Development

The small district tucked directly north of the Gateway Arch National Park has quietly undergone a massive redevelopment in the past half-dozen years.

The Railway Exchange building has been vacant since 2014 and has become a high-profile downtown eyesore riddled with trespassing and other crime.

Historically, St. Louis has had few basketball courts in south city. These new ones follow additions at Tower Grove Park and Forest Park in recent years.

The nonprofit purchased properties to renovate or demolish existing houses and to construct new ones like those in the housing development, a 20-home subdivision called Lansdowne Park.

Last month, the Land Clearance for Redevelopment Authority Board first brought up the possibility of a blighting study and redevelopment plan, but the board voted to table that item as the draft of the study wasn’t complete.

The investment includes more space to store shelf-stable and perishable food as well as a new teaching kitchen and other programming for members of the regional community.

St. Louis has roughly 20,000 vacant properties, most of which are in north city and have no buildings on them.

“Economic justice is a team sport. Government cannot do this alone," said Mayor Tishaura Jones. "When done in collaboration with our philanthropic civic and private sector partners, we can make a lasting difference for generations to come."

Regularly updated codes can also aid with disaster resilience. The Federal Emergency Management Agency estimates adopting current building codes can avoid hundreds of billions of dollars in damages.

“While eminent domain can be scary, ultimately, this use of eminent domain protects existing residents and existing occupied businesses,” the bill’s sponsor said.