Thursday, December 27, 2007

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Lofts In The 'Lou
Lofts In The 'Lou: May 2005
Lofts In The 'Lou: June 2005
Lofts In The 'Lou: July 2005
Lofts In The 'Lou: August 2005
Lofts In The 'Lou: September 2005
Lofts In The 'Lou: October 2005
Lofts In The 'Lou: November 2005
Lofts In The 'Lou: December 2005
Lofts In The 'Lou: January 2006
Lofts In The 'Lou: February 2006
Lofts In The 'Lou: March 2006
Lofts In The 'Lou: April 2006
Lofts In The 'Lou: May 2006
Lofts In The 'Lou: June 2006
Lofts In The 'Lou: July 2006
Lofts In The 'Lou: August 2006
Lofts In The 'Lou: September 2006
Lofts In The 'Lou: October 2006
Lofts In The 'Lou: November 2006
Lofts In The 'Lou: December 2006
Lofts In The 'Lou: January 2007
Lofts In The 'Lou: February 2007
Lofts In The 'Lou: March 2007
Lofts In The 'Lou: April 2007
Lofts In The 'Lou: May 2007
Lofts In The 'Lou: June 2007
Lofts In The 'Lou: July 2007
Lofts In The 'Lou: September 2007
Lofts In The 'Lou: October 2007
Lofts In The 'Lou: November 2007
Lofts In The 'Lou: January 2008
Lofts In The 'Lou: February 2008
Lofts In The 'Lou: March 2008
Lofts In The 'Lou: April 2008
Lofts In The 'Lou: May 2008
Lofts In The 'Lou: July 2008
Lofts In The 'Lou: August 2008
Lofts In The 'Lou: September 2008
Lofts In The 'Lou: October 2008
Lofts In The 'Lou: November 2008
Lofts In The 'Lou: December 2008
Lofts In The 'Lou: January 2009
Lofts In The 'Lou: February 2009
Lofts In The 'Lou: March 2009
Lofts In The 'Lou: April 2009
Lofts In The 'Lou: August 2009
Lofts In The 'Lou: September 2009
Lofts In The 'Lou: October 2009
Lofts In The 'Lou: December 2009
Lofts In The 'Lou: January 2010
Lofts In The 'Lou: February 2010
Lofts In The 'Lou: March 2010
Lofts In The 'Lou: April 2010
Lofts In The 'Lou: June 2010
Lofts In The 'Lou: July 2010
Lofts In The 'Lou: August 2010
Lofts In The 'Lou: September 2010
Lofts In The 'Lou: October 2010
Lofts In The 'Lou: November 2010
Lofts In The 'Lou: December 2010
         
05/
3 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: 10th Street Loft For Sale!
Lofts In The 'Lou: Incredible Buzz of Loft Tour
Lofts In The 'Lou: Lofts in the 'Lou
         
06/
7 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: New Artist Studio Loft
Lofts In The 'Lou: New Retailer comes downtown!
Lofts In The 'Lou: Mayberry Revisited
Lofts In The 'Lou: A Letter From The Mayor's Office
Lofts In The 'Lou: Downtown Lofts Stay True
Lofts In The 'Lou: Warrantable vs. Unwarrantable Lofts
Lofts In The 'Lou: Downtown Lofts stay true
         
07/
8 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: New Art at the Washington Post
Lofts In The 'Lou: Gallery and Dorsa Lofts
Lofts In The 'Lou: What's the flippin' Problem?@!
Lofts In The 'Lou: New Life Evangelistic Lofts coming soon!
Lofts In The 'Lou: The Wait for a Loft
Lofts In The 'Lou: The Days Events
Lofts In The 'Lou: GRAND OPENING! JULY 15th 4pm
Lofts In The 'Lou: Is Loft Living Right For You?
         
