I’ve officially lost count of the number of times this remaining warehouse from the St. Louis Refrigeration and Cold Storage Company complex has caught fire. I think it’s at three. Here’s from the last time I documented a fire from January of 2017. As you can see, some nice new plywood, that has probably already…
Tag: Vacant Lots
Former Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Church
There’s something deeply depressing about the vacant lot at University and and North 25th streets in the St. Louis Place neighborhood. There once stood one of the most unique churches in the Archdiocese, and it burned and was eventually demolished. Atypical for a Catholic church, it was an auditorium style sanctuary, and probably featured one…
Twenty-Three Years of Paul McKee: Hyde Park
Hyde Park was never in the footprint of the Northside TIF, but I can’t help think that it was affected by the disruption that was occurring in the neighborhoods to the south. This neighborhood is really suffering from the effects of abandonment, and the City’s reliance on McKee’s plans diverted attention from residents’ real needs…
Twenty-Three Years of Paul McKee: St. Augustine’s
Next, on my tour of the area damaged by Paul McKee’s Northside TIF, I headed towards what was left of St. Augustine. Illegal dumping is very common in the blocks where houses once stood but were demolished after brick theft destroyed homes. This private club is still going, I think. The tower of St. Augustine’s…
Twenty-Three Years of Paul McKee: St. Louis Avenue in JeffVanderLou
Turning right from Garrison Avenue onto St. Louis Avenue, we pass by the abandoned Grace Lutheran, and then past the Lindell Park subdivision, which has avoided much of the Northside TIF purchases. But east of here, there are vacant lots of many former McKee buildings, some of which were demolished now close to twenty years…
Twenty-Three Years of Paul McKee: JeffVanderLou
Over the next six days, starting today, we’ll look at areas in the footprint of the Northside TIF, and see the effects McKee’s purchases and land banking have stalled redevelopment and also accelerated decline, as properties he’s purchased have gone vacant and been demolished. We’ll start in JeffVanderLou, driving up Webster in the two photos…
Hyde Park, 2011, From the Vault, Part Two
Here are more photographs from the vault. This is south of Salisbury Street in Hyde Park, I can tell. Things have gotten better with the filling in of vacant lots, but there have also been demolitions.
Cabanne Avenue Between Goodfellow Boulevard and Porter Mall, West End
Two large wood frame houses greeted the visitor when they entered Cabanne Avenue back in 1909; they’re both gone now. I believe those wood frame houses were replaced by these apartments, which in turn were demolished, as well. This block is much harder hit by demolition and vacant lots. There are a few houses left…
River Roads, Then and Now
It had been awhile since I’d checked in at the site of the former River Roads Mall, and the contrast between 1962 and 2025 cannot be greater. But perhaps it also reflects the changing pattern of suburban shopping; large, anchor-based shopping centers are being demolished and replaced with single parcel stores, each with their own…
Chouteau’s Landing, Early October 2025
We were back down on Chouteau’s Landing much like I was almost a year ago and the the buildings and bridges were looking good in the evening light. The MacArthur Bridge’s road deck is now completely gone, and is only used for trains. I’m always impressed by the massive concrete footings for the other rail…