The much maligned Private Building Stabilization Program has been terminated and liens forgiven by Mayor Spencer. I’m not going to argue that the shortcomings and alleged corruption weren’t so. You can read some of the coverage below. What I will do is show you some of the good that came of the program.
StlToday – St. Louis is fixing neglected buildings and forcing owners to pay for the repairs
StlMag – He bought a building—only to get St. Louis city’s year-old repair bill
StlMag – City building inspector has ties to second company earning $1M-plus in ARPA dollars
StlMag – St. Louis building inspector linked to $2.3M in ARPA spending resigns
Stl City – Mayor Spencer Shuts Down Problematic Building Stabilization Program
Stl Today – Building owners sue over St. Louis stabilization program
Whenever a traditional St. Louis building fell down due to demolition by neglect we’d scream “Do Something!” to our city government. For any number of reasons owners couldn’t or wouldn’t fix them up- government policy, priorities, and spending, market forces, inability to secure financing, lack of money, skills, and time, family issues, probate issues, the endowment effect, land speculation, etc, etc. The carrots like historic tax credits, tax abatement, neighborhood preservation tax credits, low income housing tax credits, sales tax exemption, etc weren’t getting it done. Nor were the sticks like the tiny fines the city could levy. Voters passed the ability for bigger fines last fall. We’ll see if it helps. Eminent domain used to be used more often, but it has fallen out of favor with the notable exception of the Railway Exchange building downtown.
Legal Services of Eastern Missouri has been helping neighbors and neighborhoods sue derelict property owners. Reach out to them if you have a nuisance property near you.
The city has always had the authority to conduct emergency repairs on buildings that pose a threat or nuisance. However, the building division lacked the funds to cover the costs of repairs upfront. – St. Louis Post-Dispatch
With the help of ARPA funding Mayor Jones created this program in January 2023. Some privately-held and LRA-owned buildings were stabilized under the program or by the threat of the program, and I’m grateful for it. Below are a few.
4831-37 Fountain
The posterchild of what should be a marquee building for a neighborhood, the kind of place that creates community, has been left to rot for nearly 20 years and a few economic cycles by its owner. The owner hasn’t paid the tiny amount of property taxes for the last three years. One more year and it could go to tax sale, but the owner can pay up up until the last moment. The costs of the repairs might have convinced the owner to finally let it go, but those have been forgiven.
NextSTL – Groth Guide to Fountain Park
NextSTL – 2013 – Alert: Fountain Park Gem in Desperate Need of Rehab (4831-37 Fountain Avenue)
NextSTL – 2013 – Fountain Park Landmark May See Stabilization Work
NextSTL – 2023 – Kingsway Development envisions hotel and more on Delmar and in Fountain Park
5200 Cates
5200 Cates is a building along the former Suburban Railway tracks then Hodiamont streetcar line. The longtime owner sought demolition in 2021 after part of the rear wall collapsed. The Preservation Board denied the request. The wall was rebuilt and a proper board up done under the program. A lien of $221,700 was placed in May of 2024. The triangle shape and small size of the lot make new construction very unlikely. Keeping this building standing to someday be a community gathering place and node on the forthcoming Hodiamont Greenway is a great use of the program.
NextSTL – 2021 – Demo Alert: 5200 Cates
4829 Fountain
It got a new porch roof and a proper board up (perhaps more). It’s owned by Flip USA LLC with a mailing address in Clayton. The owner hasn’t paid property taxes in four years, so it should go to tax sale this year. There is an extra $44k for the repairs which have been forgiven with the cancellation of the liens. The owner can pay the little bit of property taxes owed and keep speculating.
2007 N Market
The only one owned by Paul McKee’s Northside Regeneration that I could find. He has applied for a demolition permit 4 times.
4221 Delmar
New gutters, fixed porch, board up. Working gutters are crucial to keeping a building standing.
3817 Vest
1907 Bremen
An LRA building across from Hyde Park.
1521 Bremen
1523 Bremen
3323 N 9th
I’m surprised this one got stabilized because it’s on the other side of the I-70 traffic sewer cut off from the Hyde Park neighborhood.
3949 N 20th
4025 N 11th
7121-29 S Broadway
The whole stretch of South Broadway in Carondelet and Patch are in rough shape. Prostitutes walk, men sit alone in parked cars, drug addiction is rampant, and ghost dogs roam.
Before
After
Before
After
7200 S Broadway
The entire block of 7200 S Broadway was lost to demolition by neglect a few years ago. If only this program had existed in time to stabilize it. Let’s hope a program of this sort returns soon before more gems are lost.
