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The urban indoor water park idea is not a new idea. It has been done elsewhere. Milwaukee comes to mind, has had one many years, an urban indoor water park attached to the historic Hilton (formerly Marc Plaza) hotel.
I agree that some of these ideas-- such as the water park at Union Station, and the gondola rides over the Mississippi, are a bit strange. Okay, very strange indeed. But at least STL is thinking "outside of the box" in terms of bringing something different to the table.
St. Louis Union Station simply cannot survive as just a retail mall. It needs something to act as a draw. It needs to separate itself from the other union stations across the nation.
And are there any other US cities with an overhead gondola crossing a major river? It's something that could potentially place STL in the nation's focus... in a positive way, for once.
Haha because everyone wants to ride a Gondola over to East St. Louis right (joking, joking!). I think they'll have to clean up the East Side before that could feasibly work.
As for downtown waterparks, I'm not adverse to the idea... just adverse to the idea of them inside Union Station. I agree though it's awful as a retail mall. I don't think I ever shopped there in the years I worked at the Hyatt, with the exception of sometimes going to Starbucks. I assume the current Marriott employees are the same.
I know the idea of lofts / condos / mixed use development has been thrown around before. I would think that would be more useful than a waterpark.
Haha because everyone wants to ride a Gondola over to East St. Louis right (joking, joking!). I think they'll have to clean up the East Side before that could feasibly work.
As for downtown waterparks, I'm not adverse to the idea... just adverse to the idea of them inside Union Station. I agree though it's awful as a retail mall. I don't think I ever shopped there in the years I worked at the Hyatt, with the exception of sometimes going to Starbucks. I assume the current Marriott employees are the same.
I know the idea of lofts / condos / mixed use development has been thrown around before. I would think that would be more useful than a waterpark.
Yeah, the stigma attached to ESTL is a little strong... heck a lot of people from the counties say they won't even go downtown without a personal body guard and that's an area that's pretty freaking safe! That said, how is the area with the "newish" ESTL park (the one with the gateway geyser thing), is that nice? I've been to the viewing platform before, but I don't remember the park exactly...
I'm not sure of some of these ideas, but I do love the creative thinking and the drive to pour more money into downtown (the real one, not Clayton) as I believe rather strongly that it's a critical element for future growth and success. Living here in Paris now and all of the astounding history and art makes it pretty tough for me to even think about the idea of turning our beautiful Union Station into a water park... but some people even talked about a Wal-Mart or Ikea...
^St. Louis doesn't need an Ikea inside our beloved Union Station. I think we can agree that retail isn't the magic bullet for Union Station. But if Ikea wants to expand to St. Louis, I'd love for them to move into some other renovated building downtown. Or, if they'd insist on being in the suburbs, the Boulevard St. Louis in Richmond Hts. would be a good fit.
LoL. Instead of building a new train/bus terminal essentially down the street from union station, maybe we should have looked at putting trains inside our "historic" train station...I dunno, i'm probably totally illogical in my thinking. You'd also run the risk of actually bringing folks into your city through what could then be a mall worth going to. Heck, if they're here anyway, at least the food court would get some use.
We're at an exciting point in time here in St. Louis! There are so many projects underway, or soon to be underway, which will improve our city. These projects represent billions of dollars of investment in the St. Louis region. Here are some of the more exciting changes ahead for our area:
1. The $8.1 billion Northside Regeneration Plan- would transform nearly 2 square miles of under-utilized land in near-north St. Louis City into offices, retail space, and perhaps 10,000 homes. Developer Paul McKee says the plan is still on track.
2. The $670 million New Mississippi River Bridge Project - currently underway, the bridge's purpose is primarily to relieve ongoing congestion at the PSB, which accomodates three major interstate highways.
3. Ballpark Village - a $100 million plan, which just received the blessing of the St. Louis Board of Aldermen, to create an entertainment district on ten acres adjacent to Busch Stadium featuring a Busch themed beer garden, shops, and restaurants.
4. The $578 million Gateway Arch Grounds Redevelopment Plan- includes a "lid" over I-70, an expanded museum, a new ampitheatre, and even a gondola above the river.
5. St. Louis Zoo Expansion Plan- the zoo would expand southward into 13.5 acres into the former Forest Park Hospital site. Included in the vision are a zoo/museum office building, more parking for the zoo, and possibly a monorail crossing I-64 to the south zoo entrance. (no cost estimate)
6. The newly-announced $12 million Soulard Market Renovation- plan includes improved infrastructure, a cooking school, a spruced-up market area, a new dining hall, and improved parking.
7. Crestwood Court redevelopment- the plan is to demolish most of the existing mall and create an open-air entertainment district. Included in the plans are restaurants, a fountain plaza, a grocery store, and a movie theatre. (no cost estimate)
8. The $50 million St. Louis Union Station redevelopment plan- possible changes include a new water park on site, upgrades to the existing Marriott Hotel, improved parking, and new attractions in the retail area.
9. New Outlet Malls in Chesterfield Valley- Not one but two new outlet malls are breaking ground only a few miles apart: The $85 million St. Louis Premium Outlets, and the $150 million Taubman Prestige Outlets Chesterfield. Common sense says that only one will prevail. But who knows?
10. The $76 million renovation of the downtown Central Library- includes improved infrastructure, a new entrance, a cafe, a gift shop, an auditorium, and an expanded children's center.
11. The $82 million River City Casino expansion plan- changes are underway, including a new hotel, event center, and parking garage.
12. The $243 million One City Center redevelopment plan- includes a new office building, street level shops, a movie theatre, and more.
