What does onsl stand for?
thanx
thanx
I'll take a stab at it, but I could be wrong... Old North St. Louis
ecoabsence wrote:There is a major mall redevelopment plan in the financing stage. 14th street will be reopened as part fo the project, although there is no schedule yet. What will happen will be very big and should please everyone on this board.
Sounds like the best news I've heard in awhile. When can we expect to see renderings or at least an official announcement?
This project is a no brainer with Crown Candy kitchen right across the street. Maybe some people in that half-an-hour wait line will venture across the street to the new stores? I think so.
Note to City hall: Stop pickpocketing every last penny from this neighborhood. Get rid of the parking meters on the street!
ecoabsence wrote:
As a resident of ONSL, I can tell you that the "right people" and "right plans" are already here -- there just aren't enough of them! Come join us and make your visions come true.
I'd move if I could afford it. I preach the cheap affordability of those fixer uppers on the north side to everybody I know. I'd love to buy a place in ONSL...I just don't have the captial at all.
Wow! Some of those buildings are amazing. Where exactly is this neighborhood? I may need to take a drive today.
- 10K
BGeldy wrote:Wow! Some of those buildings are amazing. Where exactly is this neighborhood? I may need to take a drive today.
If you've ever been to Crown Candy, you've been to ONSL. It's immediately north of downtown - the 14th Street Mall is right across from Crown Candy at 14th and St. Louis Avenue.
That mall is one of the creepiest places in town. It's completely deserted and feels like something out of a movie.
The two block area on 14th from St. Louis to Warren. Got it. Gotta love Google Maps! Doesn't it seem like Crown Candy would be a catalyst for that neigborhood's redevelopment? Surprised it hasn't happened already.
They should rebrand the neighborhood Crown Candy Heights or Crown Heights or something. Start fresh and new. I don't know how long it's been called Old North St. Louis but didn't the neighborhood used to be Mullanphy?BGeldy wrote:The two block area on 14th from St. Louis to Warren. Got it. Gotta love Google Maps! Doesn't it seem like Crown Candy would be a catalyst for that neigborhood's redevelopment? Surprised it hasn't happened already.
- 10K
stellar wrote:They should rebrand the neighborhood Crown Candy Heights or Crown Heights or something. Start fresh and new. I don't know how long it's been called Old North St. Louis but didn't the neighborhood used to be Mullanphy?
It sounds like some have taken to calling it Old North, which is an improvement. I think that the stigma that many people associate with North St. Louis as a whole is reason enough for some kind of rebranding effort.
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The area is called Old North St. Louis because of the town of N. St. Louis that the City annexed back in the 1800s. I believe the neighborhood was referred to as Murphy-Blair until the 70s or so. That is when the first wave of renovations began in Old North and the name change occurred.
Looking at those pictures, I can just imagine those buildings and the mall bustling with activity. Looking at how they've been abandoned reminds why I hate the suburbs.
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I did a little homework and the ONSL name change didn't happen until the 1980s. My bad.
Here's a link to the history of the nabe:
http://www.onsl.org/history.php
Here's a link to the history of the nabe:
http://www.onsl.org/history.php
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Citylover wrote:Well enjoy your concert venues and taverns while they last because I am going to take it all away from you and build the first urban Shop N Save. You?re getting eminent domain?d.
I want to tear down the historic buildings across the street for an urban plaza! stellar wrote:They should rebrand the neighborhood Crown Candy Heights or Crown Heights or something. Start fresh and new. [/i]but didn't the neighborhood used to be Mullanphy?
I think you may be onto something there.
- 10K
I'm looking forward to watching this project. I hope the RHCDA doesn't turn all of this beautiful retail space into lofts and condos. ONSL needs some storefronts to become the full fledged village they aspire to be.
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Here's what was said at this past Tuesday's ONSL neighborhood meeting: the Old North St. Louis Restoration Group is taking the lead on this project and has partnered with RHCDA to make the deal happen. Plans are for a re-opening of the street and rehabbing the historic buildings for a mix of residential, retail, and commercial uses. The residential will include traditional apartments, lofts, and live-work spaces. Although site control has been secured (the biggest hurdle for previous plans), full development financing is not in place yet - and probably won't happen until the spring.
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This is great news indeed! This failed mall has held back the progress of ONSL for long enough. I'd be interested to see if this area can blossom as quickly as the Grove has in the last year or so.
http://newoldnorth.blogspot.com/
This is also posted on the What's New in Old North blog.
I hope the new construction proposed is better than what has been built in the North Marketplace. It attempts to mimick the old style but the scale is too small and it doesn't look right. I think they should try styles like these ones from New Town:
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They may not be historic, but they would respect the historic structures around it and give the area a nice architectural diversity that would set it apart from Soulard. I think the porches would also be a selling point.
This is also posted on the What's New in Old North blog.
I hope the new construction proposed is better than what has been built in the North Marketplace. It attempts to mimick the old style but the scale is too small and it doesn't look right. I think they should try styles like these ones from New Town:
They may not be historic, but they would respect the historic structures around it and give the area a nice architectural diversity that would set it apart from Soulard. I think the porches would also be a selling point.
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Bastiat wrote:
...I hope the new construction proposed is... I think they should try styles like these ones from New Town...
I don't know if it was said at the neighborhood meeting on Tuesday or if it's on the newOldNorth blog, but there isn't any new construction proposed for the 14th Street redevelopment -- at least not in the first phase. This is going to involve rehabbing about 20 or so historic buildings on the mall and on adjacent blocks. But I do like the character of the New Town buildings posted by Bastiat.
