Monogram - 1706 Washington

dbInSouthCity · PostJun 01, 2019#1262019-06-01T00:38+00:00

matguy70 wrote: Well, a couple things happening here...
There wasn't much fanfare about Fields grand opening downtown. Very few, IMO, have heard they are even open. They need better signage and better advertising, especially downtown. They are in a quieter area of the Loft District. They also opened at the same time (just about) as the new GreeLeaf Market (which got better news coverage) and is literally less than one mile down the stree - offers free parking and convenient. Schnucks Culinaria also offers free garage parking. They are pricier (even their Lafayette Store). and... to wrap that all up - Field Foods doesn't even list the Downtown Washington Store on their website YET!!!! They only have Downtown Lafayette listed. Strange.

In addition, this forum doesn't even have a separate thread for Fields Downtown.

Guess we wait and see.

nice pics here. Really nice store overall.
https://www.google.com/search?q=downtow ... 747!4f13.1

Their branding on the windows at the Downtown store is horrible. So amateur looking

They do have free parking too, about 10-12 spots in the lot next to the store and about 15 across the street.

symphonicpoet · PostJun 01, 2019#1272019-06-01T05:57+00:00

They came up in conversation today. 3:00pm is not precisely prime-time for a grocery anymore, particularly in one where the demographic trends younger and more DINKish, so I wouldn't necessarily take that as indicative. That said, I've no doubt it'll be a tough location to drum up business. Especially before things start filling in more. They seem a little further out ahead of the wave than the first Culinerea was when they opened, oh, fifteen years ago or so. But the wave should be bigger and ought to crest higher, so hopefully it'll all work out.

Elek.borrelli · PostJun 01, 2019#1282019-06-01T08:00+00:00

matguy70 wrote: Well, a couple things happening here...
There wasn't much fanfare about Fields grand opening downtown. Very few, IMO, have heard they are even open. They need better signage and better advertising, especially downtown. They are in a quieter area of the Loft District. They also opened at the same time (just about) as the new GreeLeaf Market (which got better news coverage) and is literally less than one mile down the stree - offers free parking and convenient. Schnucks Culinaria also offers free garage parking. They are pricier (even their Lafayette Store). and... to wrap that all up - Field Foods doesn't even list the Downtown Washington Store on their website YET!!!! They only have Downtown Lafayette listed. Strange.

I'm just going to go ahead and say that I had no idea that it had opened, which is kind of embarrassing for me. I guess that shows how little its opening has been publicized.
If anyone has some photos of the outside, I'd love to see how it incorporates with the building from far away! (The other photos matguy70 posted were all relatively close up)

GoHarvOrGoHome · PostJun 01, 2019#1292019-06-01T15:17+00:00

What they need to do is put a giant sign on the bare brick wall facing the parking lot. Maybe a cool neon sign out front to match the vibe of Wash Ave.

You are definitely right, the current signage consisting of window clings and a folding sidewalk sign just won't cut it long term. Gives the storefront a feeling of impermanence, like a halloween store. Get something up on the building itself.

hebeters2 · PostJun 01, 2019#1302019-06-01T17:59+00:00

ALDI's or dare I say a Lidl https://www.lidl.com/about-us in the Union Station area??

Trololzilla · PostJun 02, 2019#1312019-06-02T06:21+00:00

^ Lidl is basically just an East Coast operation - I don't see them expanding out this far for quite some time, if at all. It's nearly identical to an ALDI, in any case (they're ALDI Nord's US based store, I believe, whereas the US ALDI stores are all ALDI Süd).

ALDI I could definitely see, though. The parent company being German, I'd think they'd be a bit less hesitant to open up in urban areas than many US companies, particularly with strong brand recognition and store sizes that would fit rather well on either an empty lot or preferably on the street level of an existing building. My only worry is that they'd basically corner the market and force the end of the other grocers downtown.

symphonicpoet · PostJun 02, 2019#1322019-06-02T08:32+00:00

I don't think there's any way Aldi would run Schnucks out of downtown. They're just too different. Aldi usually wins on price, and Aldi is great for many things, but their produce and meat are absolutely not of the quality or freshness of local grocers. It's a noticeable enough difference my remarkably price conscious wife quit buying meat at Aldi altogether. (We do still buy produce there occasionally, as that's a little closer in some cases.) Honestly, though, they're different enough that even if you shop at one there are times when you want to shop at the other. (We regularly hit three grocers in a run: Aldi, Schnucks, and one or another Asian market. And Aldi is the only truly optional stop. I don't want to run them down, as we do like them, but they're the only one that ever gets skipped.)

