Florissant

smsplanstu · PostJan 19, 2005#12005-01-19T05:21+00:00

Florissant is making a move just like Kirkwood, but in a relaxed and small French town characterized by tranquillity feel to it. The following link leads to the development

http://www.florissantmo.com/dept/econDe ... house2.jpg

go to site and select different parts on the map for drawings of condos/apt./houses/shops

Can also be accessed by http://www.florissantmo.com/ then selecting Shrine Project on the right hand side

Florissant is easy to travel around in a car with its two lane residential roads that never suffer traffic and it's semi-grid that makes walking a fun task. The parks are very wide open, and there is a nature preserve maintained by Furg-Flo school district. The majority of the population is like my grandparents, in their 70s and 80s, and white. The diversity has been increasing to make Florissant a modern suburb reflecting the U.S.'s average make up.

matt drops the h · PostJan 19, 2005#22005-01-19T05:26+00:00

I got an email from a friend a couple weeks ago called "St. Louis drivers" and in it, it noted that anyone from South County had never been to North County, and vice versa. Well...the same holds true with us South Siders. I've never been to Florissant. How weird is that? It's not like it's that far away or anything.

Anyhow, the drawing makes it look like a vertical farmhouse. No...not like a barn...like a farmhouse turned sideways or something. I don't know though...it could look better in its real design.

mcarril · PostJan 19, 2005#32005-01-19T05:39+00:00

I think it's a pretty good looking development. Florissant can use something like this. If you never been to Florissant, here's my 2 sentance description: "Lindbergh in Florissant is a lot like Lindbergh in SoCo. And there are a whole lot of 3 bedroom/2 bath ranch houses built in the 60's/70's that look alike." There's more to it than that, i'll admit, there's a nice "old town" area but it's pretty underused I believe. I have a friend who lives there. He sums it up as "pretty quiet, pretty suburban, mostly boring." I've gotten that email too, it's pretty funny.

matt drops the h · PostJan 19, 2005#42005-01-19T05:47+00:00

mcarril wrote:I think it's a pretty good looking development. Florissant can use something like this. If you never been to Florissant, here's my 2 sentance description: "Lindbergh in Florissant is a lot like Lindbergh in SoCo. And there are a whole lot of 3 bedroom/2 bath ranch houses built in the 60's/70's that look alike." There's more to it than that, i'll admit, there's a nice "old town" area but it's pretty underused I believe. I have a friend who lives there. He sums it up as "pretty quiet, pretty suburban, mostly boring." I've gotten that email too, it's pretty funny.

Interestingly, my parents always told me Florissant was a "bad area." Since I live in South City, which many people consider to be "bad," I was always wary of going. Plus, on top of that, North County has the stereotype among Countians of being a DMZ.

If there is architecture worth seeing, I'd like to see it some time though.

mcarril · PostJan 19, 2005#52005-01-19T06:03+00:00

I wouldn't call Florissant a bad are at all. As far as interesting architecture? I'm not so sure, The old town area is pretty neat, but that's about it. It dates back pretty far, most of the homes are brick, and the streets follow a strict grid pattern. It's almost like a poor mans soulard. It's not nearly as vibrant though. It's pretty underutilized, Insurance offices, a few restaurants, a couple of bars, but nothing like the atmosphere of soulard, the architecture has similarities though.

wkndacity · PostJan 19, 2005#62005-01-19T16:13+00:00

Florissant is a very nice area, I used to live in N. County Spanish Lake to be exact and Florissant has always been a nice place and now is growing rapidly. Many new subdivisions a great retail strip called Cross Keys. Lindbergh Blvd really needs to enlarged due to the growing population.

matt drops the h · PostJan 19, 2005#72005-01-19T18:23+00:00

I wasn't trying to say Florissant actually is "bad." I'm just trying to show you some stereotypes that people (especially in the South Metro Area) have of the North.

thewayofthearch · PostJan 20, 2005#82005-01-20T00:13+00:00

Holy Crap! You've never been to Florissant?

I have made it a point to go everywhere, and be able to find almost anything in STL county and city. St. Chuck...I'll get it all when I have a reason to go past Main St. I did have quite an adrenaline rush after coming down 367 and ended up at Florissant and Grand Aves at dusk...

I got that E-mail a while ago. Its really funny, and most of those things they say ring pretty true!

20. The morning rush hour is from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. The evening rush

hour is from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. Friday's rush hour starts Thursday

morning. Never ever try to cross a bridge in the wrong direction in

St. Louis during rush hour unless you have a sack lunch and a bed pan

in the car.

21. YIELD signs are for decoration only. No native St. Louisan will

ever grasp the concept.

22. If someone actually has his turn signal on, it is probably a

factory defect or the signal has been on for the last 17 miles. St.

Louisans believe that they have a lifetime exemption from signaling

turns.

23. Road construction on highways 40, 64, 70, 255, 270, 44, 55, and

170 is a way of life, and a permanent form of entertainment.

24. All old ladies with blue hair in Cadillacs (driving on Olive west

of 270) have the right of way.

25. Snow or rain? Stay home.

26. St. Louisans have never really seen a real traffic jam, since they

do not acknowledge the statehood of New York or New Jersey!

