North city has a vacancy problem. The vacancy presents itself in a variety of ways. Vacant lots. Vacant buildings. Abandoned industrial sites. The vacancy costs taxpayers dearly. LRA must manage the inventory of abandoned tax foreclosed properties. Vacant privately owned properties hurt neighboring properties and attract crime. They help further the negative image of north city and the city at large.

Small interventions are positive, but large, well funded interventions are needed. Combatting vacancy creates jobs and helps turn around the city's negative image. The question is how and where? McKee's Northside project is one large intervention to combat vacancy. If successful, it will turn around over 1,000 acres. But as a percentage, McKee's Northside represents a tiny fraction of north city. And it took over fifty years of decay before McKee was able to gather his project together.

Everyone has their own ideas about how to combat vacancy in St. Louis, but individuals will have little success and their ideas mostly are at the micro level. What about larger scale initiatives that can move markets, change impressions, and attract large funding commitments? How can St. Louis be a model for converting abandonment and decay into sustainable growth?

To attract private investment, a market return must be in the mix. Perhaps a model of public and private investment, where public dollars help to support return on private investment, and permanent jobs are created to grow the region's economy?

This subject would probably be better suited for the North St. Louis section of the forum.

Looked there, but the categories are "Projects and Construction" and "Residential Development". The vacancy problem is neither, and is a general "Urban Living" issue affecting everyone, not just north city. And, to be frank, that vacancy is spreading into some southside areas as well. But without a doubt, it's a crisis in north city.

debaliviere wrote:This subject would probably be better suited for the North St. Louis section of the forum.

I see...Separate but equal on the urbanSTL forum, eh?

Kidding...

But like NN said, I don't see this as an exclusively "North St. Louis" issue. It occurs mostly in the northern half of the city, but drags the whole city down.

For starters, can we agree that *way* more demolition is needed? I hear there are some wards with nearly 1,000 buildings on demolition lists, with funds to pay for only a few dozen per year. At that rate, we will never rid ourselves of the scars of these abandoned buildings.

So why not advocate at the regional level for more federal funding for demolition in places like St. Louis, with a requirement that jobs go to local low income residents, and, further, that materials salvaged from demolition sites be set aside for future construction or sold to support the program? And beyond simple demolition, require that sites be left clean of rubble, with old foundations removed rather than buried. Rather than create a brownfield, a site is prepared for future use, whether new construction or urban agriculture.

So, in terms of developing strategies for combating vacancy, one priority would be to substantially increase the pace and funding for demolition. Can I get an "Amen"?

Have to strongly disagree with your assessment of demand in north city. Look at every quality new housing development in north city and it is filled with a waiting list.

While there are many people living in north city, there is a serious shortage of quality affordable housing.

There is demand and a market for quality affordable housing in north city. And with more residents, market demand grows for goods and services, supporting a cycle of growth.

On the other hand, leaving abandoned buildings to rot doesn't support growth, it hinders it. It makes the area look neglected and not open for business or welcoming of new residents, discouraging new investment.

As a region, since we've got so much vacancy on our hands, we need to figure out ways to convert what is seen more as a liability into an opportunity. That will take vision, leadership, money and a long term effort.

Northside Neighbor wrote:Looked there, but the categories are "Projects and Construction" and "Residential Development". The vacancy problem is neither, and is a general "Urban Living" issue affecting everyone, not just north city. And, to be frank, that vacancy is spreading into some southside areas as well. But without a doubt, it's a crisis in north city.

Could probably apply to the residential development section.

Just trying to generate some interest in the north side section of the forum.

I'm not convinced demolition is really the solution. It may be justified when one dilapidated house ruins a block... but even then restraint is usually best

I'm not talking about "vacant and boarded". I'm talking about vacant and falling down. People need to get out and take a look at the innards of neighborhoods to see how far gone so many of these buildings are. They are hundreds and hundreds beyond repair, not counting the unusable "vacant" lots which in reality are buried rubble brownfields.

Let me put it another way: There isn't enough market demand for new housing to fill the hundreds/thousands of vacant lots already existing. If there were, developers (or even individuals) would be meeting that demand and building new homes at a greater rate than we are seeing now.

Housing is only one possible use. Urban agriculture is another. Greenspace for storm water management is another. There are plenty of possible uses, both passive and active, that are all much more positive than abandoned and decaying. And taken together they become part of a strategy to combat vacancy.

Now we do very little except wait for the market to attract developers. With so much negative value holding back the area, we are in for a very long wait. Do we really want the albatross of urban decay and vacancy weighing down our community for the next 100 years?

StL Public Radio - How lawyers are helping north St. Louis advocates deal with their neighborhoods’ biggest problems

https://news.stlpublicradio.org/show/st ... ommunities

Habitat for Humanity building 40 homes on Evans east of Newstead.

"About 18 build-ready lots are expected to be transferred to Habitat for Humanity next week, with additional parcels set to be turned over to the nonprofit once demolition work is completed. Construction on the first group of lots could begin as early as September if financing closes as planned, Habitat for Humanity St. Louis CEO Kimberly McKinney said."

"The development is expected to be made up of five designs of one- and two-story homes ranging in size from about 1,400 to roughly 1,800-square feet. The project coincides with the organization's 40th anniversary in St. Louis. "