Does anyone have any info on the Convention Plaza Lofts? These are the lofts that the McGowan Bros. are building in the former 7UP headquarters just off Tucker.



The Downtown Partnership's development guide states that the building was built in 1951, but I thought the building was much older than that - an old building with a "modern" exterior re-cladding.

What's the building address?

1300 Convention Plaza, it's next to the Elder Shirt Lofts.

The Development Activity section on the City of St. Louis website shows the Convention Plaza Apartments as under construction.



http://stlcin.missouri.org/devprojects/ ... jectID=326

Interior demolition has been going forward for several months now. These are to be apartments, with the first floor tenant remaining in place.

Thanks for the update!

I've been in this one as well. Not my favorite building. They got historic tax credits by being an example of United States Cold War era design.



My research said the building was constructed in 1951 for the east and central wings. The west wing is an obvious add-on (and seems to be built without the use of a ruler or square), but I don't know the date.



The City of St. Louis owned the property for many years and used the building for agencies such as the St. Louis Housing Authority and the Land Reutilization Authority. Before that it was the headquaters for 7-UP.



I was in the building on May 19 of this year, and construction was well under way at the time.



There were plans for a pool and parking in the courtyard. Considering the courtyard faces south, yet is blocked from the sun by Elder Shirts, the pool is rather usless.



My photos are here:

http://public.fotki.com/awoehler/misc/a ... onvention/

Welcome and thanks awoehler. It looks like you have enough Saint Louis related photos in your fotki pages to last a whole lot of posts. Thanks

I've appraised nearly every project downtown, so I get to see all the buildings inside and out, talk to the developers, and see all the plans. It's quite a unique perspective.

It looks like these are coming along fairly quickly now...

Framing is taking place inside and there is new glass going into the window frames.











related links:

http://www.terracelofts.com/

http://www.stlouislofts.com/1300convention.html

It's amazing how much better the building looks just having new windows.

It looks like these are available now...

$450? Wow, that is affordable.

trent wrote:$450? Wow, that is affordable.

I would certainly imagine that is income dependant. Or some sort of "introductory" price where it is $450 for 3 months and $800 after that.

If you look at the website, you can see the floor plan for the $450 apt. It is a deal for someone that doesn't mind a small apartment. Most of the others are more expensive & larger. Sounds like a good place to live with swimming pool, parking, hardwood floors, etc. They mention that the building was built in the "mid 1900s." It is funny to see that in print. Could they have said it was built in the "2nd Elizabethan era"?

As I'm trying to save money now, I live in a small apartment. And I pay under $500 too, but I'm also willing to live in a smaller place because of the location, and because I don't want a roommate.



For the right kind of people, these places could be real attractive. It's a good location, very close to Wash Ave, and extremely affordable, even for those making very little money. If I wanted to live downtown, I would consider them, because it still gives me the ability to live in a prime location, at a low cost.

This just came across my desk and I thought I would pass it along to anyone interested...



From Seven-Up Building to "Loft Aesthetic"

Exhibition/Open House and Fundraiser, May 19, 20, and 21



The artists from Gallery Visio will once again gather to turn a non-traditional space into a three day gallery experience and charity event. On May 19, 20 and 21, the twenty plus member group will convert one wing of the 48 brand new lofts spaces at Terrace Lofts, 1300 Convention Plaza in downtown St. Louis, into easy living spaces that capture the feel and throb of downtown living.



The artists, alums of Gallery Visio at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, are some of the most promising emerging artists in the St. Louis region. They have forged a name for themselves in the local art scene in recent months. The list includes printmaker Jessi Kelly, one of the creators of the Rock and Roll Craft Show I and II, gender artist Aron Fischer, illustrator Sunny Santos, metal artist Gabriel Stevens, printmaker Kim Dorste, and critically acclaimed printmaker Brooke-Center Wise and painter Nichole Northway. All works are for sale and include prints, paintings, soft sculpture, and metal pieces, tailored to loft living. A portion of sales proceeds will be donated to the Downtown Children?s Center, a day care facility for children of families working and living in the downtown area.



WHERE:

Terrace Lofts Spaces

1300 CONVENTION PLAZA

ST. LOUIS, MO 63110



WHEN:

Cocktail Reception Event

Friday, May 19 from 6:00-10:00pm

Live Music by VisionsJazz quartet



Open House Dates

Saturday, May 20 from 11:00am-5:00pm

Sunday, May 21 from 11:00am-5:00pm



COST:

Cocktail Reception and Open House are Free and Opened to the Public. All Artwork on Display is for Sale, Cash and Check Only. 15% of Sales Proceeds go to the Downtown Children?s Center, a Day Care Facility for Families Living and Working in the Downtown Area.



