Born Again Swindonian’s Post

Karin Shedd from Morning Brew brilliantly explores the dynamics of #suburban office parks, shedding light on their challenges and opportunities. Now, let's discuss revitalization strategies for these communities. First and foremost, a crucial step is to initiate a comprehensive #rezoning effort. By reimagining and updating zoning #regulations, we can pave the way for the transformation and redevelopment of these office parks, making them more appealing and responsive to the evolving needs of markets and the community. #suburbs #commercialrealestate

St. Louis appears trapped in a city centre doom loop - with San Francisco not far behind - where offices sit empty, shops and restaurants close and abandoned buildings become voids that suck the life out of the streets around them. Locals often find boarded-up buildings depressing and empty sidewalks scary. So even fewer people commute downtown. This self-reinforcing cycle has accelerated in recent years as the pandemic emptied offices. St. Louis’s central business district had the steepest drop in foot traffic of 66 major North American cities between the start of the pandemic and last summer. And while things have improved some in the past 12 months, it is at a slower rate than many Midwestern cities. According to the The Wall Street Journal this "stands as a warning to others that this is the future for America’s downtowns if they can’t reinvent themselves and halt the downward spiral." Six of the 10 U.S. office districts with the steepest drop in foot traffic between 2019 and mid-2023 are in the Midwest. Common features are population loss; competition from newer offices in the suburbs and failed urban planning left behind a glut of dreary, empty buildings and wide, dangerous roads; business district have few apartments; and tourism not enough to make up for missing office workers. According to Glenn MacDonald, a professor of economics at Washington University in St. Louis’s Olin Business School. “It’s a classic chicken and egg kind of deal. People don’t go there because there’s nothing to do. There’s nothing to do because people don’t go there.”

Fortunately in Wisconsin, there was a push to keep people connected to office space, and even City leaders working with companies to incentivize workers to be in the office at least some of the time. Our BIDs have worked diligently to activate the City and restaurants have remained flexible to support increased traffic in Downtown Milwaukee. We even see DOT data showing that workers are 'back' to pre-pandemic levels across SE Wisconsin. Juxtapose this to cities such as San Francisco and Chicago, trying to save their downtown office districts from spiraling into a doom loop. St. Louis is already trapped in one. This was a stunning piece of information from the article: .."On a recent Tuesday morning, few people are on the streets on a 15-block stretch that makes up much of the southern portion of the St. Louis office district. Two empty storefronts exist for each open one. The office district’s northern half is a bit more lively, but not by much. Good luck finding a clothing store. There isn’t even a McDonald’s. Violent crime is rare, but car break-ins are common. The price for the AT&T Tower, three blocks from the Railway Exchange, was a sliver of the $205 million it sold for in 2006. Its value has been falling for years. In 2022, it changed hands for just $4 million." #workplace #officerealestate #safety #doomloop #postpandemic #commercialrealestate CARW - Commercial Association of REALTORS Wisconsin, Milwaukee Downtown, BID #21#21, Historic Third Ward Association City of Milwaukee

This article is another great one by the WSJ that highlights the demise of downtown office districts and the importance of implementing “fun” or “exciting” attractions to new developments for the vitality of the area. https://lnkd.in/gervskHi