08/
13 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Loft District Attraction on National shortlist
Lofts In The 'Lou: Supercharge your Re-Sale!
Lofts In The 'Lou: My Plans this Weekend
Lofts In The 'Lou: Not For Lunch!!
Lofts In The 'Lou: Back off Landlords!!!!
Lofts In The 'Lou: How to Insure Your Loft
Lofts In The 'Lou: Free Bribe for New Loft Dwellers
Lofts In The 'Lou: Show Me another Washington Avenue Loft Website
Lofts In The 'Lou: Gus's Fashion Luxury Lofts
Lofts In The 'Lou: First Time Home Buyers Rejoice
Lofts In The 'Lou: Full House at Downtown Development Roundtable
Lofts In The 'Lou: Food Critic for Hire
Lofts In The 'Lou: You know you're old fat & married when......
         
09/
7 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Fall Loft Tour --Day 2
Lofts In The 'Lou: St. Louis Fall Loft Tour---Day 1
Lofts In The 'Lou: My new home
Lofts In The 'Lou: Loft Tour Open Lofts
Lofts In The 'Lou: Dorsa Lofts Sales Info
Lofts In The 'Lou: Zamba......the Best Food In Town!
Lofts In The 'Lou: Coming Soon: Fall St. Louis Loft Tour 2005
         
10/
10 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: St. Louis Lofts Sold!
Lofts In The 'Lou: A Place Like No Other
Lofts In The 'Lou: My sneek peek
Lofts In The 'Lou: As Traci Sees It
Lofts In The 'Lou: A.D.D. and Me
Lofts In The 'Lou: Arcade and Syndicate Trust Coming soon
Lofts In The 'Lou: Go Cards!!!!
Lofts In The 'Lou: Loft Pricing: 401
Lofts In The 'Lou: One of My FAVORITES!!!!
Lofts In The 'Lou: Dorsa Pricing and availability
         
11/
10 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Historical Loft Living
Lofts In The 'Lou: Golds Big Move
Lofts In The 'Lou: St. Louis' Hottest Loft Market
Lofts In The 'Lou: Best View in Town!
Lofts In The 'Lou: If I were to sell on ebay
Lofts In The 'Lou: My Annual Traditional Real Estate Posting
Lofts In The 'Lou: More Accolades on Washington Ave.
Lofts In The 'Lou: Ely Walker: part 2 and ramblings of the Old Post Office
Lofts In The 'Lou: A Great Night Downtown
Lofts In The 'Lou: What's Up with the MOPAC Building?
         
12/
7 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Buyer's or Seller's Market
Lofts In The 'Lou: Ask Not.....
Lofts In The 'Lou: Attention Investors!!!
Lofts In The 'Lou: St. Louis Loft Sales are Heating Up!
Lofts In The 'Lou: The End of Traffic Madness Downtown?
Lofts In The 'Lou: Downtown Traffic Study Open House
Lofts In The 'Lou: The Notorious Ebay Loft for Sale
         
01/
6 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Congratulations Crepe's in the City
Lofts In The 'Lou: The Bottle District sudden turnaround
Lofts In The 'Lou: More Space for Urban Dwellers Downtown
Lofts In The 'Lou: 2020 Loft For Sale
Lofts In The 'Lou: Cultural backbone of Washington Avenue
Lofts In The 'Lou: Another Year for Loft Data
         
02/
4 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Art Loft Theater was a Blast!
Lofts In The 'Lou: Action is good!
Lofts In The 'Lou: Lofts Across the Country
Lofts In The 'Lou: January St. Louis Loft Sales
         
03/
6 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: The New Gateway to Downtown West
Lofts In The 'Lou: February Loft Sales Stay Strong
Lofts In The 'Lou: Stadium Issue of the STL Business Journal
Lofts In The 'Lou: Happy 38th Birthday Bob Ray!
Lofts In The 'Lou: Feng Shui of Loft Design
Lofts In The 'Lou: Blog Directory
         
04/
2 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Awesome 2 Story Loft!
Lofts In The 'Lou: My Blogging Hiatus
         