CONTACT:

Gallery Visio at (314) 516-7922

galleryvisio@hotmail.com



Dwain Eoff, Sales Associate

Coldwell Banker, Gundaker

(636) 343-1500

peoff@sbcglobal.net



SPONSORS:

Artists from Gallery Visio on the campus of UM-St. Louis

Dwain Eoff, Coldwell Banker, Gundaker, and Terrace Lofts

The Terrace Lofts were very cool - many of the units face a very nice interior courtyard with a pool. The prices are unbelievably low ($750 for a 2br?) and it will be perfect for people just getting out of college.

Today we were supposed to pick up keys for our Terrace Lofts apartment so we could begin the lease we contracted to begin July 1st.  Unfortunately, they failed to warn us earlier this week as they had the other "residents" that due to failing the electric inspection, they were not ready for anyone to move in.  Looking around, that wasn't the only aspect lacking, but it was easily the one they could quickly point to.  We were then told they hoped to be ready July 15th, but I'm not holding my breath.



The concession provides paid occupancy for room and tax charges at the Residence Inn by Marriott at Jefferson and 40, starting July 1.  It's a shame they didn't get something closer to the business district or at least a Metrolink stop so we could walk to work, but we'll certainly take advantage of their pool, complimentary breakfast, and definitely the housekeeping.  In the meantime, we can continue to prepare our house to sell in the evenings and weekends.  This timing actually works out well, as we're not exactly ready to move out anyway, and this way we don't overlap the additional rent longer than we have to.



While construction completes, residents are able to up their keys (though they couldn't find ours) so they can access their unit and move things in, though ours was not ready for that (aside from the missing key).  We're also not comfortable filling the apartment with our toys while construction goes on and people still have pretty open access to the building.  Maybe after they have power for security.



We've been watching the progress for a few months, so none of this came as a surprise; it's rather amusing for us.  I hope others in the same situation are not too put out.  A "happy" hour is being hosted Saturday evening (July 1st) for the residents, so we may find out then.



...The McGowan Brothers should probably take down the 2-story banner declaring a May 1 move-in.

Janitor, do you know if there are any units in this building that actually rent for $450, or should that banner come down too?

Framer wrote:Janitor, do you know if there are any units in this building that actually rent for $450, or should that banner come down too?

I can neither confirm nor deny the $450 due to lack of info, but I was told the cheapest studios were picked up <i>fast</i>, and we're paying less than a $1/sqft (well, I'm not paying <i>anything</i> yet while I post from the Residence Inn's Internet), so I'm happy enough.



I don't think any false advertising was intended - I just believe they were far too optimistic with the timeline.

Framer wrote:Janitor, do you know if there are any units in this building that actually rent for $450, or should that banner come down too?

There was only one apartment at that price but it was rather misleading to call it a 1-bedroom. It is one big 20*20ft room with the kitchen along one wall so really a studio is a better description.

McGowan Bros. stumbles again ehh....

We stopped by this morning to drop off a few boxes to our apartment since we finally got our key. From what I saw (I'm reluctant to talk to anybody at this point and be fed another optimistic line), little improvement appears in the common spaces; I believe most of the workers' time is spent finishing the units Terrace expects people to occupy. Based on the stickered layouts in the sales office, maybe half of the units will be occupied once they're complete. Unless people are bailing for alternative residence. I'm assuming they'll be done before our Ely Walker space is ready next year...



Our unit is mostly done. The bathroom still lacks a mirror, a few stray cables protrude from junction boxes, but it looks like everything else is pretty much in place. The half-wall we asked to be created to define a bedroom ended up a boring full wall; not nearly as interesting as some of the others we saw in the models, but I care little about that - this isn't a long-term home. I had voiced concern at one point since a handle/lock for one of the windows was missing (a bit of a security issue); apparently this was resolved by sealing the the window closed with glue and secured with a screw. Not what I hope to see, but at least there are many more that correctly open and lock.



One of the guys was working with what looked like the security panel for the NE side, so that's encouraging.



I know the freight elevator is supposed to be available (though unlit; bring a flashlight), but it doesn't look like the "people" elevator on the NE side has been touched at all, I'll take the stairs up a floor for now, and I expect we'll have to do the same when it comes time to move furniture since the freight one is on the opposite side of the building from our unit.



The secured parking in the basement is not ready, and I don't expect that for many weeks still, if not months. A shame since I hoped to park there.



There's a few rather large holes dug, some orange construction barricades, caution tape, and paint sprayed across 13th between Terrace and the Shell for what we believe is the electric work that previously failed inspection -- no idea on the status of that, other than the very "Under Construction for a long time" look it offers.



But if you talk to Dwain, I'm sure he or his partner will tell you the pool is nice, which we were reminded of each time we spoke to Dwain in the past...