Just some good ones...

matt drops the h · PostJan 20, 2005#92005-01-20T00:25+00:00

Well, I know my way around North City now, and a bit of North County around 367...maybe I'll just drive up there one day and see how roads connect and see if Florissant has anything exciting.

kirkman · PostAug 29, 2005#102005-08-29T02:28+00:00

Matt Drops The H wrote:
Interestingly, my parents always told me Florissant was a "bad area." Since I live in South City, which many people consider to be "bad," I was always wary of going. Plus, on top of that, North County has the stereotype among Countians of being a DMZ.

If there is architecture worth seeing, I'd like to see it some time though.

Those stereotypes are ridiculous. Florissant is a great city to live in. I've lived in north county for a long time and I love it. Two years ago I moved from Hazelwood to downtown Ferguson, and it was a great move. Ferguson's downtown area has everything I need in walking distance and there's a lot of progress happening. Small individual developments, as opposed to huge eminent domain buyout-and-replace deals.

Come on up to N. County some time!

matt drops the h · PostAug 29, 2005#112005-08-29T03:51+00:00

Kirkman wrote:

Those stereotypes are ridiculous. Florissant is a great city to live in. I've lived in north county for a long time and I love it. Two years ago I moved from Hazelwood to downtown Ferguson, and it was a great move. Ferguson's downtown area has everything I need in walking distance and there's a lot of progress happening. Small individual developments, as opposed to huge eminent domain buyout-and-replace deals.

Come on up to N. County some time!

Funny you should post this today. I was just planning to go up to North County with a friend and drive around the whole area just to see it. It's the only part of the MO side of our area that I am unfamiliar with.

I'd like to see downtown Ferguson.

I hope you don't think I was spreading those stereotypes. Immediately, when someone says "don't go there, it's terrible," it makes me mad and makes me want to go to that particular place even more. I hate when people write off an area so quickly, usually for unfounded reasons.

I have been up to Florissant since that last post. It seems nice. I would like to have spent more time there just driving/walking around, but I was up there for my job and had to get back ASAP.

kirkman · PostAug 29, 2005#122005-08-29T14:56+00:00

If you come to downtown Ferguson and you've got some time, stop by city hall and grab a little walking tour map. There are 2 different tours, one for Old Ferguson West and one for Old Ferguson East.

Make sure you visit the Whistle Stop (former Ferguson train depot, now a restaurant/museum). Other interesting places to check out: The houses on S. Elizabeth (north of the train tracks) and Adam's St. (east of the train tracks), the Church Street commercial district, The Flower Depot, Spencer's Bakery, O.T. Hodge Chile Parlor, Soma's Coffeehouse, Corner Coffeehouse, Mimi's Subway Grill.

jeff · PostAug 30, 2005#132005-08-30T00:16+00:00

Those stereotypes drive me nuts. I'm from florissant, and it's your typical sprawling suburb full of little more than ranch houses, walgreens, schnucks and a struggling old town. Who gets off saying it's "dangerous?" Have these people ever even been there before? If florissant is a bad neighborhood, these people are out of their minds. 5 years ago, when I was growing up there, crime rates were literally some of the lowest in the country for medium sized cities.

By the way, speaking of Ferguson, Check out Faraci's pizza-one of the best mom and pop St. Louis style pizza joints you'll ever find.

steveinphila · PostAug 30, 2005#142005-08-30T16:08+00:00

About a year ago, I was visiting STL and had some time to kill. I drove through Florissant and Hazelwood and was delightfully surprised. Being a South Side/South County kid, I never really spent a lot of time up there. But I was impressed with the neighorhoods. Yes, the homes are vintage 60's/70's ranch homes, but they were built with a lot more style than South County developments of the same vintage. The Alfred H. Mayer Company, Givens and Rowles and Fischer and Fritchel were all major North County Builders at the time and their developments have held up well. Paddock Hills/Meadows/Estates, Wedgwood/Wedgwood Green, and Flamingo Park were all large developments that have withstood the test of time.

Expat · PostAug 30, 2005#152005-08-30T16:35+00:00

steveinphila, I agree. I am not a northsider either. But I am impressed by many of the North County developments. Many of the subdivisions you mention have some great mid-century style. I think they are a step ahead of typical homes of their size, age, and price range. Some of them have a fun modern edge. I am glad you brought this up. I was thinking the same thing and you expressed it better than I would. Some of them remind me of modern California ranches with a colonial twist. Sort of East meets West. Low slung, hip, and solid. I like it.

Deepredarchi · PostFeb 22, 2023#162023-02-22T13:43+00:00

I saw on my jog last evening that the Reeb House at 446 N. St. Charles St. was boarded up and charred. It had a fire early Monday morning and is was extensively damaged, mostly concentrated in the back. It was built around 1870 in the Second Empire with a lovely mansard roof and portico.

The Reeb House is one of many old buildings I like to run past and admire in Old Town and it saddened me to see it burnt up. I hope to see it get fixed up.

Photos courtesy of the Florissant Valley Fire Protection District from their Facebook page.

symphonicpoet · PostFeb 22, 2023#172023-02-22T13:45+00:00

^That's painful to see. Sorry to hear that.

framer · PostFeb 22, 2023#182023-02-22T17:35+00:00

Good job by the Fire Dept. An old wood building like that could be gone in minutes.

Florissant

Florissant

Florissant

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