Midtown is a neighborhood in St. Louis, Missouri. It is located west of the city riverfront at the intersection of Grand and Lindell Boulevards. It is home to the campus of Saint Louis University and the Grand Center Arts District.
Historic status
The Midtown Historic District of St. Louis was placed on the National Register of Historic Places by the National Park Service, United States Department of the Interior in 1979.
Architecture
A remarkable collection of eclectic structures built between 1874 and 1930 range from Midtown's oldest building, a classic Second Empire style townhouse at 3534 Washington Ave. built during the first phase of Midtown development to flamboyant early 20th century commercial buildings like the Art Deco Continental Life Building and the "Siamese Byzantine" Fox Theatre. Buildings in the district were designed by notable architects including Henry Hobson Richardson, Eames and Young, William B. Ittner, Preston J. Bradshaw, C. Howard Crane, Brad Cloepfil and Tadao Ando. From a distance the Midtown skyline asserts a strong node like St. Louis's "second downtown". Most of Midtown's surviving historic structures have been restored and adapted for new uses.
Adaptive reuse of historic structures
A once dilapidated movie palace, Powell Hall, 718 N. Grand Blvd. is the sumptuous, Neo-classical acoustically vibrant home of the St. Louis Symphony and another is a thriving live performance venue, (the Fox Theatre). Buildings designed for worship are performing arts centers (Sheldon Concert Hall and the Grandel Theatre). The Continental-Life Building and the University Club Building that originally housed offices are now apartment buildings. Single family residences have been converted into elegant professional offices (City House in Grand Center, 3534 Washington Ave. and the Lionberger House, 3630 Grandel Square). Former clubhouse buildings serve as art centers: The St. Louis Club Building, 3663 Lindell Blvd., is now the Saint Louis University Museum of Art and The Knights of Columbus Building, 3547 Olive Street, is the Centene Center for the Arts, housing the St. Louis Arts and Education Council and numerous arts agencies.
New construction
As Midtown revived, new art museums including the Pulitzer Arts Foundation and the Contemporary Art Museum and were built in 2001 and 2003, respectively, and the 1998 Dana Brown Communications Center (home of KETC) has become a focal point for public broadcasting and new media.
City Foundry
City Foundry is a $220 million, 15-acre project that was undertaken by the Lawrence Group and CEO Steve Smith, who sought to create a new recreational and business complex in the center of Midtown, St. Louis. The idea for this new hub came about when Smith visited the Ponce City Market and Krog Street Market, two mixed-use development buildings in Atlanta, Georgia, and was inspired to bring the same idea back to part of St. Louis. The project is located in the heart of Midtown St. Louis, Missouri, with the goal of promoting economic development within the shrinking city. Specifically, the project is using infill development to turn the former Century Electric Company, one of the top 3 manufacturers in the city 100 years ago which closed in 2007, into a recreational and business complex containing a food hall, public market, and retail businesses. By using a biophilic design, creating a pedestrian-only walkway, and connecting the recreational and business complex to the Brickline Greenway, the hub attempts to foster greater social connection and act as a destination spot within the city, bringing the community and visitors together to foster a greater sense of belonging. The project was broken into four different phases. The first phase focused on the renovation of the foundry and the creation of the food hall and a 500-car parking garage. The second phase focused on the creation of a 24-story apartment building that targeted individuals from different universities in the city. The third and fourth phases focused on building two multi-story office buildings, commercial space, and additional parking avenues. Funding for this project came from tax incentives as well as private companies, two of which include Bull Moose Industries located in Chesterfield, Missouri, and CapStone Holdings located in Bonita Springs, Florida. Although the recreational and business complex was scheduled to open in the spring of 2020, there was a delayed opening due to the coronavirus pandemic. The Food Hall opened to the public in August 2021.