Regular readers of Urban Review St. Louis know that I am working with a couple considering moving to St. Louis from Staten Island NY. As part of our discussions on neighborhoods we’ve focused on areas just North of Delmar (Cabanne) due to proximity to MetroLink, the Loop and the CWE. The architecture is also stunning. Many streets are lined with well maintained homes from loving homeowners who just happen to be mostly black.
As part of their research into St. Louis they picked up the “Insider’s Guide to St. Louis” written by local writer Dawne Massey. Unfortunately, Massey’s insider information is the same old message that continues to damage North St. Louis. We are really killing ourselves when we continue to write off such a large geographic area. I’ve got a few examples.
Massey has this to say about St. Louis’ Greyhound bus terminal:
“Since the bus station (1450 N. 13th St.) isn’t in a desirable location, you should take a cab from the station to your hotel. Also, it’s not a good idea to walk around the
bus station area at any time of day.”
What? I’d certainly walk from the bus station to downtown. The only reason I wouldn’t walk is because the pedestrian qualities are dreadful – but that is not the message Massey is sending to outsiders.
Massey also comments on the the city’s North side:
“There isn’t a whole lot to see and do in the area of town known as the ‘near-north’ side. Other than the historic African-American neighborhood known as The Ville and
the Greyhound bus station, there aren’t too many reasons to venture into this series of older neighborhoods in serious need of rejuvenation. Some local developers are slowly making progress on this front, with new low-income family housing units taking over vacant lots and deteriorating buildings. Annie Malone, one of the country’s first African-American millionaires, was the most famous resident of The Ville, and the neighborhood’s Sumner High School is the alma mater to St. Louisans Tina Turner, Arthur Ashe, and Chuck Berry.”
Hello? How about Crown Candy Kitchen? How about the water towers? How about Hyde Park? How about the Bissell Mansion with its spectacular views and great food? O’Fallon Park? Bellefontaine Cemetery? Calvary Cemetery? Fountain Park? Windermere Place? Scott Joplin House?
I Googled Massey and found references to some articles in the Post-Dispatch Get Out section as well as the St. Louis Blues Foundation. Not Blues hockey but as in the musical style. It seems Massey is the director of the foundation looking to build a museum on Laclede’s Landing.
Anyone in St. Louis that likes Blues must have ventured into North St. Louis a time or two? Those German’s & Irish in South St. Louis may have been great brick masons but Blues musicians they were not. My best memory of Blues in St. Louis is hearing the Bosman Twins not the Missouri Botanical Gardens but at the Moose Lounge (4571 Pope Ave, St Louis, 63115 (314) 385-5700) near O’Fallon Park.
If you are interested in sharing your thoughts on this writer’s take on North St. Louis you can contact the publisher, The Globe Pequot Press via email.
North St. Louis has some of the city’s best architecture and urban streets. Yes, some of it is a little worse for wear but other areas are pristine. It is only when we stop these self defeating statements about the North side will we ever rebuild our city. South City and the CWE needs a strong North side. St. Louis County and the entire region need a strong City of St. Louis. We’ve got to start sending the right messages to ourselves and to outsiders.
– Steve