Old
North St. Louis dates back to 1816. Originally, its own bustling
city, it was incorporated into St. Louis proper in 1841. On
a map, its separate origins are obvious as its street grid is
on a bias to the street grid of St. Louis. Possessing a thoroughfare
named North Market Street is a dead giveaway to its separate
origin, as well. North Market Street was the Market Street of
North St. Louis.
By Jim Nicholson
Originally a settling place for German immigrants (the old Bremen
neighborhood adjoins it), it was a bastion of Union solidarity
during the Civil War. An African-American population pre-dated
the Civil War and flourished with the abolitionist sentiments
of the German population (the old Dessalines School dates to
1866). The German influx was followed by a Polish influx (hence
the neighboring Church of Sts. Cyril and Methodius and the home
of the Polish Falcons). The Mullanphy Immigrant Home served
as a welcoming base for new arrivals and still stands, unfortunately
on the Landmarks Association list of Endangered Sites, awaiting
renovation.
With its three unique circular pocket parks (ultimately bordering
Highway 70), indigenous architecture sporting wrought iron balconies,
and a thriving business district on 14th Street, the neighborhood
flourished until a post- World War II decline. Its history since
then has been one of diminishment and destruction, anchored
by the resolute Crown Candy Company, Marx Hardware and the still
standing St. Louis Number 6 Bathhouse.
In 1981, the Old North St. Louis Restoration Group was established
by remaining neighborhood residents to “restore and develop
the physical and social dimensions of the community in a manner
that respects its historic, cultural and urban character.” In
the intervening 26 years, the group has evolved from an all-volunteer
organization to a highly effective community development corporation
with a professional staff and wide range of building activities.
Old North St. Louis (especially the area north of St. Louis
Avenue), in turn, has turned into a hot bed of renovation and
restoration. Scaffolding dots the landscape as craftsmen turn
shells into showcases, temporary accommodations into homes.
The feel of an urban village is palpable as residents mingle
with workmen and future residents explore their alternatives.
Meanwhile, south of St. Louis Avenue, the Old North St. Louis
Restoration Group has initiated a home-building partnership
with the Regional Housing and Community Development Alliance
to both rehabilitate existing historic buildings and to build
new affordable homes, which blend with the historic surroundings
in an area centered on North Market Street and commercially
labeled North Market Place.
The infill is readily apparent on North Market Street, which
is a-bustle with construction completed and in process. A sign
hanging on a building advertises, “Revitalize—Historic Rehab
Coming Soon.” New buildings, by far the majority, stand side
by side with remaining historic structures all conforming to
the historic uniformity of the neighborhood. A block to the
north and south, Hadley and Monroe Streets await similar revitalization.
On Monroe, for instance, there are just a few standing houses
and twenty buildings in total. The buildings are a mixture of
the historic, the old and the not so old, both residential and
commercial. These are ghost streets waiting to come to life.
A block to the north stands the crumbling 14th Street Mall,
the remnant of a desperate attempt to save a once-thriving commercial
area and, itself, being geared for rehab. Two blocks away the
ubiquitous Crown Candy Company does steady business, and has
been joined by a new (K-8) public charter school campus, Confluence
Academy. To the south, downtown is literally within walking
distance.
Stephen Acree, president of the Regional Housing and Community
Development Alliance, explains the initial vision for the project
came from the Old North St. Louis Restoration Group. “They came
up with the location and the concept of infill (new construction
designed to reflect and maintain the architectural integrity
of the neighborhood). We put together the resources.”
The concept has always been neighborhood friendly. “We try to
help the neighborhood by revitalizing it without displacing
existing homeowners,” Acree stresses. “We want to maintain the
economic diversity of the neighborhood and to create ‘life-cycle’
housing, so that, from young family housing through older adult
accommodations, there will be no reason to leave the neighborhood.”
He also stresses the redevelopment of the 14th Street Mall as
a crossroads tying the more established area of Old North St.
Louis to North Market Place. “It will be a mixed-use (both residential
and commercial) project, complete with lofts and apartments
and stores serving the neighborhood. We want to produce a more
walkable community.” The vision seems to be working. Nineteen
homes in North Market Place have already been sold.
According to Barbara Geisman, Mayor Slay’s Executive Director
of Development, the project is following a coherent pattern,
which has been successfully tested in other neighborhoods throughout
the City. “We try to focus on a neighborhood anchor and encourage
concentration of development around the anchor to establish
a critical mass that will begin to rebuild the market for the
neighborhood’s real estate. Once development has achieved critical
mass, then it will spread. Initially, developments like the
14th Street Mall need significant amounts of subsidy to re-establish
the market. Once the market has taken hold, it becomes possible
for other developers to follow the pioneers with few or no incentives.”
Lafayette Square and the Central West End are obvious examples
of neighborhoods where private market forces now support the
majority of ongoing developments. The success is also apparent
in the area north of Delmar and the eastern part of the Loop.
The spread strategy is particularly apparent on the south side
where Soulard begat Benton Park which begat Benton Park West
that is now expanding to Gravois Park.
In Old North St. Louis, the identified anchor is Crown Candy
Company and Geisman has every reason to believe Old North St.
Louis will become “the Soulard of the 21st century.” Residents
of Hyde Park should keep their fingers crossed.
Mayor Francis G. Slay believes strongly in “capitalizing on
the diversity and uniqueness” of the City and realizes that
the City’s physical uniqueness “is the City’s own special market
niche.” “Thanks in large part to our wealth of historic buildings—an
asset that can’t be found anywhere else in the region—and the
historic tax credit that state government has made available,
a wide variety of people are rediscovering the richness of City
living,” Slay says. “We look forward to welcoming more and more
people to the City, particularly to Old North St. Louis.”
The North Market Place development will ultimately offer for
sale over one hundred new and historically rehabilitated homes
in a thirty acre area roughly bounded by Hadley Street and North
Florissant, on the east and west, and Benton and Monroe, on
the north and south. The entire project lies within the Murphy-Blair
National Register Historic District. On North Market, 37 new
and four rehabbed homes are already in the latter stages of
construction. North Market Place will ultimately feature new
sidewalks and curbs, alleys, period street lighting and landscaping.
Pocket parks will dot the area. Homes ranging from 1,350 to
2,100 square feet will be offered at market prices ranging from
$145,000 to $186,000. Ultimately, the development will offer
over 60 more homes, both new and rehabbed, for sale.
Financial support from the Danforth Foundation, the City of
St. Louis and the Greater St. Louis Regional Empowerment Zone
has helped to support the North Market Place development and
the project has received Missouri Neighborhood Preservation
and Historic Preservation Tax Credits. Construction financing
was secured through Bank of America.
