ST. LOUIS | Albion West End | 335 FT | 30 FLOORS

[futuresooner]

STL-based Koplar properties is proposing this stunning 30-story residential tower on one of the most commanding spots in the city that has long been a surface lot at Kinsghighway Blvd & Lindell Blvd, directly adjacent to the stunning 100 Above the Park that was delivered in 2020.

More details and renderings are to come about the scope of this project, but many in St. Louis are excited this eyesore of a surface lot across the street from Forest Park is meeting a stunning fate.
https://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/news/2022/02/22/30-story-tower-proposed.html

[Hudson11]

that looks brilliant.

[colemonkee]

Love it. The cylindrical shape is similar to 100 Above the Park in terms of overall massing, but the smooth edges and simple glass facade are a nice contrast. This seems pretty well thought through, only having seen one rendering. I really hope this gets built.

[Steely Dan]

^ agreed.

and it kills a surface parking lot?

yes please!

[futuresooner]

Originally Posted by Steely Dan

^ agreed.

and it kills a surface parking lot?

yes please!

Yep, it’s been a surface lot for several decades. This is a truly fantastic proposal and look forward to more renderings coming out.

Hopefully this will spark development on another terrible large surface lot a block away at Euclid & Lindell.

[Chris Stritzel]

A public meeting was held tonight that discussed this project. No real people showed up who were in opposition. Two new renderings and a site plan were revealed tonight. In addition to the previously revealed information, here's a bit more...
- 154 bike parking spaces
- 10 electric car charging stations (more to be added)
- Stormwater detention garden will be included on the back of the building
- Project should be green building certified
- Bird-friendly glass
- Bike and car share program (to allow residents to leave their cars behind)
- 400% property tax increase over the current amount
- Creation of 450 union construction jobs across the duration of construction (26 months)
- $37 Million in minority-owned and woman-owned contract work
- Vocational training partnerships will be provided
- Local business partnerships to drive revenue for local dining and retail options
- A tax abatement will be sought.

I did a write up summary on what happened at the meeting tonight. Link here: https://www.cityscene-stl.com/post/kopla...y-meeting-on-the-albion-west-end-project

[colemonkee]

Really nice renderings, and love the materials and the electric car charging stations! More of those, please! The only miss here I see is the rooftop parking. Big miss to not have a larger outdoor space for residences. But that would get them out onto the streets a bit more, so not a totally bad thing.

[Chris Stritzel]

^Yea. The rooftop parking isn’t really needed since the garage already has a greater than 1:1 parking ratio in the city’s most walkable neighborhood (behind the Delmar Loop). The other issue people have with it is the lack of activation for most of the Lindell side. Extending the Plaza and trying to add in a small retail space there might help with that side a bit. Overall though, the design is nice and I like the detailing around the first floor. The development team said over and over that this will end up being a better product than One Hundred next door.

Also, I didn’t notice this before but the site plan has a height that should be added to the title of this thread: 335ft.

[Rnelson]

Looks fantastic. Hope it goes forward. Looks like it would have much better street level appeal than the neighboring 100 which to me is very off-putting at ground level.

[STLgasm]

Cultural Resources Office recommends approval for Albion West End - a big step forward for this project.

Revised renderings - all images courtesy of cityscene-stl.com










[IMG]http:/https://static.wixstatic.com/media/815315_4f975d2baf52473eb7d07e395eadd17b~mv2.png/v1/fill/w_2707,h_1505,al_c,q_90/815315_4f975d2baf52473eb7d07e395eadd17b~mv2.webp[/IMG]

[KevinFromTexas]

Really nice looking building.

[Chris Stritzel]

The City of St. Louis Planning Commission approved of the blighting study for the property, advancing a previously approved 10-year, 75% tax abatement for the project (approved at the December LCRA meeting). This now moves on to the Board of Aldermen and, if passed there, the Mayor

If all goes well, the project could start in Q4 of this year.

Since February 2022, project costs have increased by 10%, thus the need for a tax abatement became more of a necessity to make this possible.

Per plans I have on my computer, the height will be 350ft instead of 335ft.

[futuresooner]

Finally, a big update, it's going forward!

"On Tuesday (January 28th 2025), the City's LCRA will officially designate the Koplar-Albion development team as the developer of the property."

More or less a procedural need to grant the commencement of construction. A few folks on a STL-based forum have seen 2 or 3 core drillers on the site in the last week or so, and then the above quote in the article below gives a heavy hand to a good sign.

CityScene STL
https://www.cityscene-stl.com/post/albion-west-end-is-moving-ahead

[Chris Stritzel]

Originally Posted by futuresooner

Finally, a big update, it's going forward!

"On Tuesday (January 28th 2025), the City's LCRA will officially designate the Koplar-Albion development team as the developer of the property."

More or less a procedural need to grant the commencement of construction. A few folks on a STL-based forum have seen 2 or 3 core drillers on the site in the last week or so, and then the above quote in the article below gives a heavy hand to a good sign.

CityScene STL
https://www.cityscene-stl.com/post/albion-west-end-is-moving-ahead

The design has been revised a bit. The recessed balconies on the 5th and 23rd floors have been removed. The front curve has been removed. A golden colored herringbone pattern is a feature of the facade now. Curved corners still exist. The desire is to start construction this summer.

[futuresooner]

Oh, I actually really like the redesign. A statement piece at a big intersection for sure!

[ColDayMan]

Yeah, I like the redesign better.

[StevenW]

Yes, the design is very pleasing to the eye, aesthetically.

[Chris Stritzel]

This project was recently approved by the City's Preservation Board and lost the strip on the 23rd floor. The project is now out for bid on the SLDC Playroom. Construction documents provide us new renderings, elevations (where the height is shown as 320ft) and axonometric views. Construction should commence this year.

[BuildThemTaller]

I like how they hid the parking garage from the view looking east from Forest Park.

[Chris Stritzel]

A building permit was applied for the foundations. Contractor bidding closes on June 18th.