05/
10 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Gearing Up for the Downtown Living Tour
Lofts In The 'Lou: The No Spin Zone
Lofts In The 'Lou: What Grocery Dilema?
Lofts In The 'Lou: Realtors Hit the Downtown Streets
Lofts In The 'Lou: The New & Improved Washington Ave Music Fest
Lofts In The 'Lou: MOON PARTY TONIGHT!
Lofts In The 'Lou: The Residents
Lofts In The 'Lou: Don't Look Now.....
Lofts In The 'Lou: Loft District Hosts Film Festival and Street Party
Lofts In The 'Lou: St. Louis Lofts sold in March & April
         
06/
4 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Where's the Party, Dude?
Lofts In The 'Lou: Spring Loft Tour Day 2
Lofts In The 'Lou: St. Louis loft tour--Day 1
Lofts In The 'Lou: St. Louis Lofts Sold in May
         
07/
2 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Downtown Restaurants Fare Well
Lofts In The 'Lou: The Million Dollar Question
         
08/
4 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Mortgages Hit 5 month Low!
Lofts In The 'Lou: Washington Ave Musicfest Postponed
Lofts In The 'Lou: Great New loft for sale
Lofts In The 'Lou: Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
         
09/
3 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: 600 Washington Designer Contest
Lofts In The 'Lou: Downtown's Most Important Event of the Year!
Lofts In The 'Lou: What does a Buyer's Market mean to me?
         
10/
5 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Big Times Downtown
Lofts In The 'Lou: 2 Story Loft of the Century!
Lofts In The 'Lou: National Fan Base
Lofts In The 'Lou: Awesome New Listing!
Lofts In The 'Lou: Interest Rates Drop Again
         
11/
4 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Let Festivus Begin!
Lofts In The 'Lou: Power to the People
Lofts In The 'Lou: This Place is for the Dogs!
Lofts In The 'Lou: Detroit Tries To Compare
         
12/
8 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: False Advertising
Lofts In The 'Lou: Dog Park on Hold Again
Lofts In The 'Lou: Tragic Accident at Syndicate
Lofts In The 'Lou: Downtown Sales Surge-Interest Rates drop
Lofts In The 'Lou: Cheap Publicity
Lofts In The 'Lou: Ultimate Model: Ballpark Village
Lofts In The 'Lou: Food For Thought: The Rams on Monday Night
Lofts In The 'Lou: Looking for a new post?
         
01/
3 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Downtown Sales in December
Lofts In The 'Lou: 2006 Market Data Pierces Bubble Myth Downtown
Lofts In The 'Lou: Downtown St. Louis Partnership Meeting sets record
         
02/
1 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Fundamentally Flawed
         
03/
8 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Fallacies of Public Perception
Lofts In The 'Lou
Lofts In The 'Lou: Winter Loft Sales Pick Up
Lofts In The 'Lou: Grease is the Word
Lofts In The 'Lou: Y2K
Lofts In The 'Lou: Downtown "Government Day"
Lofts In The 'Lou: Politics of Deception
Lofts In The 'Lou: The "East of Boyle" Phenomenon
         
04/
2 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Downtown's Dump
Lofts In The 'Lou: St. Louis City Population Slant
         
05/
5 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: St. Louis' Loss
Lofts In The 'Lou: St. Louis Loft Sales in April
Lofts In The 'Lou: Dear Young Professional,
Lofts In The 'Lou: Entertainment Tonight
Lofts In The 'Lou: Calling All Green Thumbs......And Everyone Else!
         
06/
1 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: St. Louis Downtown Living Tour and Kayak Extravaganza
         
07/
2 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: A Good Shortlist to Make
Lofts In The 'Lou: Thoughts on homelessness?
         