rbb · PostJun 03, 2019#1332019-06-03T14:49+00:00

matguy70 wrote: Well, a couple things happening here...
There wasn't much fanfare about Fields grand opening downtown. Very few, IMO, have heard they are even open. They need better signage and better advertising, especially downtown. They are in a quieter area of the Loft District. They also opened at the same time (just about) as the new GreeLeaf Market (which got better news coverage) and is literally less than one mile down the stree - offers free parking and convenient. Schnucks Culinaria also offers free garage parking. They are pricier (even their Lafayette Store). and... to wrap that all up - Field Foods doesn't even list the Downtown Washington Store on their website YET!!!! They only have Downtown Lafayette listed. Strange.

In addition, this forum doesn't even have a separate thread for Fields Downtown.

Guess we wait and see.

nice pics here. Really nice store overall.
https://www.google.com/search?q=downtow ... 747!4f13.1

Yeah, I drove by there yesterday. The signage is terrible; I was intentionally looking for it and it was difficult to tell it was there driving down Washington. Not only does their website not list it, but it's been added to Google Maps as "Fields Foods Downtown" - search for 'Fields Foods' and the only result will be the Lafayette Square one. The initial reveiws on Google aren't great either, mentioning the high prices but also rotten and spoiled items on the shelf and salad bar. The better reviews were mostly just thankful something like this exists at all in this part of town.

Hopefully this is them still working out the kinks - they've barely been open a month. But yeah, seems the first impression isn't a great one.

-RBB

eee123 · PostJun 03, 2019#1342019-06-03T23:18+00:00

I agree with the complaints about high prices. That alone will get me to walk the extra 10 minutes to Culinaria for most of my shopping.

But I do like that Fields Foods is open until 10pm. Culinaria's 9pm closing is really, really frustrating. Between the later hours, and the fact that Culinaria is un-shoppable at weekday noon hours, what with all the lined-up lunchers in the produce area, Fields Foods has a few plusses.

chriss752 · PostJun 03, 2019#1352019-06-03T23:21+00:00

I think Fields Foods could’ve waited a little while longer. There are plans, temporarily shelved, for that block sized parking lot at 18th and Washington that the developer will pursue when labor, construction costs and interest rates come down some. That would be a boost to the store. I hope it holds out.

dredger · PostJun 04, 2019#1362019-06-04T05:05+00:00

chriss752 wrote: I think Fields Foods could’ve waited a little while longer. There are plans, temporarily shelved, for that block sized parking lot at 18th and Washington that the developer will pursue when labor, construction costs and interest rates come down some. That would be a boost to the store. I hope it holds out.

Fields Foods hanging in there a good thing. Monogram developers being able to pull off a residential infill would be even better outcome for the health of downtown in long term.

Who knows, I think the St. Louis Fed District chair is talking and ginning up support for rate decrease for his part and his region. Material prices could drop again but will probably take an intervention wiht current admin and or if someone puts on big boy pants and resolves trade issues. So a possibility. I wouldn't put much faith in wages going down, especially union, unless you got a full blown recession which is the last thing St. Louis need when its starting to gets development mojo going. The other possibility, market remains strong and demand can push up lease rates little higher and therefore project pencils.

chriss752 · PostJun 04, 2019#1372019-06-04T05:18+00:00

dredger wrote:
chriss752 wrote: I think Fields Foods could’ve waited a little while longer. There are plans, temporarily shelved, for that block sized parking lot at 18th and Washington that the developer will pursue when labor, construction costs and interest rates come down some. That would be a boost to the store. I hope it holds out.
Fields Foods hanging in there a good thing. Monogram developers being able to pull off a residential infill would be even better outcome for the health of downtown in long term.

Who knows, I think the St. Louis Fed District chair is talking and ginning up support for rate decrease for his part and his region. Material prices could drop again but will probably take an intervention wiht current admin and or if someone puts on big boy pants and resolves trade issues. So a possibility. I wouldn't put much faith in wages going down, especially union, unless you got a full blown recession which is the last thing St. Louis need when its starting to gets development mojo going. The other possibility, market remains strong and demand can push up lease rates little higher and therefore project pencils.

