Lucas Lofts - 1123 Washington Avenue

suburban lou · PostJan 20, 2005#12005-01-20T13:14+00:00

A NEW PLAYER: Downtown is getting a new loft developer.

Patrick Stanley, best known for renovating a former moving-company headquarters in Benton Park into condos, has the seven-story building at 1113-1127 Washington Avenue under contract.

It was one of the last unclaimed major buildings deemed suitable for lofts left along Washington downtown.

Built in 1896, it once housed the Levis-Zukowski Mercantile Co., which claimed at the turn of the 20th century to be the nation's largest manufacturer and importer of women's hats.

Stanley plans a $22 million renovation, with nearly 100 condominiums, as well as shops and a gym at street level and a rooftop fountain, splash pool and sundeck. The one-bedroom units probably will start at $114,900, he said. Lofts on the top floor will start at 2,500 square feet. One might be 4,500 square feet. Prices up-top have not been determined.

Martin Van Der Werf keeps you on top of the changing St. Louis-area business scene. You can reach him at 314-340-8157 or mvanderwerf@post-dispatch.com.

MattnSTL · PostJan 20, 2005#22005-01-20T13:20+00:00

that's good news. Hopefully the Day's Inn will get going too. Now all we need is for Jumps building across Tucker to be renovated.

debaliviere · PostJan 20, 2005#32005-01-20T13:44+00:00

YES!!! One less building owned by D. Jump!!

bencharif · PostJan 20, 2005#42005-01-20T14:15+00:00

Please explain to a novice why one less building owned by D. Jump is a good thing. Don't understand the reference. Thanks.

jivecitystl · PostJan 20, 2005#52005-01-20T14:16+00:00

Dave Jump is a greedy speculator. He kicked out all of his longtime tenants so he could sit on his behemoth building and wait wait wait for the highest bidder.

bencharif · PostJan 20, 2005#62005-01-20T14:20+00:00

Also, is it possible that the developer would respond to requests that he put back or better resolve the missing cornice at the top of the building he proposes to transform into lofts, etc.? As it stands, the building looks as if it's about to float away, drift up into the clouds. It needs the grounding that the missing cornice obviously once provided. Are developers generally responsive to such requests. Does one have to demonstrate an impact on potential sales before such requests might be taken seriously? Your thoughts? Thanks again.

debaliviere · PostJan 20, 2005#72005-01-20T15:24+00:00

David Jump still owns the two most prominent unrehabbed buildings on Washington - the one at Tucker and Washington and the one at 1635 Washington. He purchased them right at the very beginning of the loft boom (smart move), but hasn't made any improvements to them at all (bad move). He booted a great bookstore out of the building at Washington and Tucker as well.

I agree with you on the need for a cornice. It couldn't hurt to contact the developer to share your thoughts. I hope that he does not cut windows into the east-facing wall of the building so that a new building could someday be built on the vacant lot next door.

The first floor bays will be perfect for retail, and I would guess that ample parking for residents could be accomodated inside the building.

bencharif · PostJan 20, 2005#82005-01-20T16:25+00:00

Once again, DeBaliviere, you're helping my wife and me develop a St. Louis knowledge base, long distance from New York. Many thanks for taking the time.

smsplanstu · PostJan 20, 2005#92005-01-20T23:14+00:00

Does anyone know if the developer of the gotham looking building is related to Senior Plannner for STL City: Rollin Stanley. Usually families are involved in the same interests like real estate?

MattnSTL · PostJan 20, 2005#102005-01-20T23:29+00:00

I really doubt it, Rollin Stanley is not from St. Louis.

jivecitystl · PostJan 20, 2005#112005-01-20T23:42+00:00

I hope they keep the fire escapes. Those are awesome.

MattnSTL · PostJan 20, 2005#122005-01-20T23:45+00:00

I personally find fire escapes on old buildings ugly, but I understand why you would like them. I doubt the developer shares the same feelings as you though.

urbz · PostJan 21, 2005#132005-01-21T03:54+00:00

bencharif wrote:Also, is it possible that the developer would respond to requests that he put back or better resolve the missing cornice at the top of the building he proposes to transform into lofts, etc.?

Maybe someone could help me out with this. I'm far from being an expert, but doesn't the city have some kind of ordinance that developers must restore the cornice on these buildings? or does it only apply to existing ones?

matt drops the h · PostJan 21, 2005#142005-01-21T05:47+00:00

MattnSTL wrote:I really doubt it, Rollin Stanley is not from St. Louis.