09/
8 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Downtown Residents, Unite!
Lofts In The 'Lou: Corporate Relocation, Downtown Style
Lofts In The 'Lou: The Train, The Train!
Lofts In The 'Lou: The Economic Web of Downtown St. Louis
Lofts In The 'Lou: Dinner and a ball game!
Lofts In The 'Lou: Too Big For One
Lofts In The 'Lou: Help the Balancing Act
Lofts In The 'Lou: Beauty and the Beast
         
10/
5 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Downtown Sculpture Park
Lofts In The 'Lou: My take on the tour
Lofts In The 'Lou: Tea For Two
Lofts In The 'Lou: Help Your Neighbors!
Lofts In The 'Lou: Free Public Transportation
         
11/
8 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Slowly, but the Wheels are Moving
Lofts In The 'Lou: Mortgage Rates Hit 2 Year Low!
Lofts In The 'Lou: Mayor Slay's Realtor: Please Read
Lofts In The 'Lou: Build It and They Will Come
Lofts In The 'Lou: Thankfully Downtown
Lofts In The 'Lou: Ready, Set, Bowl!
Lofts In The 'Lou: Demand Continues to Expand
Lofts In The 'Lou: Leadership Downtown
         
01/
3 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Adapting to the Real Estate Boom
Lofts In The 'Lou: Reaching Out to Fellow Residents
Lofts In The 'Lou: To Forget or Not to Forget 2007
         
02/
2 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: WECAR- DOWNTOWN CAR SHARING
Lofts In The 'Lou: New York Style.....coming right up!
         
03/
4 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: St. Louisans Bitch
Lofts In The 'Lou: Shop Downtown!
Lofts In The 'Lou: Anti-Frigid Sales
Lofts In The 'Lou: Got Financing?
         
04/
3 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Propaganda Dispatch
Lofts In The 'Lou: Down By The River
Lofts In The 'Lou: Out Like a Lion
         
05/
9 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: My Day at the FHA; part 1
Lofts In The 'Lou: My Day at the FHA: part 2
Lofts In The 'Lou: Coming Soon To MacroSun
Lofts In The 'Lou: What's up with Tony's?
Lofts In The 'Lou: The True Lofts
Lofts In The 'Lou: Urban Beauty
Lofts In The 'Lou: The Calmer Tour
Lofts In The 'Lou: St. Louis Loft Sales in April
Lofts In The 'Lou: "Did You Hear....."
         
07/
3 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Buy Here!
Lofts In The 'Lou: It's a Neighborhood Stupid!
Lofts In The 'Lou: Online Free Downtown
         
08/
2 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: So That's What's Happening?
Lofts In The 'Lou: Today's Action
         
09/
1 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: The Boom Downtown
         
10/
6 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Our National Audience
Lofts In The 'Lou: Party in the Park
Lofts In The 'Lou: Fearful?
Lofts In The 'Lou: The End of an Era
Lofts In The 'Lou: Downtown Neighborhood Nights
Lofts In The 'Lou: "Is Now a Good Time to Buy?"
         
11/
3 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: To Live or To Sell!
Lofts In The 'Lou: Help Design Lucas Park TONIGHT!
Lofts In The 'Lou: One Holiday Thought.........SHOP DOWNTOWN!
         
12/
1 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Sick Buildings!
         
01/
6 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Urban Oasis
Lofts In The 'Lou: St. Louis City Sales Data 2007 & 2008
Lofts In The 'Lou: 2008 Real Estate Sales Downtown
Lofts In The 'Lou: Down to the Ballpark
Lofts In The 'Lou: Do You Have to Sell Now?
Lofts In The 'Lou: Happy New Year Ward 6
         
02/
5 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Love To Hate
Lofts In The 'Lou: The Syndicate Motel
Lofts In The 'Lou: Business is Business
Lofts In The 'Lou: FHA Approval and Buying a Loft
Lofts In The 'Lou: Get Down to the Ballpark!
         
03/
2 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Clean & Green
Lofts In The 'Lou: Loft Deals Scooped Up
         
04/
1 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: See you at the Plaza
         
08/
2 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: A "CAN DO!" Town
Lofts In The 'Lou: Culinaria Opens Tuesday
         
09/
3 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: The Difference of Downtown
Lofts In The 'Lou: Centenary Tower on the Block
Lofts In The 'Lou: Look Forward to Fall
         
10/
4 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou
Lofts In The 'Lou: Where's Tonto?
Lofts In The 'Lou: Another Anouncement about St. Louis Center
Lofts In The 'Lou: Time to Get Out this Weekend!
         
