This one was on both my and CityScene STL’s top ten lists, it must be a good one!
I am a sucker for William B. Ittner designs and his belief that public schools can be amazing places. This is a concept nearly lost in modern American society. Look at any suburban school built in the last 20-40 years, function and cheapness over form and creativity every single time.
Not in St. Louis, thanks to Ittner and others inspired by him. Maybe it’s also because I live a stones throw from his apartment building on California Avenue before he made it big and moved to Compton Heights.
I’m an Ittner nerd. I’ll admit it. That, and the off the beaten path location of this one on Sarpy Avenue (which I love saying in a sailor voice) is still in the Forest Park Southeast neighborhood, so close to so much positivity and activity in the Central Corridor.
This one was built in 1897. It is beautiful, but has seen much better days after years of inactivity and lack of investment from its West County owner. As Chris pointed out in his commentary:
“The decaying roof and overall present look of the school is an embarrassing sight from one of the region’s busiest highways. The renovation into 20,000SF of boutique office space is surely welcome as it will brighten up this building and will give the appearance of a cleaner section of the Grove.” Chris Strizel - CityScene STL
Yeah, I get his point. And, I like the idea of historic preservation in areas that aren’t 100% residential. I think it’s very urban and I could see living here, kinda like Scorsese’s scenes in After Hours.
Anyhow, an Ittner school renovation, especially this one, is cause for celebration. This building is an early beauty well worth the investment and one that is rather dissimilar to his later schools. And, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported in May, 2019 the investment will be $6.3M. Condemned in 2006, with little to no investment from the far West County owner, this one is ready for change and investment.
The fact that 20,000 sq. ft. of offices vs. residencies are the focus, it’s a bit of a different paradigm for a historic school renovation. Also welcomed.
The Pier Property Group, based in the small suburb of Clayton, MO, boasts a unique design with four classrooms on each of the four floors, all possessing at least two walls of window exposure.
Finishes and amenities include: restored original terrazzo and wood flooring, common conference and gathering space, unobstructed views of downtown, unique highway exposure, and secure parking.
Heck, you might even argue these would make great offices for Pier Property Group to move to St. Louis and be part of the bright future.
The secure parking comment leads me to believe the SLPS iron fence so popular to St. Louis will be retained.