I don't remember if it was mentioned on here or with someone I talked to, but the developer of this project was pissed that it took over a year to get up to 80% occupied and doesn't really want to do infill at this point. So that's a bummer. The original 20-story tower envisioned, although there were no renderings, sounded great. As for the Fed District chair's comments, hopefully, they are taken seriously to get some changes rolling. A recession is on the horizon according to some developers I talk to. Real Estate agents and even financial planners say the same thing. As for when they say we can expect one, it ranges from late this year to sometime next year. Another said that it will just pop up.

dbInSouthCity · PostJun 04, 2019#1382019-06-04T12:53+00:00

There is no developer for 18th and Washington lot...there is a parking lot operator who doesn't know how a TIF works

PostJun 04, 2019#1392019-06-04T12:54+00:00

eee123 wrote: I agree with the complaints about high prices. That alone will get me to walk the extra 10 minutes to Culinaria for most of my shopping.

But I do like that Fields Foods is open until 10pm. Culinaria's 9pm closing is really, really frustrating. Between the later hours, and the fact that Culinaria is un-shoppable at weekday noon hours, what with all the lined-up lunchers in the produce area, Fields Foods has a few plusses.

I do like the food bar in the middle of Fields- you can get a 2 meat, 2 side with a drink meal for like $8-9.

chriss752 · PostJun 04, 2019#1402019-06-04T14:38+00:00

dbInSouthCity wrote:There is no developer for 18th and Washington lot...there is a parking lot operator who doesn't know how a TIF works

Hmm. For once I know something that you don’t? Well, that’s an interesting change. All I’ll say is that I saw the renderings, I know the usages, I know the people on the development team and I know the terms of why they didn’t go public with the project.

chaifetz10 · PostJun 04, 2019#1412019-06-04T15:24+00:00

This isn't a pissing match - so let's not treat this as one it like one with "who knows more than the other". dbInSouthCity's track record and experience speak for itself. And can we please stop with the "I know XYZ, but I'm not going to tell you" posts? Yes, rumors are fun and probably drive clicks, but not everything needs to be a tease. Especially when lately many of these rumors or teases fizzle out.

framer · PostJun 04, 2019#1422019-06-04T18:12+00:00

^Yep.

Ebsy · PostJun 04, 2019#1432019-06-04T21:57+00:00

Bunch of drama queens lol

dbInSouthCity · PostAug 06, 2019#1442019-08-06T15:47+00:00

Monogram appears to be 148 of 168 leased, 89%. Of the 20 that are left, almost half are in the $2000+ range, ie the 1200 SF 2bed 2 bath units 201, 301, 501, 601, and 701 are available at $2145 a month. Maybe that will help other developers figure out the downtown price point.

downtown2007 · PostAug 07, 2019#1452019-08-07T00:05+00:00

I’d like to know the past 5 and 10 year data for rental rates and property values downtown.

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Tim · PostAug 07, 2019#1462019-08-07T18:35+00:00

I'm surprised there aren't more friends, students, etc. splitting the rent on 2- and 3-bedroom apartments.

ImprovSTL · PostAug 08, 2019#1472019-08-08T19:14+00:00

My buddies and I went in on a 3 bedroom 2000 sq foot timber loft in Chicago right of college. It was fun. But yeah I have some young employees out of college I work with looking for their own place.

dbInSouthCity · PostSep 07, 2019#1482019-09-07T23:16+00:00

Toured the 2 bed units as we are looking to move (although leaning towards Park Pacific because I like that they include literally everything in the rent price like internet, TV, utilities and parking, less bills to track the better). Anyway- they have a waitlist for underground parking ($125) and the lot next door ($65) so basically you need to find your own parking. Interior of the building is storage units only since you have to have a window to legally rent it. This also gives them a lot of dead space in hallways, they’re huge

Elek.borrelli · PostOct 06, 2019#1492019-10-06T00:42+00:00

Was biking downtown today and took shelter from the rain in the Fields Foods. There was a healthy amount of people coming in and out which is good to see.

quincunx · PostSep 24, 2020#1502020-09-24T17:37+00:00

Have we seen this before? Concept for 1600 Washington by HDA Architects
https://www.hdai.com/washingtonavenuemixeduse

And another chance to lament what was lost for parking.

1600 Washington Millner Hotel.jpg (116.19KiB)

Monogram - 1706 Washington

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