12/
2 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Benefits of Foreclosures
Lofts In The 'Lou: Downtown North?
         
01/
1 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Happy Happy New Year!
         
02/
3 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Life As We Know It
Lofts In The 'Lou: Downtown Farmer's Market?
Lofts In The 'Lou: Bad News for the Cynics
         
03/
1 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Loft Prices Surge
         
04/
3 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: More Density Downtown
Lofts In The 'Lou: Is It That Bad?
Lofts In The 'Lou: Laurel and Park Pacific get Help Soon
         
06/
2 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: What's Next Depends on YOU!
Lofts In The 'Lou: Catching Up on Downtown
         
07/
2 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Tell Me What To Say!
Lofts In The 'Lou: Sound Off
         
08/
4 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Post Office Plaza's new destination
Lofts In The 'Lou: Happy Birthday Eero Saarinen!
Lofts In The 'Lou: Cherry on Top!
Lofts In The 'Lou: The Other Shoe Dropped
         
09/
1 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Latest Developer Indictment
         
10/
1 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Inspired City Living! The FINAL 20!
         
11/
1 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: FHA Approves Lofts at 2020!
         
12/
1 pages

Lofts In The 'Lou: Great News for Leather Trades!

Friday, November 30, 2007

Slowly, but the Wheels are Moving

Downtown St. Louis streets
A few years ago there was a traffic study of downtown streets and recommendations from experts on what needed to be done. Suggestions ranged from making some streets 2 way, (such as what was done shortly afterwards on Locust), synchronizing the traffic signals to allow for better traffic flow, and reducing the lanes on Tucker and allowing for better streetscape and parking (aka making it more pedestrian friendly).

I was jazzed about the changes and started watching for them right away. Locust did change between 14th and Jefferson--lowering the chances of me causing a head on collision overnight. Not the most observant of people, but that's all the changes I saw.

According to Mayor Slay's PR team, downtowns street revisions are now being drawn up by HOK downtown and plans should be ready by next spring. It's hard to concieve of more road work being done at the same time as the I64 project, but the recommended changes seemed relatively minor. Let's get it done folks! We're ready for these improvements.

Mortgage Rates Hit 2 Year Low!

St. Louis real estate
The latest word from Freddie Mac on mortgages is that the fixed rate 30 year mortgage dropped down to 6.10%. That's the lowest since October 2005. With the deals available, the rates low, and everyone else at the mall, now might be the best time to buy in years!

Wednesday, November 28, 2007

Mayor Slay's Realtor: Please Read

Downtown St. Louis residenceMayor Slay has hinted on several occasions of an interest in living in a loft. In his most recent blog posting, he talks about having the moving bug and already having a realtor. So to you, Mayor Slay's Realtor, here are the top 10 reasons why the Mayor and Mrs. Slay need to relocate to downtown.

1. The short walk to work would be invigorating and a positive lifestyle change for the mayor.

2. Membership in Downtown St. Louis Residents (DSLRA) would keep him informed of social events and community activities.

3. Walk to Washington Ave Post for Crepes in the City or to the Rooster.

4. Instead of driving a few miles to meet up with friends, just walk a few blocks or stay in your own building!

5. Pre-game parties in the loft with a short walk or shuttle to Cardinal, Ram's or Blues Games.

6. Rock Climbing at Upper Limits gym to alleviate the stress of public office.

7. Catch a cab with neighbors to visit Soulard Market or Forest Park.

8. Every first Friday of the month get a fresh dose of new art at all the local galleries and shops.

9. Live in one of the best collections of historic architecture in the nation.

10. Enjoy the modern upgraded style of living amongst a rapidly building community eager for a cosmopolitan lifestyle.

Build It and They Will Come

Downtown Retail and Schools
The most stable blocks in Downtown West are moving towards a new level of completion. At 1224 Washington, the Roberts Galllerie & Lofts construction began this week.

