Link



Developers propose to fill gaps in Clayton

By Tavia Evans

Of the Post-Dispatch

04/05/2005



Clayton officials and developers are looking east of Hanley Road to fill in the city's missing "teeth"- vacant and underdeveloped land - with more retail and mixed-use projects.



They're focusing on empty land on Carondelet Plaza and along Forsyth Boulevard, just north of the Ritz-Carlton St. Louis hotel. Some of that land is being used by Metro to build the Cross County MetroLink extension.



Developers Mark Mehlman and Joshua Corson plan to fill in the gaping hole at the northeast corner of Hanley Road and Carondelet Plaza with a nine-story condo and retail complex.



The $69 million project, to be known as the Crescent, would include 72 condo units and about 28,000 square feet of retail space.



Architects Andy Trivers and Tyler Stephens designed the project. National City Bank is the lender. Capital Land Co. owns the property.



Clayton Mayor Ben Uchitelle said he's also in talks with developers on two mixed-use apartment and retail projects for the south side of Forsyth. He said the city is looking to develop a mid-size parcel of land on Carondelet Plaza between Mehlman's proposed complex and the Ritz-Carlton.



"We see it as an area with great potential and development that's been ripe for a while," Uchitelle said. "Mehlman's project will add some housing adjoining our central business district and trigger other projects in the area."



Uchitelle's offices at Husch & Eppenberger LLC in the Plaza on Clayton building overlook both sites. The land where Mehlman proposes to build has been vacant for nearly 20 years; earlier proposals to build there have fizzled.



THF Realty proposed office towers on the property, but "never made it out of the planning stages," Uchitelle said.



MLP Investments LLC of Frontenac proposed a 30-story luxury condo building in 2000, but that plan also fell apart.



Mehlman's proposal has been given the green light by Clayton's architectural board. In addition to retail, his development includes about 260,000 square feet of residential space.



The condominiums would range from 2,000 to 4,000 square feet, with two- to four-bedroom units. Seven glass-walled penthouses, averaging 4,000 square feet, would offer views of the skylines of Clayton and downtown St. Louis.



A two-story parking garage with 156 spaces for residents is proposed behind the building, adjacent to an alley that connects to Hanley Road. A terrace with green space would go atop the garage.



Condos at the Crescent could list for $700,000 to $1.5 million, Mehlman said. The project answers demand in Clayton for more housing and could draw the business district east, he said.



"The city has wanted a residential mix of property there, and we have the answer to it," he said. "It carries on the concept of living in the city, and it can be a catalyst for the city's overall plan to enhance the area east of Hanley, bringing the west business district of Clayton east to the other side of Hanley."

that by far will is a fantastic project. something like that will really shore up the east end. with metro link coming in, that area will be RED hot!

From the Crescent in Clayton website:

By Martin Van Der Werf

Of the Post-Dispatch

08/18/2005



RITZY: Now that the Crescent, a 72-unit condominium complex just west of the Ritz-Carlton St. Louis hotel in Clayton, appears likely to be approved, comes word that another developer has proposed a complex of 150 condominiums, 162 apartments and 10,000 square feet of retail space just northeast of the hotel.



Clayton released a cryptic traffic study that contemplates the impact of such a project without identifying the developer.

With the Forsyth MetroLink station being built, denser development on or near this long vacant lot east of the Ritz really is a no-brainer.

TOD baby!



Transit Oriented Development

Ah yes everyone's favorite buzzword. I wonder though, is it a TOD because it is close to the Metrolink stop or would this development have occured regardless of Metrolink, making it a coincidence and not aTOD (i think it is the latter).

Either way, in the long run, people that live in those buildings will enjoy access to Metrolink. Now that mid-county is linked, I predict you will see more and more realtors, landlords, etc. bragging that properties are Metrolinked. Was it TOD before or after? Well, Clayton has always been a transit oriented development. My parents and grandparents can tell you what streetcar lines served Clayton, I am not old enough to remember.

The most important aspect in a TOD is creating a balance of place and node. Beyond that different people define it slightly differently but some accepted components include:

-within 1/2 mile of station

-linked by walkable/ bikeable street network

-mixed use (preferably more than 2)

-appropriate parking

-appropriate density

Chicken or Egg?



Cross-County is going through Clayton to reach its dense employment, despite the Ritz's and other NIMBY objections. Indeed, past station proposals were for Carondelet Plaza or Hanley, but fortunately, Forsyth, technically just inside U-City won out.



The land at Forsyth has been long vacant, with past failed proposals mostly being commercial. Unlike the gated mentality of The Plaza tower nearby, I do think the developers of this project of more affordable but still very high-end residential finds MetroLink to be an attractive amenity.



Admittedly, areas already having high land prices and rents with urban density and seeing infill development of similar character is questionable TOD, or development resulting from fixed-transit investments. Still, you have to wonder if the development would be happening as quickly without MetroLink.

You can forget about affordable with this project. Prices START at $800,000.



There was a info booth at the St. Louis Art Fair in Clayton. They had a video of a computer generated tour. Very impressive residences that will be built.

St. Louis Homes magazine has a nice ad for the Crescent.



From the interior rendering they show in the ad, the inverted terrace (for lack of a better word), looks realy cool from the inside. A crescent shaped wall of glass inside. An interesting change from the typical straight wall usually facing balconies.

Good stuff.

Prices starting at $800,000??



At first I worried this project would suck young buyers away from downtown, but i guess we owe the developer some thanks for helping to keep Clayton strictly the preserve of WHLOLs.*



*well-heeled little old ladies.

WHLOLs!!! Good one, LouLou! But don't forget the nasty spoiled elitist brats they've raised...where are they to live?

Seriously, this is a very attractive building, and fits in very well with, what I call the OLD Clayton, a truely upper middle class business district. Instead of becoming THE CBD of the area, I wish Clayton would take it's rightfull (former) place as THE UPPER MIDDLE class business district of the area, and relinquish trying to become the MAIN CBD of St. Louis. IMO, that would be soooo much better for all of metro St. Louis.

The last few posts have been interesting to me. They deal with three things I like very much.



1. I love buildings that form around circles! The Crescent gets extra points for that.



2. I love rich people and their children. Because of them we get to see beautiful buildings & stores built.



3. I love development near Metro Stations. Ucityman, thanks for bringing that up.



When you get all three elements in one spot, you really have something!

In NYC or other high-priced places, you could expect $800k+ places attracting rail transit riders. But sadly in the STL, I'm skeptical as to how many future Cresent residents will actually be regular MetroLink patrons.



Walkablity and density are certainly elements of transit-supportive development that The Cresent upholds. But a mix of incomes is needed as well. Several studies have shown that income, auto ownership and urban preferences have stronger correllation to transit ridership than TOD.

I can imagine it will be a busy station because lots of people work in the area. In other words, it will import rather than export. But, as the system expands and as more development pops up around stations, even the wealthy in St. Louis may find it desirable to ride Metro on occasion. Our system and TODs need more time to catch up with the likes of NY. But, even in Clayton, not everyone lives in a $800,000 plus condo. We will see, but I think Claytonians will embrace their connection once it is completed and it takes them where they want to go.



And even if they don't use it, the Clayton station and surrounding developments will give the rest of us a place to go.