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A Vintage Parking Garage

Author:Steve Patterson October 21st, 2009

Downtown St. Louis has many parking garages, too many in fact.  Most are as bland as you’d expect a parking garage to be.

The curving exit ramp of the Macy’s garage at 6th & Pine (map link) is anything but bland.

One of the two Kiener Plaza garages are visible from the exit ramp of the Macy’s garage, above.

In this historic image, we see the Macy’s garage in the background as the Kiener garages are built in the foreground.

It is hard to sustain a vibrant downtown with so much real estate used for car storage.  We built garages to accommodate everyone coming downtown but in the process created a downtown less attractive to visitors.

I just hope nobody gets the idea to list one on the National Register of Historic Places.  Wait, the city likes to raze historic buildings so perhaps we should get all of them on the register.  That may be the only way to reduce their numbers.

- Steve Patterson

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  • Jimmy Z
    And to warm Steve's heart . . . http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09294/1007154-18...



    [slp -- good article on the increasing use of scooters.]
  • Margie
    Two thoughts: first, this link to the NY Times today, about how the auto is losing its hold on Americans:

    http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/22/automobiles/a...

    And second: Ed, your ME is showing. ; )
  • Jeff
    It must be the resemblance to the Guggenheim in New York that makes it almost OK
  • Kevin McGuire
    I use the garage often for baseball games. I thing that should be appreciated about it is the entrance does not impede pedestrians traveling on 7th or pine. The exit on pine isn't as friendly, but at least pedestrians have a clear view of cars trying to exit. A number of other garages you can't see a car coming until you stick you head around the corner to look at it coming directly at you.
  • John M
    This used to be one of the properties I managed. I enjoyed that particular vantage point of the exit ramp seemingly hanging out into the street. I second the frustration exiting the garage, despite efforts to make it faster, Pine street never could handle the load after the game, despite being one way. The timing on the lights was all wrong.
  • ME
    Hey - you seem to be very good with investigating. I've noticed no changes at the Kiel. Wasn't that supposed to start in August for a Grand opening in Nov-Dec 2010? That worries me that this still hasn't taken off yet...
  • Jeff
    I frequently park in the Macy's garage and the Keiner garage and loathe driving down the corkscrews after a baseball game. The time and gas wasted will test anyone's patience.
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