Why does the upper right rendering look like there's another tower or extension of the tower to Central that would make this is one of the largest square foot buildings since the Railway Exchange? Doesn't really match up with all the blue sky in the bottom rendering.
I'm sure I'm going to get shot, but I don't hate it. It's . . . meh . . . a bit ho-hum, but damn is it an improvement on the last one. Mind you, I'm not really taking the context of what's there right now into account properly, since I mostly try not to spend time in Clayton. I actually like the massing. It reminds me of some of the older apartment blocks in the Central West End, albeit without any ornamentation. It obeys the basic base/column/cap rules. Some of it will depend on the materials. If it's a brick shaft and a decent limestone or sandstone cap I'm all in. If it's stucco or that modern faux stone crap I withdraw my opinion. The podium, however, leaves a bit to be desired. What details are there feel very 90s. Kind of an Applebees with a tower on top. But we've gotten rid of the awful Drury pediment. That's a plus. Would help if they did something more interesting with the utility hat on top of the tower as well. "Let's just throw a cheap screen around the cooling towers. Paint it non-specular beige and nobody will notice. Camouflage!" (Against the beige wall of the room, anyway.) Meh, probably best to withhold judgement until more details emerge, but it looks like a step in the right direction at least.
All right, I'm reading the thing sideways. I guess the weird little podium fronts Central. They should really flip it, put the greatest height on Central with the main entrance in the center of a retail colonnade, and put the podium with the ballrooms and whatnot in the back. And for goodness sake, carve out a little space for the Shanley building. Just . . . sacrifice some podium.
At least there is space for retail this time. The materials and podium certainly may be a bit off putting, though. I agree with symphonicpoet, though. I don't hate it, and that's a big improvement. Probably a good shot at getting approved, and I wouldn't mind more permanent residents in Clayton as a benefit.
The cheesy printed-in-the-office model doesn't help their presentation. The renderings look much, much better. Problem is, Kummer's buildings always take the cheapest route, and I don't expect anything different this time.
Back to the drawing board! As many time as it takes for them to get it right. This building will stand for decades, so if gets delayed for proper design so be it.
Plenty of space for the garage to hidden from the street. Massing along central is lame. Wiping out Central's north business strip should not be allowed if the developer isn't bringing something more to the table
As long as they keep retail on Central I am probably good with it. Replace what is there with new or leave what is there, it has to have retail there. New or old doesn't really matter to me as much. I wish there was a way to get some on the other 2 streets though.
I'm not going to say it raises the bar, but . . . at least it doesn't lower it. After all, Clayton already has the entire east end of Carondelet Plaza lined with the humdrum to the hideous. I got it! Put it on the SE corner of Carondelet and Hanley. It'll fit right in. Be an improvement, even. (And while I'm lampooning half of Clayton's newest structures, I will admit I'm glad there's a market to build mediocrity on such an impressive scale.)
^^ That Austin apartment building is The Ashton. It is a good lesson in basic design principles. It's still ugly, but looks far better than the Kummer monstrosity up close. And that's not just because it's taller; the facade has a much higher proportion of fenestration and balcony area, and a far better street presence:
My brother told me that he heard from another broker that Kummer is fed up with Clayton shooting down his development plans and is thinking of putting the properties back up for sale. Seems kind of like a rumor but my brother said the broker was pretty reliable.
My brother told me that he heard from another broker that Kummer is fed up with Clayton shooting down his development plans and is thinking of putting the properties back up for sale. Seems kind of like a rumor but my brother said the broker was pretty reliable.
Clayton could care less if Kummer walks. They let the Schnucks site sit as a borded up grocery store for over a decade waiting for a proposal they thought worthy of that location.
The last conceptual review went better than the first, but they is still work to do. Kummer is going to have to realize that they aren't just going to let him build whatever ugly building he wants to build.
They did submit a bunch of stuff to the city on late last week though so I don't think he's ready to walk away just yet.
Unless someone has more information, it is seeming possible that Clayton is getting ready to kill this project.
The City Planner gave HBE a 30 day deadline on Feb. 7 for revised plans and more information, and from what it seems despite the urgency, nothing has been submitted online yet.
Unless someone has more information, it is seeming possible that Clayton is getting ready to kill this project.
The City Planner gave HBE a 30 day deadline on Feb. 7 for revised plans and more information, and from what it seems despite the urgency, nothing has been submitted online yet.