The Wall Street Journal depicted Downtown St. Louis as a modern day Gotham made famous by the comic book Batman; they are not wrong. “The night is darkest just before the dawn.” Although the above quote from the Batman movie Dark Knight is not scientifically accurate (see 12 am), it succinctly describes the glum chapter we are on in our City’s history. The WSJ writer accurately paints a picture of a once vibrant ecosystem that is almost devoid of any pulse with its numerous vacant buildings, boarded-up businesses, scant foot traffic and rampant crime. Through compelling data, the story describes our Downtown’s descent into a doom loop Post-COVID with an inability to reinvent itself for a 21st Century remote-work world. Based on its research, we are near rock bottom compared to other major U.S. cities. We need St. Louis’ leadership to drastically change the spiraling trajectory of our Downtown with policies that reinvent how our lodestar and its residents/businesses co-exist. Other Rustbelt cities like Detroit have done an amazing job transforming their downtown’s into vibrant livable spaces again. I firmly believe we can do it with the public and private sectors working together to formulate a revolutionary strategic plan. The leaders of the City have been copied/put on notice with this LinkedIn post. Let’s see if they engage their constituents in a joint effort to rehab the face of Downtown for the betterment of our community. Show us the light! “And I promise you, the dawn is coming.” #community #rebirth #change #hope L. Jared Boyd Sara Baker Conner Kerrigan Charles E. Coyle, Sr. Megan-Ellyia Green Cara Spencer Neal Richardson, MBA Jason Hall City of St. Louis Greater St. Louis, Inc. St. Louis Post-Dispatch Alan Achkar St. Louis Business Journal Erik Siemers Konrad Putzier

Texas’ major cities are vibrant (though not without their problems), but with generally good near-term prospects. That’s why it’s hard to conceive of experiencing the “doom loop” as depicted in this article about St. Louis which was once a jewel of the Midwest.  This is the counter to Austin and Fort Worth, as two examples.  It reinforces that prosperity is neither inevitable nor perpetual.  It requires thoughtful, multi-generational leadership and sound economic policies, among many other factors.  From WSJ: Cities such as San Francisco and Chicago are trying to save their downtown office districts from spiraling into a doom loop. St. Louis is already trapped in one. As offices sit empty, shops and restaurants close and abandoned buildings become voids that suck the life out of the streets around them. Locals often find boarded-up buildings depressing and empty sidewalks scary. So even fewer people commute downtown.This self-reinforcing cycle accelerated in recent years as the pandemic emptied offices. St. Louis’s central business district had the steepest drop in foot traffic of 66 major North American cities between the start of the pandemic and last summer, according to the University of Toronto’s School of Cities. Traffic has improved some in the past 12 months, but at a slower rate than many Midwestern cities.Now, it stands as a warning to others: This is the future for America’s downtowns if they can’t reinvent themselves and halt the downward spiral.  https://lnkd.in/gfTReGix

Warning - polarizing post ahead: Yesterday, many of us started our day reading this article lambasting downtown St. Louis https://lnkd.in/gQq6gppc. Were the few facts provided accurate? Yes.  Were quotes taken out of context? Absolutely. One person confirmed such: https://lnkd.in/g5VRTuew   What compelled #KonradPutzier, to single out St. Louis as THE example of a ‘doom loop’? Who knows. Yesterday, someone said to me: “St. Louis has a self-esteem problem” – and she couldn’t have hit the nail on the head any better. We are our own worst enemies. So many of the notes I saw flying around yesterday were piling on to the #WSJ’s sentiment of the ‘black hole’ the downtown, and the City, are. What a shame that we collectively aren’t using a lens of optimism to tout the amazing things about this place. In addition to being better marketers – wouldn’t it be grand if we would also commit to promoting the knowledge, talent and businesses that exist here? In two decades of living here, I’ve met some of the brightest, most humble, quirky and thoughtful people who are passionate about renewing the city, reinvigorating the community, and aspire to make the Midwest anything but ‘flyover country’.   Yet, there is a heavy dose of realism in the fact that we, intentional or not, promote brain-drain from the area by compromising the available opportunities here.  In my industry, we are faced with the irony that the Downtown STL Master Plan was lead by a team of out-of-town consultants and designers. The City selected an out-of-town design firm to lead the 9-figure convention center expansion. Developers are being strung along and borderline punished when asking for incentives to push redevelopments across the finish line. When developers AREN’T asking for incentives, their efforts go largely ignored and certainly not promoted.  For example, how is everyone not talking about the ambitious, bullish, huge redevelopment plan of #GatewaySouth? Thanks to those behind that development for recognizing St. Louis as the gem it was, is (albeit needing some polishing), and can be. It feels like downtown has been left as a ‘City’ problem. Yet another reason we have to eradicate the division of City and County and act together. The region has 88 different municipalities. For reference, San Francisco, with a population 178% the size of STL, has 101; Nashville has SIX.   STL has 88 fiefdoms with individual leadership, budgets, master plans, code adoptions and zoning ordinances.  They are competing against one another for investment resulting in lots of parts that do not equal a whole and nothing resembling a collective vision. Sure, St. Louis has room for improvement. But show me a city that doesn’t. I’ll keep promoting STL, and more importantly, the people that live here. #konradputzier, would love to show you around.

