Crown Village Construction Update

Fresh construction photos from earlier today. The construction crews have made good progress, with several of the buildings now gutted. Masonry work is set to expand to more buildings, with other buildings set to have interior demo start.

Head over to www.crownvillagestl.com to find out more information about the project, as well as the North market Place Homes. The site has been up and running for a couple of weeks, but it hasn’t been promoted too much yet.

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More Construction Photos and Video

As promised in the previous post, I have a few more pics to share, and a video.

This video is the first in a series of videos we are going to make to showcase all of the great things going on in Old North St. Louis. The video is a converted PowerPoint presentation, and shows off many of the rehab projects from the last few years. It was produced by Sean Thomas. I took some video today, so look for 14th St. Construction updates in video form as well as picture form as soon as I figure out what I am doing.

And the pictures-

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Scenes from the 14th Street Redevelopment

Interior work is underway at buildings along the 2800 block of North 14th Street. Do not be alarmed by the sign advertising the demolition company. These buildings are not being torn down, just in the process of interior demo and clearance in preparation for their full rehabs.

A “before” shot of the interior space at 2822 N. 14th Street:
In other news: Matt Fernandez, our summer intern, spent his last official day on the job last Thursday taking care of a lot of unfinished business, including repairs to the sign for the North Market Place Homes. Even though Matt has completed two tours of duty with us (this past spring semester before he came back for more over the summer), he intends to keep volunteering and was back today with his camera to get more photos which will show up in this space a little later.

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Mall Construction Update

Boom lift ready for masonry work on Warren.

Mantle to be saved.

Matt Bivens, Historic Preservation Specialist at RHCDA, collecting trim samples and gathering other historic materials from a building on 14th St.

Historic Stairway to be saved.

Large tree trunk from behind buildings on 14th St.

Before pictures to highlight just how dramatic the transformation will be.

Interesting writings inside one of the buildings.

Private development across from some of the soon to be renovated buildings on 14th St.

Nearly Gutted

Neighbors checking out the progress.

Taking a break from the extreme heat.

One of many dumpsters being filled up with debris from the interiors.

More tree clearance

Matt Bivens removing historic moldings from a building on 14th St.

Matt Bivens and Kevin From E.M. Harris remove more historic moldings from 1414 Warren.

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14th St. Mall Construction

Today was the first day of real construction work on the 14th St. Mall renovation project. Crews from E.M. Harris got to work gutting houses on Montgomery and Warren, and many years worth of growth was cleared out lot’s throughout the development area. In the coming weeks more and more buildings will start to be gutted and rebuilt.

Clearing brush

Family coming from Crown Candy to check out what’s going on

View of the Arch and previously renovated north Market Apartments.

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14th Street Mall Redevelopment is REAL!

In honor of this blog’s 100th post, we have huge news to share:

We closed on the financing for the first piece of the $30+ Million 14th Street Mall redevelopment this past week! After days of signing countless documents, all of the financing sources agreed to wire their funds to get the project going late Friday afternoon. And after years of crafting and fine-tuning a community vision and hard work by many people to assemble the properties and put together a viable plan, the redevelopment is finally a real project that will transform the heart of Old North St. Louis — and send an indisputable message to visitors to Crown Candy and those who travel along St. Louis Avenue that something big is happening here!

Preparation for the actual construction has already gotten started and much more visible work will happen this week. With the financing in place for the residential component of the development, crews from E. M. Harris Construction Company and their various sub-contractors will become regular fixtures in the neighborhood over the next 18 months or so. ONSL will once again provide an opportunity for these workers to demonstrate how to convert long-neglected crumbling shells into stunning, historically rehabilitated gems.

The burned-out building at 2711 N. 14th Street (above) is just one of the more than a dozen historic structures that will have their architectural beauty and charm restored as part of the residential component. The remaining buildings in this redevelopment will get underway after the closing on the financing for the commercial component (which actually will involve a mix of commercial and market-rate residential and live/work units).

A more formal press release will be coming soon, along with official acknowledgments for all of the parties who made this deal possible. For now, though, we need to thank the entire staff of the Regional Housing & Community Development Alliance, ONSLRG’s partner in this development, for their financial wizardry and determination.

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A Diverse Community of Friendly Neighbors Who Watch Out for Each Other

Last week’s National Night Out block party was somewhat smaller than previous years due to the 100-degree temperatures, but the crowd that did make it out represented ONSL’s greatest asset: residents who enjoy city living and work together to make their community the best it can be. Above: Once again, Leon Ochoa took responsibility for the hottest job on a very hot evening.
Although some enjoyed a few moments of eating and catching up on the latest news from around the neighborhood (above), the weather was more conducive to just sitting around in the shade of Wingmann Park (below).And, as with past National Night Out celebrations, one of the highlights of the evening for the young and not-so-young was the chance to climb on and in the fire truck (below).

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Summer in Old North

Concrete mixer next to a rehab, and a dog hanging out in a mousehole.

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Mullanphy Concert

Another concert to benefit the historic Mullanphy Emigrant Home effort will be held Friday, August 17, at 8:00 pm. The concert will feature The Bearded Babies, Red-Headed Strangers, and The Monads, and will be held at the Tin Ceiling, 3159 Cherokee (corner of Compton and Cherokee). You can get in the door for a mere $7.00, and all proceeds will go towards further stabilization and rebuilding of Mullanphy. Even if you can’t make the concert, you can learn more about the Mullanphy Emigrant Home and make a tax-deductible donation anytime at www.savemullanphy.org.

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Summer in Old North

View of downtown from a well over 100 degree Mullanphy Emigrant Home.

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