Revisiting the Memorial Drive Parking Garage Idea

The above picture was pulled from a September 2010 Gateway Streets article...as was the inspiration for this post. It represents close to 2,000 additional parking spaces (or ~1,000 for a single level/split-level plan). In the article, it was posited that all that empty space which would be filled in if a new Memorial Drive Boulevard were implemented could be better utilized as a massive underground parking garage connected directly to the Archgrounds and the city's central spine. For many reasons, this seems like a no-brainer.

Part of the beauty of the City to River plan is the creative reuse of street-level space previously given over to characterless highway lanes and disruptive Interstate infrastructure. Using this plan, the southbound lanes of Memorial drive would be shifted east (over the existing I-70 depressed lanes) freeing up some valuable downtown plots for river-facing development or expansion. East-west street connections would be restored to the Arch at Spruce, Poplar and possibly Locust. So while these plans take advantage of recovered land, the garage idea creatively incorporates the existing I-70 trench.

At this point, there is no plan to remove I-70 through downtown. In fact, a representative for the Missouri Department of Transportation all but discounted this transformative vision in a response posted by jakektu on the NextSTL forums:

Thank you for your recent e-mail about the section of interstate 70 in downtown St. Louis between the future location of the new Mississippi River Bridge and the Poplar Street Bridge.

There are no plans to consider a study to replace that section of interstate. When I-70 moves north to the new Mississippi River Bridge,this stretch of interstate will be redesignated I-44 to ensure that there remains a north-south interstate on the east side of St. Louis. 

According to the Federal Highway Administration, there is very little precedent for decommissioning an interstate highway and that process would be highly scrutinized. The plans currently underway will meet the requirements of the project, to include creating an easier pedestrian access between downtown and the arch and a project completion date of October 28, 2015. 

We believe that the current plan that we are designing with our partners, and will unveil to the public sometime next spring, will not only further open up the Arch grounds and the park to the many visitors and downtown residents, but will also handle the anticipated traffic levels for the downtown area after the new Mississippi River Bridge has started carrying I-70 traffic.  

v/r

[name redacted]
Customer Relations, MoDOT St. Louis District
1590 Woodlake Dr.
Chesterfield, MO 63017
phone (314) 453-1808 [cell phone redacted] fax (573) 526-0085
NEXTEL [redacted]

"Our mission is to provide a world-class transportation experience that delights our customers and promotes a prosperous Missouri." 

       - - - end response - - -

It's a disappointing response, but at least it's straightforward and honest -- and brutally so. Now, at least, we know for certain one force against a boulevard plan and some of its reasoning for that opposition. With this organizational view and over $45 million state/federal funds now secured to build the lid/expand Interstate infrastructure, it's basically a foregone conclusion that 2015 will feature an Interstate lid and a larger downtown Interstate system (View MODOT's 27-page federal grant application here).

And yet I'm not willing to give up on the Memorial Drive Boulevard.

Preserve Our Pevely! A Letter to the Preservation Board

Included below is my letter to the Preservation Research Board, who will be reviewing Saint Louis University's demolition appeal for the Pevely Dairy Company site at the corner of Chouteau and Grand. I have prioritized preservation for the corner office building and adjacent milk plant, as these two parcels will best be able to anchor a urban-friendly streetscape if/when SLU and other developers allow it to be.

Even if you have no inherent interest in saving these particular structures, I would suggest you submit a letter or email to the Cultural Resources Office and the Preservation Board. Remember, these efforts aren't as much about preserving individual buildings as they are about stopping a planning culture through which it has become okay for developers to take the much easier, destructive route than one which is more measured and respectful to St. Louis' built environment and the citizens who are eager to see this city thrive again. Contact information can be found at NextSTL. 

- - - 

December 16, 2011

To Whom It May Concern:

On Monday, December 19, 2011, the Preservation Board for the City of St. Louis will hear an appeal from Saint Louis University regarding the demolition of four parcels in the Pevely Dairy Company complex located within the boundaries of Chouteau Avenue, Grand Boulevard, Spring Avenue and Hickory Street. Permission for demolition was previously denied and I resolutely believe that these denials should be upheld, in full, by the Preservation Board.

Bottle It Up or Shake It Up

[Update on 12-16-11: A news story on KMOV Channel 4 provided a few pictures of early Bottle District plans from Clayco and McEagle Properties. Those screencaps are included below with my brief thoughts.]

In light of today's approval by the Board of Alderman to allow the purchase of the Bottle District by Paul McKee, current "planner" for a northside redevelopment plan which includes, well, basically everything north of Cole, I wanted to discuss the potential of the site and the best/worst case scenarios in planning it.

I will say upfront that Paul McKee terrifies the hell out of me. After the sale is finalized, he (alone, for all intents) will control the future of much of our city's northern build environment. His early clandestine land grabs were ominously documented by the Riverfront Times almost five years ago ("Phantom of the Hood", Randall Roberts, 01-10-07) as he and several "separate" companies -- McEagle, Blairmont, as examples -- purchased and subsequently abandoned various parcels near Cole Street and as far north as St. Louis Avenue. What followed was severe dilapidation, fly-by-night demolition and more and more purchases made easier by the continued deterioration of neighboring parcels.

Following up on the original story ("Phantom of the Hood, Part 2", Kathleen McLaughlin, 06-20-07), the Riverfront Times and local preservationist Michael Allen posited that several hundred properties had been purchased by McKee or one of many dummy companies. This, all while McKee successfully lobbied for the crafting of a new Distressed Land Assemblage Tax Credit which awards funds to developers in possession of 100 distressed acres.

Despite all this, he had gained enough city support to go forward with his still hazy plans, collect tax credits through blighting (though 22nd Circuit Court Judge Robert Dierker ruled against McKee, the City, and the Board of Aldermen in 2010), and now he will soon have, in conjunction with Clayco and Larry Chapman, rights to the 17-acre Bottle District site. This, similarly, isn't without its intrigue as the deal was surreptitiously passed without an Alderman currently representing the 5th Ward.

With all of that said -- it's time to looks at options.