Fire
I swear it wasn't me
Well, it finally happened. I just watched from my window in Met Square while the fire department put out a huge blaze on the ground floor at the corner of 6th and Olive. They got it under control pretty quickly, but the flames were quite large. I hope it didn't cause too much damage. I had been walking by not 30 minutes beforehand and noticed that someone had pulled off one of the boards on the 6th Street entrance just hours after it was installed by city crews this morning. It's hard to imagine that this wasn't arson.
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I hope the damage isn't too extensive, and I hope the city can get this building under control and protected as soon as possible.
We're going to end up having another big lot in downtown St. Louis if we're not careful.
We're going to end up having another big lot in downtown St. Louis if we're not careful.
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Bedrock Detroit needs to get in here and work their magic like they have in Detroit and Cleveland.
This was almost too predictable. St. Louis really needs to get it together. I can't think of too many cities in 2023 where empty buildings in the middle of downtown are catching fire.
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^ very true, they’re almost always occupied and much more dangerous
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This building's terra cotta is stunning, to say the least. I used to admire it as a teenager walking downtown to see the window displays. I had a history teacher at Fanning Middle, Mr. Thompson, who would talk quite a bit about our cities history, and it sparked a fascination with St. Louis' historical architecture.
It's such a bummer that we have this big, beautiful building here, and were seeing it rot away in front of our eyes.
It's such a bummer that we have this big, beautiful building here, and were seeing it rot away in front of our eyes.
It's especially crazy when it was an operating department store only ten years ago! I am sure almost everyone on this forum had been to shop there at some point.
I interned downtown in 2013, I regret not going in. Although from the photos I've been able to find, there wasn't much historic detail left. Basically just looked like another sad dept store. Macy's / Wanamaker's here in Philly isn't doing great but almost all of the old plaster columns and ceilings are still visible and in tact. And then there's the grand court.Ebsy wrote: ↑Oct 09, 2023It's especially crazy when it was an operating department store only ten years ago! I am sure almost everyone on this forum had been to shop there at some point.
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I remember going to Famous-Barr downtown for Breakfast with Santa in the late 50s and early 60s. Famous-Barr downtown may have been big, and it was definitely busy, but it was never the beautiful emporium that Marshall Field in Chicago, or John Wanamaker in Philadelphia was/is.
Stix Baer & Fuller remodeled the main floor of their downtown store sometime in the 1960s, and it was a lot nicer than Famous. It's a shame Dillard's turned the former Stix store inward when they bought the store and remodeled it in the 1980s by eliminating the display windows along Washington and Sixth/Seventh Streets.
May Company spent a lot of money on the Southtown store's interior. I'm don't remember the Clayton store or the Northland store enough, but Southtown was definitely upscale, with lots of marble, stainless steel accents, and terrazzo floors.
And I definitely think the Famous "Rotundas" of the South County and St. Clair stores should be protected with landmark status before they have a date with the wrecking ball, like the West County store.
Has anyone seen the interior of the former Famous Barr store in Northwest Plaza and its rotunda?
Stix Baer & Fuller remodeled the main floor of their downtown store sometime in the 1960s, and it was a lot nicer than Famous. It's a shame Dillard's turned the former Stix store inward when they bought the store and remodeled it in the 1980s by eliminating the display windows along Washington and Sixth/Seventh Streets.
May Company spent a lot of money on the Southtown store's interior. I'm don't remember the Clayton store or the Northland store enough, but Southtown was definitely upscale, with lots of marble, stainless steel accents, and terrazzo floors.
And I definitely think the Famous "Rotundas" of the South County and St. Clair stores should be protected with landmark status before they have a date with the wrecking ball, like the West County store.
Has anyone seen the interior of the former Famous Barr store in Northwest Plaza and its rotunda?
It would be nice, but Bedrock is a different animal. Bedrock is the development arm of Rocket Mortgage and Dan Gilbert started with the almost the sole purpose of redeveloping Downtown Detroit. They had VERY deep pockets and in many cases was more mission driven than profit motivated. As a result they were able to take on projects and do things that even a big developer could not do. For most projects, they didn't have to go out and raise capital and provide market rate returns. The big vision for Cleveland is tied to Gilbert's ownership of the Cavaliers and Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse.Chris Stritzel wrote: ↑Oct 06, 2023Bedrock Detroit needs to get in here and work their magic like they have in Detroit and Cleveland.
https://fox2now.com/news/missouri/city- ... -building/
"All the boards that wrap around all four sides of the building, covering up street-level windows, will be replaced with metal plates."
"Fabrication and welding contractors were circling the building on Monday, taking measurements and mapping out a plan to cover the street level and the windows right above it."
"The City of St. Louis authorized nearly $38,500 for the March demolition of a pedestrian bridge squatters were using to breach the building. The city has now authorized a $245,000 emergency expenditure for the metal plates with hopes of recouping the money from the building owner."
"All the boards that wrap around all four sides of the building, covering up street-level windows, will be replaced with metal plates."
"Fabrication and welding contractors were circling the building on Monday, taking measurements and mapping out a plan to cover the street level and the windows right above it."
