Forest Park Southeast is known for its inspiring neighborhood comeback story -- with the exception of one highly visible row of boarded up homes.
The seven buildings at Kingshighway and I-64 have been an eyesore for years. Now, the city has a plan to fix them up and make the property's owner pay for it. Lux Living hasn't followed through on its plans to build an apartment complex on the site, and last year, a city board ruled the company cannot tear down the buildings that are there now.
9th Ward Alderman Michael Browning lives in the neighborhood.
“The current developer involved here is one of the worst in St. Louis,” Browning told KMOX. “They’ve got dozens of cases pending. There’s no guarantee they’d be able to finish the project if they started it.”
Browning said under nuisance provisions in the city building codes, if Lux Living fails to pay for the fix-up, the city can seize the buildings. He said tearing down the structures isn't in the plans for Forest Park Southeast.
"The city has taken its stance on this. Demo is not an option," Browning said. “The neighborhood’s been fighting to keep its historic housing stock for decades if not centuries. This is a chance to reclaim some of the original housing.”
Browning said it'll cost the city about $200,000 per building for the renovations. The money would come from American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds earmarked for stabilizing buildings.
Browning says it this plan works, it could become a blueprint.
“So if we can do it here, in a high value area right in front of the hospital, this could be a model going forward for dealing with other problem properties in the city.”
