While Saint Louis is not particularly known for its high-rise buildings, those familiar with the city are certainly aware of its amazing collection of handsome historic high-rises. Outside of Chicago (and possibly Detroit), Saint Louis has the largest and finest collection of historic residential high-rises and mid-rises in the Midwest. Grand old apartment, co-op and condo buildings can be found in all corners of the city, but they are particularly common in the central corridor, spanning from downtown and midtown on the east to the inner-ring suburb of Clayton on the west. The highest concentration of handsome old residential high-rises are located in the Central West End (my neighborhood), a dense old neighborhood just east of Forest Park that boomed at the time of the 1904 World's Fair. In addition to grand old brick buildings from the teens and twenties, there are also a number of funky mid-century high-rises to spice things up. The CWE has always been characterized by its urbane, sophisticated flavor, and the built environment certainly reflects that.
By no means did I come close to photographing all of the large residential buildings in the Central West End (much less the rest of the central corridor), but this is just a sampling of buildings I find interesting in my immediate neighborhood.
For context, here are some photos that show the overall scale, location and density of the neighborhood...
The central corridor skyline looking east from downtown Clayton:
Photo courtesy of kcgridlock
The central corridor skyline looking west from downtown St. Louis:
Photo courtesy of kcgridlock
Zooming in on the CWE:
Photos courtesy of KCgridlock
Let's walk, shall we?
The Greystone, Newstead & Westminster:
Hampden Hall, Newstead & Pershing:
The Towne House, a taste of Miami Beach on Lindell & Newstead:
The Ellsworth, West Pine & Newstead - one of my favorite buildings in the neighborhood. The building manager told me that every single storefront in the building is still used for its original purpose - the West Pine Pharmacy (the sign still says "Apothecary"), The Ellsworth Diner (an original), Shapiro's Market (also an original), a dry cleaners, and a hair salon:
The Hawthorne, West Pine near Taylor:
The Executive House, West Pine:
One of my favorite towers on West Pine was demolished in 1998 and replaced by a rather bland townhouse development. R.I.P. the Round Building:
Photo courtesy of
http://builtstlouis.net/
The Park East, one of the newest residential towers in the neighborhood:
The Parkway (not a large building, but I love it anyway), Laclede & Buckingham Court:
Now on to Kingshighway, the "Central Park West" of St. Louis, if I dare make the comparison. Dramatic high-rises line the street just east of Forest Park, and are among the finest addresses in the entire metro area. Here's an older pic I snapped that shows broader span of the street:
And the individual buildings...
The Montclaire on the Park, Kingshighway & Forest Park Parkway:
The ABC, Kingshighway & Laclede:
The Parc Frontenac, Kingshighway & Lindell:
Detouring back onto West Pine briefly...
The Del Coronado, a '70s monster that I happen to love:
The Park Lane, West Pine & Euclid:
The Forest Park Apartments (formerly the Forest Park Hotel), West Pine & Euclid:
The Chase Apartments and Chase Hotel, Lindell Blvd:
The stately St. Regis Co-op, Lindell Blvd:
Back on Kingshighway...
Front view of the Chase:
The luxurious Park Plaza (the art deco mama of the CWE):
The Park Plaza is so dramatic, it is worth posting these photos that I snapped on a sunny day:
Continuing east on Maryland, the Fairmont:
Jive and I aren't the only twins in St. Louis! These handsome buildings are at the corner of Maryland & Taylor:
The solid, albeit relatively plain Convent Gardens, Taylor & Pershing:
Back on Lindell again...
The Pierre Chouteau:
If the Jetsons lived in St. Louis, they'd definitely live in the Jackson Arms:
The uninterrupted stretch of high-rise apartment buildings on Lindell Blvd. was recently dealt a tragic blow with the demolition of the San Luis Apartments (formerly the DeVille Motor Hotel) last year. A parking lot for the Archdiocese of St. Louis now occupies the site where the retro beauty stood (the large white on the right):
R.I.P. San Luis:
On the bright side, the stretch of Lindell between Euclid & Taylor remains intact and is one of the greatest high-rise residential blocks in the city. The row of buildings on the north side of Lindell are particularly notable:
A closer look at the individual buildings...
The sleek 1960s-era Lindell Terrace:
And her stately un-named neighbor next door:
The Traimore Castle:
The Monticello:
The ultramodern 4545:
The Park Royal:
The President:
Hope you enjoyed!
And here's a teaser for my next thread... Jive & Gasm hit South City St. Louis!
...Stay tuned!
Prev
Linear Mode