An era ended this week as the Downtown Childrens Center vacated its location beneath the Knickerbocker Lofts to move down Washington into the newly completed Motor Lofts building. Our kids started at DCC a few months ago and love it. The new facilities have lost the "urban funk" feeling, which seems to have everyone pretty happy.

The vacancy puts that space into the hands of Kevin McGowan & Urban Blue, which will definately put the space to good use. (Never to be relied upon) word on the street is that a restaurant and 3 retail spaces will result.

Also, at the opposite end of the block, Riley Waldrop purchased the old Marte's Shoe store and plan on converting it to more boutique style clothing and accessory stores.

The street traffic and presence on these two blocks can definately support this type of development and added retail, particularly as residents continue to take advantage of some of the great deals on lofts. It's exciting to see these key locations being developed, I can't wait!

Friday, November 23, 2007

Thankfully Downtown

Downtown St. Louis EventsHolidays have lots of traditions. That's especially true for downtown.

Usually, my Thanksgiving traditions were pretty much limited to listening to Alice's Restaurant on KSHE and then heading off to the family feast.

This year was different.

The morning festivities started with the Thanksgiving Day Parade. This is an ongoing event. Not being much of a parade person isn't an excuse when there are little ones involved. The boys went crazy over the parade. We pulled up next door to the Hilton at the Ballpark for my selfish need to be close to Starbucks. What impressed me the most was participants attempt to pretend it wasn't cold outside. Miss Soulard was dressed like it was a warm summer day. Her face told the true story. She looked miserable. We saw Santa then hit the road (he was appropriately dressed).

Our next event was a bit more challenging. Hosting a feast for 23. What made it more complicated was the home it was to be held in is still under construction. Thanks to our friend in the Kingbee building, we were able to use her space to host the family.

Hosting 23 people from around the metro area, most of which have never been in a loft was interesting. Our thought when we announced that we were moving the celebration downtown was that people would be hesitant. "The ONLY reason they're coming (into the city) is to see your new house!" my mother-in-law explained. We were delighted by the actual response though. Everyone was thrilled to be downtown. Being inside a loft excited the whole bunch.

Between dinner and dessert, we piled Downtown St. Louis real estateinto 3 minivans and pressed further into the city to visit the downtown Macy's. A tradition that my elders couldn't stop talking about. "We used to always come to Famous Barr downtown to see the windows", I heard several accounts. My thoughts recalled the articles I've read through the years regarding the decline of downtown. For years and years, our region revolved less and less around the downtown area. An article in the St. Louis Post Dispatch in 1997 (2 years before the first loft condo building was completed) said that if our region was going to compete in the 21st century, that we would need to address the problems with our downtown.

When we got to Macy's, there was a pretty good crowd traversing from window to window around the store. The window displays were well done. The response was good too. Keeping track of the 9 kids in our vans was the priority, by this time they weren't to excited about forming an orderly procession from window to window. Hearing the positive remarks about downtown development was nice, but being able to say that so much more is on the way was even better.

Happy Holidays!

Friday, November 16, 2007

Ready, Set, Bowl!

Loft District
Some thought it wouldn't happen, some thought it would never get done. But for all you bowlers out there, and everyone else, the Flamingo Bowl is finally coming!

Set to open December 14th, Joe Edwards told the St. Louis Business Journal that he already has booking requests. Also, he said he was doing it out of a love for St. Louis.

Downtown Bowling means more to downtown than just another bowling alley. It means one more thing we can do downtown without having to travel. Priceless!

We'll see you on the lanes!

Demand Continues to Expand


The downtown loft market continues to surge. So says Lisa Brown, real estate reporter for the St. Louis Business Journal in this morning's edition. Interesting timing, really. The article headlines the fast pace and talks about the Syndicate building. The Syndicate is scheduled to start closings within the next few weeks, Dorsa has already begun closings. So between the surge in existing loft sales that has taken place in the past two months and longer range sales that should consumate before 12/31, we are on pace to nearly double the sales downtown from 2006.

What slump?!?