13. St. Louis University Law School's downtown relocation- the new facility occupy an existing 11-story building and will feature a two-level rooftop addition and a dressed up exterior. (no cost estimate)
14. The $106 million Northwest Plaza redevelopment plan- the old mall might be re-named "Lambert's Landing", and the site is to include a new Menard's store, restaurants, and office space.
15. Then of course there's the recently-rejected $700 million plan to upgrade the Edward Jones Dome, which is a sore point for many St. Louisans. Perhaps a better plan, better financed, will soon surface.
Nice to see all these larger projects happening in a down economy, also love looking at this website (which I identified earlier)
The emergence of the DIY spirit in South City combined with the already unique culture and existing tight knit nieghborhoods, seeds of change on the North side, the West End continuing to be one of the best urban hoods in the midwest, not to mention (in the county) The Loop, Maplewood and Clayton, which in a lot of other cities would pass as main urban centers. All this reinforces St. Louis as a city of neighborhoods, the emergence of downtown is fantastic, but its these walkable local areas, with great housing stock, amenities and individual flavor that give St. Louis its charm, and seperates us from the crowd.
One of the things St. Louis needs most is a more appealing "front door", meaning its riverfront. There was a time when the river and the riverfront was the focal point of the city. The river was filled with paddle wheelers and such, and the cobblestone riverbanks were bustlling with trade and travellers.
But in the later 20th century, we seemed to have almost turned our backs on our riverfront. That's why the development that hopefully will be occurring downtown at the riverfront is so significant. The pending arch grounds redevelopment, including the "lid" over I-70, ampitheatre, and even the gondolas, is a great start. From there, St Louis needs to keep up the momentum and continue embracing our riverfront. Improve the infrastructure. Push for the development of Chouteau's Landing, including condos with a river view. Encourage more river boats to moor on Laclede's Landing and in front of the arch. Bring in entertainment. Create an open-air market. Some other cities have done similar things with great success. We can do it too. I see this as one of the next crucial steps in the ongoing transformation of STL.
It's actually always astonished me how little a deal St. Louis makes of it's river. When you even compare it to Brisbane, Australia where I was raised (also a River City), the Riverfront is probably the one thing that I would say Brisbane has done better.
Aside from super-high-priced premium property values in Condos and Houses along the River, in Brisbane there is also:
South Bank Parklands- a leisure / retail / mixed use area complete with Public Swimming 'Lagoons' with views of the River, a Riverwalk and Weekend Markets.
In addition, they'd also recently completed another complex further down the River when I left with some condos, retail, and from what my mother says a Dendy Cinema.
The Botanical Gardens also backed onto the River, and numerous parks dotted the River and were always popular for Picnics and BBQs.
St. Louis definitely needs to step up it's game when it comes to embracing the magnificent Mississippi! I realize that there are tidal differences between the Mississippi and Brisbane River, but I'm sure that something more significant and enjoyable can be done, in addition to the Arch and Arch Grounds.
The emergence of the DIY spirit in South City combined with the already unique culture and existing tight knit nieghborhoods, seeds of change on the North side, the West End continuing to be one of the best urban hoods in the midwest, not to mention (in the county) The Loop, Maplewood and Clayton, which in a lot of other cities would pass as main urban centers. All this reinforces St. Louis as a city of neighborhoods, the emergence of downtown is fantastic, but its these walkable local areas, with great housing stock, amenities and individual flavor that give St. Louis its charm, and seperates us from the crowd.
Agree 100%, but I believe the emergence of downtown is more than just fantastic, I believe it is absolutely essential. As some posters below hint at, the downtown area is our "front door." It's not only where most people from out of town end up spending the most of their time, but for a lot of people it is their only perception of the city. All across the US cities are focusing on their downtowns to better compete, and even with all the progress St. Louis has made it still has quite a ways to go... Most of downtown is still very dead after business hours (minus a game), and this image looks pretty bad for a metro of almost 3 million people. The unique and electric neighborhoods of St. Louis are most def one of our strongest points, but the average person won't ever see them unfortunately. Downtown has to continue to strengthen and be the core of the region, whether people like it or not it is the neighborhood that gives by far the largest impression on visitors; so, what kind of impression do we want it to make?
Disclaimer: No, I do not live downtown/I'm not trying to send all the funding to my backyard, I believe very strongly this is for the good of the region as a whole.
Agree 100%, but I believe the emergence of downtown is more than just fantastic, I believe it is absolutely essential. As some posters below hint at, the downtown area is our "front door." It's not only where most people from out of town end up spending the most of their time, but for a lot of people it is their only perception of the city. All across the US cities are focusing on their downtowns to better compete, and even with all the progress St. Louis has made it still has quite a ways to go... Most of downtown is still very dead after business hours (minus a game), and this image looks pretty bad for a metro of almost 3 million people. The unique and electric neighborhoods of St. Louis are most def one of our strongest points, but the average person won't ever see them unfortunately. Downtown has to continue to strengthen and be the core of the region, whether people like it or not it is the neighborhood that gives by far the largest impression on visitors; so, what kind of impression do we want it to make?
Disclaimer: No, I do not live downtown/I'm not trying to send all the funding to my backyard, I believe very strongly this is for the good of the region as a whole.
I agree, downtown needs work and should not be ignored. But, what I would like to see is an effort, for promotion of tourism and business, to expand on the almost European like nieghborhood identity and structure that exists in St. Louis. Alot of places we compete against have well developed downtowns, not many have great multiple neighborhood centers with great housing and sustainable businesses.
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(joking, joking!). I think they'll have to clean up the East Side before that could feasibly work.
