Booming muttropolis

By JAKE WAGMAN

St. Louis Post-Dispatch

ST. LOUIS -- From building permits to census revisions, city officials have pointed to all sorts of evidence that downtown St. Louis is finally coming back.

But maybe the real proof was nipping at their heels.

Downtown, long hounded by empty buildings and vanishing industry, has gone to the dogs.

Dogs, many of them, are following their owners to the city's burgeoning loft district. Look no farther than Washington Avenue, where, tethered to the young professionals who have moved to the area, is a constant procession of dachshunds, Labrador retrievers and Weimaraners.

"This is like doggy central," said Rob Laciny, 29, while walking his dog at an improvised park across from the Social Security Administration building.

In places with established urban credentials such as Manhattan and San Francisco, having a pet companion is part of hip downtown living. In St. Louis, however, a booming pet population may be a signal that downtown is headed in the right direction.

Having a dog is part of the downtown St. Louis scene, says Jan Atkinson, who lives with her Jack Russell terrier, Lily, in the Railway Lofts.

Grab a latte. Sit outside. Check out who's walking whom. Sometimes, she said, the pooches are more popular than the people.

"You know the dogs' names, and you know the people that walk the dogs. But you don't necessarily know their names," Atkinson said.

Developers are starting to take notice. Lofts are being built with private dog walks and "doggy bag" dispensers. Most buildings allow pets, though some place weight limits on the size of dogs allowed.

Residents have been pushing the neighborhood association to designate "dog friendly" businesses. Some establishments have already gotten the hint.

The Washington Ave. Post, a coffee shop in the Garment Row Lofts building, has a water bowl for its customers' pets. Up the street, the Hair of the Dog tavern, of course, will occasionally allow a four-legged patron in off hours, says proprietor Dominic Bruening.

Across the way, Kenny Shortal runs Kenary Park florists with his partner, Gary Hutchinson. The shop sells dog leashes, dog bowls and dog Halloween costumes.

For Shortal -- whose dog, Buffy, comes to work with him -- the sight of people walking their dogs is proof that downtown is no longer just a place people go to eat and watch baseball before hopping back on the interstate and heading home.

It's a community, he said, filled with people doing "normal things."

"Just like out in the county," Shortal said. "It gives downtown that whole neighborhood feel."

Cori Hill, 28, agrees. A lawyer, she recently moved from University City to the loft district with her husband -- and, of course, her two miniature schnauzers, Pele and Toby.

"People have a home life in the city," Hill said. "Including having a dog."

Yet Hill and other pet owners do have a bone to pick about downtown: no dog park.

That could soon change, though.

Earlier this month, a group of residents interested in establishing a dog park downtown met to discuss the effort. They have begun to lobby Alderman Lewis Reed, whose ward includes several buildings in the Downtown West neighborhood.

The push is to make part of Lucas Park a dog hangout, though Reed acknowledged that the plan had been rumored for years. The park also has a concentration of homeless people, which could also be an issue.

"There is tension between the homeless and the new downtown residents," Reed said. "Whether we do a dog park or not, we need to find a better solution to what's happening now down there."

Part of the reason city officials such as Reed welcome the growing pet population is because of who's holding the leash -- single professionals and couples, gay and straight, with no children but plenty of disposable income.

Marcia Masulla, 26, moved last year from west St. Louis County to the King Bee Lofts with Chico, her Chihuahua.

Masulla is set to open a clothing boutique downtown and plans on putting Chico to work -- he'll be "vice president of sales," she quipped. As it is, Masulla said, Chico is already something of a dog about town, a welcome guest in many of the area's trendy bars and restaurants.

Does Chico miss the green pastures of Chesterfield? Not one bit.

"He's totally a city dog," she said.