If you take away the fire escapes, you take away the essence of the old building.

ecoabsence · PostJan 21, 2005#152005-01-21T05:56+00:00

In order to qualify for historic rehab tax credits from the state -- which almost any developer will wisely seek -- a project must restore any National-Register-listed building according to the guidelines of the State Historic Preservation office. These guidelines require replacing the cornice unless it's cost-prohibitive. 1123 Washington is part of the Washington Avenue East District, which is listed on the National Register. Expect the cornice to return.

matguy70 · PostJan 21, 2005#162005-01-21T14:31+00:00

So glad to hear this project. I love this building, very unique and the windows are so impressive!

urbz · PostJan 24, 2005#172005-01-24T22:48+00:00

Thank you, ecoabsence, for the info

cityboy · PostJan 24, 2005#182005-01-24T23:44+00:00

ecoabsence wrote:In order to qualify for historic rehab tax credits from the state -- which almost any developer will wisely seek -- a project must restore any National-Register-listed building according to the guidelines of the State Historic Preservation office. These guidelines require replacing the cornice unless it's cost-prohibitive. 1123 Washington is part of the Washington Avenue East District, which is listed on the National Register. Expect the cornice to return.

Unfortunately, that is not necessarily true. First of all, the state reviewers are MUCH more liberal when it comes to applying the Secretary of Interior Standards for Rehabilitation than the feds. They "suggest" that the cornices be replaced but will leave it up to the developer. The logic being that they can't make you put anything original back (even if its existance is proven) but do not alter the original any further. If the standards were truly followed a "period of significance" would be established and the building would have to be returned to a state it would have been in at that time. The state has been convinced that even with the tax credits that these projects would be unfeasible if such "expensive" items needed to be replicated. In my opinion, both the state and federal historic tax credits are being abused (as written and intended) but they make all of this great momentum possible so I (like the state) will give the developers a little leeway.

bencharif · PostJan 25, 2005#192005-01-25T02:49+00:00

Thanks for clarifying the cornice replacement question.

irocktheparty2000 · PostFeb 28, 2005#202005-02-28T20:34+00:00

Did you check out the initial pricing for the Cheerful House? Prices range from $178 - $207 a square foot. Seems a little aggresive to me but as a current loft owner in the area it's good to see that some think the market can fetch this type of pricing.

prophett · PostFeb 28, 2005#212005-02-28T20:43+00:00

The new owner of the cheerful house also owns the building where club Europe is situated. In addition to retail & a restaurant the owner has plans to also open a night club lounge on the roof of the building. The club will be muti storied & will feature a roof top pool/ terrace with private access via a private elevator..Also off topic Locust where Lo used to situated will be open in April & will eventually be tripled in size to include a coffee shop/ cafe...The space will be unique because it will feature 3 massive windows which will allow pedestrians to look directly into the space.

debaliviere · PostMar 01, 2005#222005-03-01T15:49+00:00

The rooftop night club sounds like an interesting entertainment option.

If the Cheerful House developer is able to start construction immediately after closing, then I sure hope he's able to close soon!

southcitygent · PostMar 01, 2005#232005-03-01T17:07+00:00

Isn't the old Lo space the one that the owners of Bar Italia are using to open a new bar?

xing · PostMar 01, 2005#242005-03-01T17:55+00:00

Prophett wrote:The new owner of the cheerful house also owns the building where club Europe is situated. In addition to retail & a restaurant the owner has plans to also open a night club lounge on the roof of the building. The club will be muti storied & will feature a roof top pool/ terrace with private access via a private elevator..Also off topic Locust where Lo used to situated will be open in April & will eventually be tripled in size to include a coffee shop/ cafe...The space will be unique because it will feature 3 massive windows which will allow pedestrians to look directly into the space.

Nice. Sounds very "Mexico."

urbanstlouis · PostMar 03, 2005#252005-03-03T18:04+00:00

DeBaliviere wrote:Looks like Jump is selling his buildings - great news. Hopefully, he'll sell the building at Tucker and Washington next!

Martin Van Der Werf of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch also reported that Patrick Stanley was planning a renovation of the Cheerful House Buildings in his <A HREF="http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/busine ... 3">January 20th, 2005 column</A>, a month before the St. Louis Business Journal reported that the 1113-1129 Washington Cheerful House building was not under development. The St. Louis Business Journal later reported in their February 28, 2005 edition that there was a loft/commercial redevelopment planned for the Cheerful House.

A NEW PLAYER: Downtown is getting a new loft developer.

Patrick Stanley, best known for renovating a former moving-company headquarters in Benton Park into condos, has the seven-story building at 1113-1127 Washington Avenue under contract.

It was one of the last unclaimed major buildings deemed suitable for lofts left along Washington downtown.

Built in 1896, it once housed the Levis-Zukowski Mercantile Co., which claimed at the turn of the 20th century to be the nation's largest manufacturer and importer of women's hats.

Stanley plans a $22 million renovation, with nearly 100 condominiums, as well as shops and a gym at street level and a rooftop fountain, splash pool and sundeck. The one-bedroom units probably will start at $114,900, he said. Lofts on the top floor will start at 2,500 square feet. One might be 4,500 square feet. Prices up-top have not been determined.

Patrick Stanley is also planning a $4.2 million renovating the former St. Louis Motorcar Company building at 2801 Locust into 30 loft apartments.