I believe at one point Pete Rothschild owned the building and forced most of the tenants out including a Chinese restaurant. After letting it sit vacant and with no maintenance he sold it to SLU. In my opinion Rothschild disgracefully prefers to let a building rot so he can make an easy profit than working to preserve them. At least Biondi has found reuses for most of the great buildings along Lindell that might have otherwise been torn down.
I guess most of you saw in the paper today (Martin Van Derworf?) that SLU is indeed interested in acquiring the Midtown State Office Building. This worries me. First of all, that building serves the needs of many city residents. Yes, they are largely poor. Does that mean they are no longer welcome in that part of town? Do they frighten Biondi?
Second, The Midtown State Office Building is a good, urban building. It faces the street and fills its site. Tearing it down will open up a huge lot at the corner of Lindell and Grand. Is there really a large enough project in the works to fill up the whole site? Will it come out and meet the street, or will it be set back behind a large parking lot? Or another one of Biondi's crazy fountains?
I'm afraid.
I'm very afraid!
Second, The Midtown State Office Building is a good, urban building. It faces the street and fills its site. Tearing it down will open up a huge lot at the corner of Lindell and Grand. Is there really a large enough project in the works to fill up the whole site? Will it come out and meet the street, or will it be set back behind a large parking lot? Or another one of Biondi's crazy fountains?
I'm afraid.
I'm very afraid!
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I wouldn't have any problem with seeing that building torn down. Yes, it fills its site, but it is kind of ugly, 70s style architecture. Just because the building is torn down doesn't mean that the services provided in the building won't be offered at a different location.
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Combining the State Office building site with the cleared lot to its east could provide a combined property larger than that used for Park East Tower.
But even if SLU kept the building for offices and classrooms, the foot traffic coming off their campus to bridge the Lindell-divide would be good for Grand Center street activity.
Besides, I think the State wants to bail this building anyway, even if empire-building Biondi has been salivating over it.
But even if SLU kept the building for offices and classrooms, the foot traffic coming off their campus to bridge the Lindell-divide would be good for Grand Center street activity.
Besides, I think the State wants to bail this building anyway, even if empire-building Biondi has been salivating over it.
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SLU is building one of its signature fountains and greenspaces at Grand and Lindell, according to a friend of mine who drove by the site the other day. My informant says that the SLU archway-thing is already up.
Can anyone confirm or deny this...I really hope it isn't true, EVEN if it's temporary. I'd rather see the site vacant than have another SLU greenspace.
Can anyone confirm or deny this...I really hope it isn't true, EVEN if it's temporary. I'd rather see the site vacant than have another SLU greenspace.
i saw a bobcat or something there today. i was very confused, i guess that's what they're doing.
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What a waste that would be - there's already a nice fountain right across the street!
I noticed that last week. i'll be there tommorrow, so i'll take a few pics.
Really, wow... way to go SLU, once again all talk and no show. They want to make the area around there school better? try adding to the urban enviroment at the edges and then using the middle of campus for the green space, not the other way around....
I'm sure they are still going to put a building up, they just delayed it for a while. I don't blame them for sprucing it up, but hopefully they still decide to build there. If they don't build, it will definately qualify as one of their bigger mistakes. I can take this for a year.
Here are a couple of pics I took yesterday. It's the standard SLU entrance gate. I didn't walk over to it, but the limestone looks weather. I don'y know where they could have taken it from, but it didn't look brand new. There was also a new water line run in to the site off of Olive. I would assume that is for a sprinkler system.
Who owns this lot on the north east corner? SLU or Grand Center Inc? This should almost be GIVEN to a private developer or one of the two above should do something with it. The little suburban park with fence is awful. SLU needs to drop the suburban look with these little green ways with cheesy fountains and ugly blue SLU lettering.. a little touch of chesterfield in the city if you ask me..
That "green space" looks beautiful!! We should tear down the rest of those buildings and clear the way for more! SlU, get your red bricks and wrought iron fences ready!
That "green space" looks beautiful!! We should tear down the rest of those buildings and clear the way for more! SlU, get your red bricks and wrought iron fences ready!
I KNOW developers would be interested in building on this site. A new dorm/ apartment tower for slu, or some type of mixed use. It seems that SLU would rather sit and hold this property for itself, which makes some sense, but at the same time it prevents Grand Center from moving forward. For now we have really "classy fencing" and a green lot! sure do look fancy!
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Here's a newer residence hall at Loyola in Chicago - very urban. I'd love to see something similar at SLU, perhaps on this lot.
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Looking back at the single bobcat photos I suspect that it's the same owner as TBD!! 
I like the building at Loyola a lot - can't tell what they've done at ground level however. This would certainly fit in well with the Coronado/etc. motif of the area.
I like the building at Loyola a lot - can't tell what they've done at ground level however. This would certainly fit in well with the Coronado/etc. motif of the area.
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I've never trsuted SLU when it comes to urban development. They seem to be a hinderance rather than a plus. ... i went there several years ago - and they seemd to concentrate all their efforts towards shutting down businesses nearby (mostly bars) ...