The Railway Exchange Building was the heart of downtown St. Louis for a century. Every day, locals crowded into the sprawling, ornate 21-story office building to go to work, shop at the department store that filled its lower floors or dine on the famous French onion soup at its restaurant. Today, the building sits empty, with many of its windows boarded up. A fire broke out last year, which authorities suspect was the work of copper thieves. Police and firefighters send in occasional raids to search for missing people or to roust squatters. A search dog died during one of the raids last year when it fell through an open window. “It’s a very dangerous place,” said Dennis Jenkerson, the St. Louis Fire Department chief. It anchors a neighborhood with deserted sidewalks sprinkled with broken glass and tiny pieces of copper pipes left behind by scavengers. Signs suggest visitors should “park in well-lit areas.” Nearby, the city’s largest office building—the 44-story AT&T Tower, now empty—recently sold for around $3.5 million. Cities such as San Francisco and Chicago are trying to save their downtown office districts from spiraling into a doom loop. St. Louis is already trapped in one. As offices sit empty, shops and restaurants close and abandoned buildings become voids that suck the life out of the streets around them. Locals often find boarded-up buildings depressing and empty sidewalks scary. So even fewer people commute downtown. This self-reinforcing cycle accelerated in recent years as the pandemic emptied offices. St. Louis’s central business district had the steepest drop in foot traffic of 66 major North American cities between the start of the pandemic and last summer, according to the University of Toronto’s School of Cities. St. Louis stands as a warning to others: This is the future for America’s downtowns if they can’t reinvent themselves and halt the downward spiral. Last year, the city demolished a bridge connecting the Railway Exchange Building to a parking garage across the street because people kept using it to break into the building. It’s the cities far from the coasts that are suffering most. Six of the 10 U.S. office districts with the steepest drop in foot traffic between 2019 and mid-2023 are in the Midwest, according to the University of Toronto.   As in other Midwestern cities, the St. Louis office district has suffered a slow demise for decades. Population loss, competition from newer offices in the suburbs and failed urban planning left behind a glut of dreary, empty buildings and wide, dangerous roads. The business district has few apartments. There are some tourists, but not enough to make up for missing office workers. “It’s a classic chicken and egg kind of deal,” said Glenn MacDonald, a professor of economics at Washington University in St. Louis’s Olin Business School. “People don’t go there because there’s nothing to do. There’s nothing to do because people don’t go there.”

DID COVID KILL MIDWEST CITIES? “When the pandemic broke out in 2020 and millions of employees got used to working from home, pundits predicted the demise of big coastal cities. But office districts in New York, Miami and Boston have bounced back better than skeptics feared… “it’s the cities far from the coasts that are suffering most. Six of the 10 U.S. office districts with the steepest drop in foot traffic between 2019 and mid-2023 are in the Midwest, according to the University of Toronto.” #stlouis #midwest #covid #commercialrealestate https://lnkd.in/ew3cvMh3

Q: Do you have access to a moving company and/or storage facilities? Ann: Yes! We partner with Liffey Van Lines, Inc. (voted one of Forbes Top 10 best moving companies in NYC in 2023) and use their storage facilities on 121st Street. Have questions about how we can help? Reach out! #decluttering #organizing #realestate #gettingthingsdone