.



This quote pretty much sums it up:



"He hasn't helped downtown development, because he hasn't developed anything," says one. "He's speculating. But to say that what he did was beneficial? That's ridiculous. That's just Kevin McGowan sucking up to Dave. I don't see how he's added any value to it. I don't think he's a bad guy; I just don't think he's helped the process. We're going to get it done despite Dave Jump, not because of Dave Jump."

Agree. And let's be real about the daycare. I read the RFT as well and it stated that they jacked up the rent on that daycare until they couldn't afford it anymore and used pressure tactics in forcing them to make a move. I think it said that not until the city got involved did they back off and come to an agreement. And here's a thought. StLouSoCity speaks of Glasser helping young developers....Well, these guys just bought how many units in Knickerbocker? Did Glasser not own those spaces? We know he doesn't like to finish things off. So was this just a way for him to sell the space as he couldn't move them in the condition they were in? Hmmmmmm.

Anybody have an update on the Knickerbocker project? Macro Sun and Ellen Curley Gallery have just opened on the first floor, but I don't see much progress upstairs.

The construction guys working on the upper floors (yeah... I go straight to the real source!) said that they have to do 12 months of work in 9 months.

How are they going to handle the Knickerbocker sign?



I would imagine that someone who bought an expensive condo would not want a big blue neon sign outside their windows.

The construction guys working on the upper floors (yeah... I go straight to the real source!) said that they have to do 12 months of work in 9 months.

Which means if they're union they'll take 18 months to do the work

bab wrote:How are they going to handle the Knickerbocker sign?



I would imagine that someone who bought an expensive condo would not want a big blue neon sign outside their windows.

The sign really isn't bothersome at all. Plus, it looks really freaking cool and should never be removed.

bab wrote:How are they going to handle the Knickerbocker sign?



I would imagine that someone who bought an expensive condo would not want a big blue neon sign outside their windows.

I would pay extra to have a view of that cool sign!!

It easily gets my vote as the coolest sign around. Especialy at night.

bab actually has a really good point. When I lived across the famous citgo sign in boston, it was nice, for like a week. Then all the flashing and bright lights got fantastically annoying, to the point where we never opened our blinds on that side of the room at night, which sucks cause we had a rather nice view of kenmore square. I know the knickerbocker doesn't blink, but neon is BRIGHT, bright enough to pour through most blinds, even venitian. Sure, you can buy really heavy blinds, but why should you have to? I dunno where I'm going with this, just that even though it's a cool sign, I can see some residents across the street having legitimate gripes

How big is this sign? Are we talking Kenny Rogers Roasters big or not?

codascoram wrote:I can see some residents across the street having legitimate gripes

brickandmortar wrote:How big is this sign? Are we talking Kenny Rogers Roasters big or not?

Here is a photo from the window across the street in the Fashion Square Bldg...

(photo courtesy <A HREF="http://www.urbanworkshop.us/">UrbanWorkshop</A>)









As well as some other photos from street level...







If you want to read more about the sign...



<A HREF="http://www.mstl.org/minutes/weekly-upda ... 05.html">A new glow to Washington Ave.</A>

From: Melanie Adams

Date: 3/5/02

If naked ladies often walk around the Fashion Square building with the curtains open, I may have to buy one of those Knickerbocker Lofts.

The sign doesn't look too bright, and blue is supposed to be calming. The view into the Fashion Square building looks superb.

I'll bet everyone else already knows this, but I googled the word knickerbocker and found the following at Ask Yahoo!:

At the beginning of the 17th century, New York City was a small Dutch community located at the south end of Manhattan Island. History tells us that the people of New Amsterdam were canny traders and wore funny pants. A knickerbocker is a descendant of these orginal Dutch settlers. The term can also refer to anyone who lives in the city, hence the New York Knicks. But where does the name come from? Apparently from the one and only Diedrich Knickerbocker, the fictitious author of Washington Irving's 1809 novel Knickerbocker's History of New York. He's also mentioned in the original title of Irving's most famous work, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow: Found Among the Papers of the Late Diedrich Knickerbocker. Diedrich was a product of his age: a descendant of immigrants, a wide-eyed opportunist, and a fiercly proud American. Using Diedrich Knickerbocker as a guiding light, Washington Irving went on to found The Knickerbocker School, a group of writers who were intent on distancing themselves from European traditions. Did we mention the funny pants? Knickerbockers can also refer to baggy pants that end just after the knees. Very useful for stomping about in New York City puddles.

Sometimes the wealth of information on the internet is truly astonishing. And the amazing part...I bet still 70% of the net is porn.

With everything going on on Washington Av., its hard to believe this building is still a mess. Any updates?

Framer wrote:With everything going on on Washington Av., its hard to believe this building is still a mess. Any updates?

What do you mean by a mess?



I know recently they've had quite a few building problems like broken pipes and such which has caused a lot of damage and problems for the residents.

There ARE no tenants, at least not in the portion I'm talking about. We're really talking about two seperate, but connected buildings here. The Eastern portion of the building, above the Downtown Children's Center, is finished and occupied, but the Western portion is not. MacroSun and Ellen Curlee Gallery are open in the first floor, but every window above them is filthy dirty and/or broken. Obviously the building has not been renovated yet. (Or is there work going on inside that I can't see?) What's the holdup?



It sounds like those "kids" that made a big splash a couple of years ago trying to be developers may have bitten off more than they could chew.