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Its odd to recreate the old but it is our defining history from say Los Angeles stucco bungalows, New York brownstones, South Carolina cottages, or ubiqutuous rural spindle & gingerbread victorians which all are replicated due to their period charm and life everlasting memories. So, why not construct New Urbanist homes in ONSL with new modern variations? Modernism by itself was anti-urban and purely function oriented with no relation to history. At least New Urbanism tries to connect the two with the effect of starting us back in 1930 urban form before we sprawled and let the car dominate the street.
Build on ONSL and may the historical segregation & stereotypes fade away with fresh timber, brick, and neighbors! Metro, hello?
Build on ONSL and may the historical segregation & stereotypes fade away with fresh timber, brick, and neighbors! Metro, hello?
- 10K
Thanks for the info, OldNorthPositive - I hope you'll keep us updated with any news you may hear.
This is great news!
This is great news!
OldNorthPositive wrote:Bastiat wrote:
...I hope the new construction proposed is... I think they should try styles like these ones from New Town...
I don't know if it was said at the neighborhood meeting on Tuesday or if it's on the newOldNorth blog, but there isn't any new construction proposed for the 14th Street redevelopment -- at least not in the first phase. This is going to involve rehabbing about 20 or so historic buildings on the mall and on adjacent blocks. But I do like the character of the New Town buildings posted by Bastiat.
They're going to be built in future phases on blocks adjacent to 14th. Hopefully by then, demand will have increased enough to warrant higher quality infill like seen in Lafayette Square.
- 10K
From the Arch City Chronic(what?)cle:
14th Street Mall Plan Unveiled
Karen Heet
In the face of speculator acquisition and the deterioration of the existing buildings, plans to renovate the 14th Street Mall in Old North St. Louis were revealed August 29th at a community meeting held by the Old North St. Louis Restoration Group (ONSLRG).
Phase 1 of the plan is a $25-30 million renovation of the historical buildings on the mall, which span a two-block area from St. Louis Avenue to Warren Street in the 5th Ward. The 14th Street Mall Association, a partnership between ONSLRG and the Regional Housing and Community Development Alliance (RHCDA), now has site control of the majority of the buildings on the mall, and the group is currently in discussions with the four remaining property owners.
Sean Thomas, executive director of ONSLRG, says that pre-development financing has been secured, and the 14th Street Mall Association aims to close on the renovation financing in the spring of 2007. Construction will begin immediately after financing is in place.
The plan calls for opening the pedestrian mall to cars and renovating the historic buildings on the Mall into mixed-use venues for live/work spaces, apartments and retail stores. Green building components are being considered. The 14th Street Mall Association will maintain ownership of the buildings in order to qualify for federal historic tax credits. State historic tax credits, new market tax credits and tax abatement will also be used to offset the renovation costs of the project. The architectural firm Rosemann & Associates has developed the site plan, and E.M. Harris will be the general contractor for the renovations.
Crown Candy Kitchen, at the north end of the Mall, has been a neighborhood anchor since 1913. Standing-room-only lines await customers most days at lunchtime. The 14th Street Mall Association hopes that the retail activity from Crown will drift south into the Mall area once it is completed.
With the Edward Jones Dome and the Arch centered in view, The 14th Street Mall is located in the quaint residential neighborhood of Old North St. Louis: a tight-knit community that was an independent village until it merged with the City of St. Louis in 1841. The neighborhood is bound by I-70 to the east, Branch Street to the north, N. Florissant to the west and Cass Avenue to the south.
The Mall was first closed to vehicular traffic on March 26, 1977 during a national trend toward pedestrian malls. The idea failed miserably, and as the city population declined in the late 70s and early 80s, many of the Mall’s buildings became vacant.
Hopes and visions for rejuvenating the Mall rose often over the years. Site plans were made, and residents gave their input, but no one had control of the site. More than 20 different people owned property on the Mall. Many individual owners could not get financing to renovate their properties, and no one entity had the means to purchase and renovate all the property at once.
Interest was renewed two years ago when a developer from Atlanta got contracts for most of the properties on the mall and looked capable of financing the project. However, the developer disappeared amid speculations of fraud, and fears arose among the community that an outside party could determine the fate of the Mall. This became the impetus for the creation of the 14th Street Mall Association.
Residential development activity has been heavy in the southern part of the neighborhood as the ONSLRG, again in partnership with RHCDA, has formed the North Market Place Redevelopment Area, which is renovating and constructing new single- and multi-family homes. The North Market Place Homes range in price from $156 to $192 thousand for a 1,500 to 2,000 square-foot home. Eight of the eleven new homes have received funding from the Affordable Housing Commission and therefore have been built using Universal Design, which creates ease of use for people of all abilities and ages.
Ralph Wafer is the architect for the North Market Place Homes and was chosen because of his previous work with many homeowners in the neighborhood. Vatterot is the general contractor for the project.
Kennedy & Associates is the firm that handles the North Market Apartments, and general contractor E.M. Harris is making renovations. The apartments meet “affordable” guidelines, so renters who make 80 percent of the median income are eligible for one- to three-bedroom apartments from $395 to $625 per month. The Lipton Group has the management contract and has seen a growing waiting list for the apartments.
Development opportunities abound north of the 14th Street Mall, as well. The Land Reutilization Authority (LRA) has requested proposals for five large areas for renovation or infill. More information can be found on the city’s website at http://www.stlouis.missouri.org/develop ... e/onslrfp/