"They All Look Nice" 1.29.2008 | 1 Comment(s)

"They all look nice," Rotary president Bob Kocher said Monday.

That quote was taken from today's Post Dispatch article about the plans for the failed Gateway Mall. The quote also sums up exactly what's wrong with the plans. To view photos of the proposed plans for the Gateway mall click here.

Will keeping over a mile of prime downtown real estate passive green space really add much needed life to an already boring and dead section of downtown? It didn't work the first time, so I'm not very hopeful about the current plans being thrown around. It seems like the concepts are just an attempt to pretty up what's there, not really do anything creative, innovative or beneficial for downtown. You can't just paint a building whose bones are in complete disrepair and call it a successful rehab.

It's no secret to regular readers of this blog that I feel the Gateway Mall should be plowed under and developed. I'd love to see the mall transformed into a row of mid-rise buildings with street vendors and people lining the sidewalks. I think street trees and beautiful planters could make a better urban garden than any large plot of land in the middle of our CBD could.

The last thing our sleepy downtown needs is green space and sculpture gardens, but I'm sure it will all look nice.

By  David, at 10:59 PM

I can understand the widely held opinion that the Gateway Mall land should be developed with buildings rather than maintained as green space. But I am giving this latest master plan the benefit of the doubt and remaining optimistic that this just might work. Why? Primarily because of the steady gains in downtown residents. If we can keep the momentum going, there will be many more residents from the north (Washington Avenue, the Old Post Office area), the south (Ballpark Village, Cupples Station, Chouteau's Landing), even the west (a revamped Plaza Square and westernmost lofts) looking for their "central park," and Gateway Mall will be positioned to fit the bill. I would much rather see the various surface parking lots scattered piecemeal throughout downtown be systematically redeveloped before thinking of building on the mall (and yes, I think Gateway One was a terrible mistake that should have been built elsewhere). Once these are built upon and we have a continuous, cohesive urban fabric on both sides of Market, we may want to start in on the mall. But by that point, I think we'll appreciate having a big, beautiful greenspace in the heart of our bustling downtown.