I'm a Bevo resident and I have to say, I'm a bit worried about the Southtown Shopping Center still being a bit vacant. Further, none of the "anchors" seems to attract much business. I feel if they would just get some of the tenants to move in, the perception of the shopping center would be more positive.



I guess we have to rely on Starbucks...



Hmm...anyone know any other tenants confirmed? I remember having heard Buffalo Wild Wings Bar and Grill and Del Taco dropped out (to build stores a bit farther west on Chippewa?).



--Matt

Forget about Del Taco in this area for a little while. They can't build at Landsdowne and Chippewa, because the Taco Bell lot can't be used for a taco place. Look for Lions Choice to begin construction soon.



I am not really too worried about Southtowne Centre. It is a little empty now, but this was almost built speculatively, sort of build it and they will come. PetSmart and OfficeMax are never packed, but they are always steady. EB Games seems to be getting busier as people discover it, and Crown Optical and the Clothing store have steady crowds. Walgreens is always packed, but then again, when isn't a Walgreens packed. Starbucks is opening soon, and I knew of some other places planning to open, but have since forgotten them. I would say give it another year, and it will really start to take off. One of the problems is the parking lot is fairly large, so it often looks more empty than it actually is. Look at Burlington Coat Factory down the street. Living 3 blocks away, I used to drive by it every day going to school, and now drive by to get to work. I have watched it progressively get more full and more shoppers using it. I think it is just taking time for people to realize that it is there. Walgreens is definately helping with usage.



I should be seeing the Commercial District manager for the city for this area sometime soon, and I will ask him if there is any news on new stores. There is a couple of other people I know that may know too.

Good to see some folks from the old neighborhood here! I've been trying to get my sister to manage the Office Max store at Southtown. Apparently, they have been hurting for employees there, too. While I don't really like the idea of a strip mall, I do like seeing something on that corner after so many years of vacancy. The improvements on the other side of Chippewa are definitely helping. On a side note, does anyone know where I can find a picture or anything that could prove that there was a Famous Barr on that corner? No one seems to believe me (besides my family) when I tell them stories about it, and I'm only 20 years old!! I guess I'm kind of wondering if anyone misses it as much as I do.



Always thinking Saint Louis,

K.S.

Well, it's not a picture, but if you need some form of proof, here is an old Riverfront Times article about the original proposal to put a K-mart on the lot to replace the Famous Barr. The old Famous is referenced many times. Here you are.



http://www.riverfronttimes.com/issues/2 ... news2.html

I know of pics on the internet. I will find them sometime this week.

I don't understand why the old Steak N Shake and Taco Bell lots have to be redeveloped for new fast food restaurants. The neighborhood can definitely support something better than that.



Or hell, at least build a new Steak N Shake!

Steak n Shake said the lot was not big enough, and Fast food was the ones that showed immediate interest and bought it. Fast food places want to locate in this area, because the market has not been fully saturated. We should be seeing a location of one of the local bbq chains in the future.

MattnSTL wrote:I know of pics on the internet. I will find them sometime this week.

Thanks for the help This is why I love St. Louis

Starbucks in the Southtown Shopping center is now open and was very busy this morning. The Cold Stone Creamery next door is still under construction.

Personally, I LOVE having a PetSmart so close. It sure beats driving to Brentwood or Crestwood! And it seems to have steady business at all the different days and times I have been there.



It will be nice to have all the storefronts occupied. I would say it seems to be going at about the same pace as Gravois Plaza did. It took a year or so before all the vacancies were filled and now the parking lot is always full.



I hadn't heard about the Lion's Choice - fabulous!