Ok, so there's still a few developer's with mounds of unsold inventory. Despite the value and the recent uptick in sales, existing lofts are still sitting on the market. I do applaud the Business Journal's latest article for its positive perspective. As we hear all the time, or maybe that's just me, the St. Louis market is in pretty good shape considering the mess elsewhere.

Because we're finally taking advantage of our urban core (anywhere else this repository of 19th Century architecture would be priceless) we're ceasing to be the forgotten city. Real estate articles in the mid-90's, St. Louis wasn't even a city under consideration, now we're starting to regain our standing in the world.

PS. It's good to see we didn't make Forbes list of 20 MOST OBESE CITIES!

Thursday, November 15, 2007

Leadership Downtown

Downtown Loft BusinessAs a business leader and downtown resident Mike Finan has made his mark on the Loft district! Mike was drawn to downtown 4+ years ago when he relocated from Kirkwood. He just finished rehabbing a condo in downtown Kirkwood but still wanted more of an exciting, urban feel. He explored downtown and came across the Louderman Lofts by Loftworks. For him it was home. He was Sold on Downtown!

In October of 2004 Mike began his business UMA( located @ 1100 Locust, with UMA Dot Spot is just two doors down at 313 N. 11th street.) The concept for these stores emerged out of frustration with trying to locate affordable accessories that reflected a modern sleek look for his own loft. UMA is a contemporary store that offers unique home accessories not found elsewhere in the St. Louis area. UMA has evolved in a variety of ways. It now is 3X the original size having 5 employees & 2 store fronts. The accessory line has grown & reflects a variety of edgy items such as a hammock chair, wall mounted wine rack, hand sculpted sconces for coats and much more. They have incorporated trendy Blu Dot furniture not found locally that has high design but a moderate price & Tivoli audio systems that hold great sound and are technologically advanced. Mike is always introducing fresh items that are unique to the area.

Downtown Business LeaderWhen asked about the affects of the highway 40 shut down, Mike states that it may change his customer base a bit, but many shoppers come in on the weekends so he expects continual growth. His clients are loyal & he feels the 40 shut-down might actually increase foot traffic downtown as many work & play in the city.

Along with his business growth & success he loves life in the city. He says that while the growth is amazing, he can still walk down the street and be greeted by many. Mike stresses that downtown continues to get the added stores & commerce it needs to become a residentially friendly neighborhood. He alludes to the much rumored Schnucks Market that has ownership of a local garage and supposal plans to open in the future. There are tons of great restaurants, banks, dry cleaners, shops, city grocers & much more now and slated in the future. If downtown doesn’t have it, the surrounding city does! Home Depot, Target, Walgreens & more! Everything is within a few miles or just a short drive away. Mike feels as a downtown resident his job is to shop in the city. Supporting our local commerce is what will make the City of St. Louis thrive and grow.

It was a privilege to meet with Mike so I could talk to him about the city & help share his experience. He had a vision and has been very successful in his business as well as being a constant supporter of downtown. If you have not been by UMA I encourage you to stop in to see what is available. You will find great home accessories and holiday gifts for your loved ones. You’ll be compelled to return over and over again!Downtown Businesses

Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Downtown Sculpture Park


More green space is coming to downtown St. Louis. According to an article by the post dispatch the city’s Preservation Board gave unanimous approval for the 20 Million Dollar sculpture park that will be created on the gateway mall. A group called the Gateway Foundation, a private agency that has placed art installations around the region, is paying for the project. This project will help create another aesthetically pleasing outdoor space in downtown St. Louis. It will be near the new Old Post Office Plaza.
Investment in green projects, such as this sculpture park are useful ways to attract business and residents to the region. St. Louis has a special taxing district called the Great Rivers Greenway District which, according to its website, uses a 1/10th of 1% sales tax to work“for a clean, green, connected St. Louis region. To deliver its mission, Great Rivers Greenway is spearheading the development of The River Ring, an interconnected system of greenways, parks and trails that will encircle the St. Louis region, enhancing the quality of life for residents and visitors." The Chouteau Greenway