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SLU issued an open RFP to developers in late 2004/early 2005 for the site, and they were looking for mixed use proposals, with street retail and residential or office above.
There were articles on this, but I can't find them. They received at least three responses including one from Pyramid. The tallest building proposed was 6-stories. I saw some of the proposals and they were pretty uninspiring, basically recreating what was there before only newer.
As part of the SLU planning program we developed our own response and felt that any development should be at least 11-stories (as tall or taller than the building on the northwest corner (Lindell Towers?), to take full advantage of the site's potential. It is the highest elevated and one of the most prominent available sites in the city, so a tall building here would have great views of the entire city and a tall building could be seen from a very wide area. The site is pretty small for such a high profile development, especially when you need to consider parking.
Soon after they received the responses they pulled the RFP and subsequently acquired control of the ugly state office building immediately to the east.
My feeling is that SLU was not impressed with the proposals in regards to their vision for the property. Having the additional property significantly increases the potential for the project. Also I think there is some feeling that Grand Center needs to get somethings going in order to create maximum interest for a big project here.
Would you rather just have something OK now or wait a few years for something really great. I may be wrong but I think SLU knows what it is doing by holding out on this site.
There were articles on this, but I can't find them. They received at least three responses including one from Pyramid. The tallest building proposed was 6-stories. I saw some of the proposals and they were pretty uninspiring, basically recreating what was there before only newer.
As part of the SLU planning program we developed our own response and felt that any development should be at least 11-stories (as tall or taller than the building on the northwest corner (Lindell Towers?), to take full advantage of the site's potential. It is the highest elevated and one of the most prominent available sites in the city, so a tall building here would have great views of the entire city and a tall building could be seen from a very wide area. The site is pretty small for such a high profile development, especially when you need to consider parking.
Soon after they received the responses they pulled the RFP and subsequently acquired control of the ugly state office building immediately to the east.
My feeling is that SLU was not impressed with the proposals in regards to their vision for the property. Having the additional property significantly increases the potential for the project. Also I think there is some feeling that Grand Center needs to get somethings going in order to create maximum interest for a big project here.
Would you rather just have something OK now or wait a few years for something really great. I may be wrong but I think SLU knows what it is doing by holding out on this site.
MattonArsenal wrote:My feeling is that SLU was not impressed with the proposals in regards to their vision for the property. . . .Would you rather just have something OK now or wait a few years for something really great. I may be wrong but I think SLU knows what it is doing by holding out on this site.
SLU might have future plans for this site. If so, why not issue another RFP? If they are really wanting a great plan then why don't they issue some national RFP with big hype and a marketing blitz. I am not so sure this will turn into anything but another green area.
....don't people realize that Cities are not supposed to be green unless they are very high density? Until St. Louis' density increase dramatically I don't see why green space is needed. Our best green space is Forest Park and it is not operating at "full capacity."
....don't people realize that Cities are not supposed to be green unless they are very high density? Until St. Louis' density increase dramatically I don't see why green space is needed. Our best green space is Forest Park and it is not operating at "full capacity."
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steve wrote:MattonArsenal wrote:My feeling is that SLU was not impressed with the proposals in regards to their vision for the property. . . .Would you rather just have something OK now or wait a few years for something really great. I may be wrong but I think SLU knows what it is doing by holding out on this site.
I could be wrong, Matt, but I believe you're right. Capt. Biondi isn't about to settle for anything less than something completely Right for that property... I think.
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Matt/Steve/Anyone else, would it make more sense for the university to develop the site as a dormitory and/or university office space? That way it would need little to no parking as the Olive and Laclede garages would accomodate any student residents or university employees.
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Don't have any real info on this but just my thoughts...
Leasing the ground to a private developer would just make this a easy income generator where as creating a large new building on its own would create a liability. New university offices wouldn't create any income to cover the expense of construction, and I bet dorms aren't generating profits.
That said if the university did want to do there own thing, this seems like the prime opportunity for a lot of groups to pull together and put a "starchitecture" building on that corner.
With the talk about Gehry and the Ballpark Village courtesey of the RFTs fake article, it really does make sense here.
Universities and cities are the most likely to do these types of buildings and at this corner you have a bunch of interests (maybe too many) aligned that could get this done: SLU, Grand Center, Pulitzer, City. And its a prime location for this kind of building: high visibility and traffic, entrance to the arts district, adjacent to the university.
Grand Center could definetly benifit from a little "Bilbao-effect".
Leasing the ground to a private developer would just make this a easy income generator where as creating a large new building on its own would create a liability. New university offices wouldn't create any income to cover the expense of construction, and I bet dorms aren't generating profits.
That said if the university did want to do there own thing, this seems like the prime opportunity for a lot of groups to pull together and put a "starchitecture" building on that corner.
With the talk about Gehry and the Ballpark Village courtesey of the RFTs fake article, it really does make sense here.
Universities and cities are the most likely to do these types of buildings and at this corner you have a bunch of interests (maybe too many) aligned that could get this done: SLU, Grand Center, Pulitzer, City. And its a prime location for this kind of building: high visibility and traffic, entrance to the arts district, adjacent to the university.
Grand Center could definetly benifit from a little "Bilbao-effect".