The Bottle District (real estate, mortgage broker, loan)

[stlouisan]

Hi there. I have heard nothing of this project for years. Same thing with Ballpark Village. THe Bottle District was supposed to consist of several skyscrapers on the north side of downtown, one of which was to be as tall as or taller than the Arch. Ground was broken, but nothing else has been done. Was the project cancelled, or is it still awaiting construction pending funding for it?

[1greatcity]

All of those plans and proposals-- from the Bottle District to The Skyhouse to phase 2 of Lumiere-- were stalled when the economy turned sour. Some are gone forever, some will be scaled down, and perhaps a few will eventually be built as planned, once economic conditions allow.

[prairiestate]

Originally Posted by 1greatcity

All of those plans and proposals-- from the Bottle District to The Skyhouse to phase 2 of Lumiere-- were stalled when the economy turned sour. Some are gone forever, some will be scaled down, and perhaps a few will eventually be built as planned, once economic conditions allow.

Didn't they stall years before the economy collapsed?

[aragx6]

^I don't know the details of any of those specific projects, but developers across the country seem to have begun failing before the mainstream media and the majority of the American public became aware of the faltering economy. I'm sure many of them were reckless and overextended themselves at their own peril, but I think to a certain extent they were also "canaries in the coal mine" as it were.

[DinsdalePirahna]

Originally Posted by aragx6

^I don't know the details of any of those specific projects, but developers across the country seem to have begun failing before the mainstream media and the majority of the American public became aware of the faltering economy. I'm sure many of them were reckless and overextended themselves at their own peril, but I think to a certain extent they were also "canaries in the coal mine" as it were.

You are right. I used to work for an ad agency that handled a lot of commercial real estate accounts. I noticed the slow down starting in early 2005.

Most reliable media sources were warning of the real estate bust since 2002.

[kshe95girl]

Originally Posted by aragx6

^I don't know the details of any of those specific projects, but developers across the country seem to have begun failing before the mainstream media and the majority of the American public became aware of the faltering economy. I'm sure many of them were reckless and overextended themselves at their own peril, but I think to a certain extent they were also "canaries in the coal mine" as it were.

In 06 I had my interior design office in a mortgage brokers office, and would update their loan lists in my down time.
I noticed small subprime lenders going belly up in May of 06, my friend that owned the brokerage told me right around that time to sell any property we wanted to get rid of, as the bubble was primed to pop.

[DinsdalePirahna]

Yeah, I also remember a lot of mortgage brokers taking dives around the same time. I don't even know how some of those guys got licensed. Most seemed like very shady characters that I would not want to be involved with.

[kshe95girl]

Originally Posted by DinsdalePirahna

Yeah, I also remember a lot of mortgage brokers taking dives around the same time. I don't even know how some of those guys got licensed. Most seemed like very shady characters that I would not want to be involved with.

This wasnt that kind of brokerage.
They're still in business.

[DinsdalePirahna]

they were all working for legitimate companies... Just dealing with sub-primes

[kcmo]

Bottle district is dead. Never to return. I actually did some aerial photography work for them.

And I can't believe how long the ballpark village has dragged on. Even if the city had to heavily subsidize it (like the P&L District in KC), I think it would be well worth it and really make downtown StL a more vibrant area. The cards alone bring what 3-4 million people downtown? Give those people more reasons to stick around after games or get there early.

StL has a lot of attractions and sports venues downtown, a "canned" entertainment district would do well there (even if many are not fans of such districts).