"The City of St. Louis authorized nearly $38,500 for the March demolition of a pedestrian bridge squatters were using to breach the building. The city has now authorized a $245,000 emergency expenditure for the metal plates with hopes of recouping the money from the building owner."
Has anyone heard if they are going to clear the building and remove all the flammable objects littered throughout?Tim wrote: ↑Oct 11, 2023https://fox2now.com/news/missouri/city- ... -building/
"All the boards that wrap around all four sides of the building, covering up street-level windows, will be replaced with metal plates."
"Fabrication and welding contractors were circling the building on Monday, taking measurements and mapping out a plan to cover the street level and the windows right above it."
"The City of St. Louis authorized nearly $38,500 for the March demolition of a pedestrian bridge squatters were using to breach the building. The city has now authorized a $245,000 emergency expenditure for the metal plates with hopes of recouping the money from the building owner."
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Developers interested in Railway Exchange redo, downtown St. Louis official says
https://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/news/2023/11/14/railway-exchange-developer-greater-stl-greenbaum.htmlDevelopers are working on a plan to potentially redevelop the Railway Exchange, one of downtown’s largest vacant buildings, an official said.
For more than a year, business group Greater St. Louis Inc. has been collaborating with a team of private developers eyeing the Railway Exchange, said Kurt Weigle, senior vice president and chief downtown officer for the organization.
Weigle declined to identify the developers or their plans, but said it was a "team of accomplished developers who have the ability to take on substantial projects." The building is owned by a business entity controlled by Hudson Holdings, the Florida-based development group of Avi Greenbaum and Steven Michael. Reached by phone Tuesday, Greenbaum said he was aware of the undisclosed developers' interest in the building but said he couldn’t give any details.
The 1.2 million-square-foot building at 615 Olive St., which takes up an entire city block, is one of Greater St. Louis' biggest priorities for redevelopment, Weigle said. Higher interest rates make any real estate project more challenging, he added.
Vacant since 2014, the historic building once served as the headquarters and flagship store of department store Famous-Barr, and current owner Hudson Holdings stopped pursuing a redevelopment plan years ago. Hudson purchased the building in 2017 and planned a $300 million redevelopment, but the project fell through.
Amos Harris, a developer who has worked on a number of projects proposed at Railway over the years and has at times represented Hudson Holdings, previously identified St. Louis-based developer Good Developments Group as a party interested in potentially taking on the building. It was unclear if GDG is one of the developers in talks with Greater St. Louis. Separately, GDG has a $1.2 billion construction innovation district planned at the downtown St. Louis riverfront, south of the Gateway Arch.
https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/bus ... -top-story
"The Eastern Missouri appeals court on Tuesday ruled that an affiliate of Florida-based Hudson Holdings owes five contractors $4.4 million in unpaid bills. The court also ruled that the contractors' liens have priority over the building's lender, Gamma Real Estate Capital, regarding the repayment of the $20 million loan Gamma made to Hudson's affiliate."
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"The Eastern Missouri appeals court on Tuesday ruled that an affiliate of Florida-based Hudson Holdings owes five contractors $4.4 million in unpaid bills. The court also ruled that the contractors' liens have priority over the building's lender, Gamma Real Estate Capital, regarding the repayment of the $20 million loan Gamma made to Hudson's affiliate."
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After the $100,000 barriers, it seems like they're always fighting a losing battle to keep the door on Locust closed.
How do you secure a building that probably has people inside without removing the people, which the fire department, understandably, doesn't want to do?
I guess it's just $100,000 to limit the number of people in there?
How do you secure a building that probably has people inside without removing the people, which the fire department, understandably, doesn't want to do?
I guess it's just $100,000 to limit the number of people in there?
So did you call the number on the door to report it? Or is this just being posted here? Does the city know this?eee123 wrote: ↑Jan 18, 2024After the $100,000 barriers, it seems like they're always fighting a losing battle to keep the door on Locust closed.
How do you secure a building that probably has people inside without removing the people, which the fire department, understandably, doesn't want to do?
I guess it's just $100,000 to limit the number of people in there?
Yeah, I reported it to CSB.
I posted because A. It's not the first time. And B. IDK how you secure a building with people in it without locking them in.
The door is open half the time. They put boards on it. People bust it open anyway.
Seems like a losing battle, and maybe one that requires 24/7 security guards to do any good.
I posted because A. It's not the first time. And B. IDK how you secure a building with people in it without locking them in.
The door is open half the time. They put boards on it. People bust it open anyway.
Seems like a losing battle, and maybe one that requires 24/7 security guards to do any good.
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they could set up cameras and id the people breaking in. then arrest them for destruction of property. I would wager that it is the same handful of people every time.
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you can get outdoor wifi security cameras with night vision/motion detection that send alerts/video directly to your smart phone for like $100. it shouldn't be this difficult.
The fire was in one of the vacant retail spaces on the Olive side of the parking garage. Homeless warming or cooking fire that got out of control. The cause of so many vacant building fires.
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My heart dropped when I saw the STLFD logo. Glad it's not the RX, but it's probably only a matter of time