Unique St. Louis lofts attract new downtown residents

ST. LOUIS -- Drawing on a formula that's had success in other cities, developers in St. Louis have transformed commercial buildings into edgy loft-style living spaces -- complete with high ceilings, exposed brick and rows of light-welcoming windows.

But attempts to draw residents to downtown lofts here go far beyond merely touting open floor plans or rehabbed hardwood floors.

St. Louis offers some imaginative living spaces and incentives to draw urban dwellers, like lofts opening on the upper floors of a museum, housing specifically set aside for artists, and even businesses providing incentives for employees who opt for a downtown address.

The city has added 800 new loft residences in the last four years for a total of 5,600 residential units downtown, said Kevin Farrell with the Downtown St. Louis Partnership, a not-for-profit organization aimed at helping to provide a vital, safe urban setting.

The lofts, Farrell said, allow once-dormant buildings to create life before and after the work day.

"Now when you come downtown, you can see somebody walking their dog at 6 a.m. or 8 o'clock at night, rather than having them leave after going to the office and maybe coming back for a ballgame," he said.

At the former 10-story International Shoe Co. warehouse, sculptor Bob Cassilly and others have created a well-known St. Louis attraction, the City Museum. It's full of offbeat exhibits and unusual play spaces that combine sculpted caves and tunnels with reused objects like airplanes and a fire engine. It's not hard to spot downtown -- just head for the building with the school bus on the roof.

Now, the Lofts at City Museum is being developed in the same building as the museum. When residents move in, they'll receive a one-year pass for four to several museum attractions -- like Beatnik Bob's, a cafe within the museum, as well as a towering outdoor amusement area called MonstroCity. They'll also receive access to the roof, under heavy construction at the moment while Cassilly designs a water park, complete with an elevated glass-bottomed hot tub and water-spraying elephants.

"You just start playing with all the different pieces," Cassilly said. He spoke from the roof, in sight of a clear elevator that towers three stories above the building, a bridge salvaged from a casino and a planetarium dome, all being used in the new project. "With the lofts, it's the same approach, to make it feel like you have a unique space."

Matthew Philpott, the City Museum's general manager, said they wanted whimsical elements when building the lofts, but didn't want to overdo it.

So a textured, curving hallway wall turns out to actually be made of escalator steps, turned sideways and stacked on top of each other. Another wall is decorated with clear soda bottles. In a display loft bedroom, Cassilly has covered concrete block walls with a sculpted earth-tone plaster design.

Living on the upper floors of a museum building -- at price tags from about $150,000 to $400,000 -- may not be for everyone. "The people who want to be here enjoy the energy of the building," said Philpott. The hope is that the housing will help invigorate downtown -- creating a city within the building while bringing more energy to St. Louis itself, he said.

Some businesses like the idea of having workers downtown and are offering employees up to $5,000 as a forgivable loan if they buy a downtown residence and stay five years.

Farrell said businesses elsewhere in the nation offer similar incentives, but the concept -- where the Downtown Partnership and the mortgage company Fannie Mae teamed up -- is catching on in St. Louis. An architectural firm and a couple of banks are taking part.

Another project, The University Lofts, contains 26 rental lofts, 16 of which are set at lower rents specifically for artists. The Des Lee gallery on the first floor hosts the shows.

Philip Slein, a loft resident who directs the Des Lee gallery and his own across the street downtown, explained that Washington University owned the building when "the neighborhood was in a terrible state of disrepair."

Around 1997, artist Patrick Schuchard, who teaches at the university, mobilized businesses and developers to renovate the building to provide artists with housing. Washington University donated the property, and the new lofts opened in 2000. These days, Schuchard said, "There's a waiting list to get in them."

There are other fringe benefits to living in certain lofts, as Pablo Weiss, the owner of the popular Kitchen K restaurant downtown, explained.

He provides occasional perks to loft tenants who reside in the same Merchandise Mart building that houses his restaurant. It may not be enough incentive to make someone move, but he offers promotions like certificates for a free drink to those who check out the lofts, or gift cards for residents providing them with money off a meal.

He likes providing something nice to people for living downtown. "It builds up a core clientele," he said, adding, "Everyone likes a free drink."

ON THE NET

City Museum: http://www.citymuseum.org/lofts.html

Philip Slein gallery: http://www.philipsleingallery.com/

Kitchen K: http://www.kitchen-k.com