ABOUT FOREST PARK SOUTHEAST NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION
About Forest Park Southeast
The Forest Park Southeast Neighborhood is one of the City’s up & coming neighborhoods. Located within walking distance of Forest Park, the neighborhood is positioned just south of the Central Corridor, which is an increasingly important economic hub for the City. The area is well-positioned between revitalizing areas and thriving institutions. Forest Park – which is the seventh largest public park in the United States – is a nationally treasured public space that has over 13M visitors evEry year and contains some of the region’s most prized cultural institutions, including: the St. Louis Museum of Art, the St. Louis Science Center, the Missouri History Museum, the Muny, and the St. Louis Zoo.
Just north of the neighborhood, Barnes-Jewish Hospital and the CORTEX Innovation Community are two of the countries most well-respected medical, bioscience, and technology research institutions; and some of the region’s most important centers of economic development and employment. Many of the current and future projects in and around the neighborhood are being driven by these institutions’ need to provide housing and re- tailing to support their employee workforce. Additionally, these institutions are bisected by the light rail transportation system – MetroLink. The area is just over 1/2 of a mile from the system’s busiest stop, the Central West End Station; and justM1/4 of a mile south of the future CORTEX Station, which will be the first new station added to the original alignment since 1990. Adding additional strength to the area, the long awaited IKEA store has just started construction. In addition, there are a number of new multi-family and student housing projects currently under construction, and a few large-scale commercial redevelopments.
Just to the south of the neighborhood across Vandeventer Avenue, the Botanical Heights Neighborhood (formerly McRee Town) has quickly become a local redevelopment success story. The area, which was the epicenter of one of the largest wholesale land clearance projects in the City’s history, is now home to a number of boutique businesses and design firms. The urban entrepreneurial spirit is increasing, and local designers are seeking to reclaim the area’s neighborhood fabric with historic renovations and contemporary infill projects. Just across Interstate 44, the Missouri Botanical Garden is the nation’s oldest botanical garden in continuous operation and is one of the most prized botanical research and educational science institutions in the region.
The southern portion of the neighborhood is anchored by Adams Elementary School & Adams Park Community Center and Club, which has been operated by the Boys & Girls Club of Greater St. Louis since 2001. Immediately adjacent to the school, the Adams Community Center provides a range of services, programming, and support for neighborhood residents. North of Manchester Avenue, a variety of new public and private development projects are underway including a Hilton Home2 Suites, the new Shriner’s Hospital, Chouteau Park, and the CORTEX Commons – all compounding investment that is beginning to bridge the divide across Interstate 64 | Highway 40, which itself has undergone numerous bridge replacement projects and interchange improvements over the last few years.
Acting as the spine of the neighborhood, the Grove Commercial District is both a seam and divider between the north and south areas of the neighborhood. Manchester Avenue is becoming one of the City’s premier entertainment and nightlife districts. Each year, the neighborhood sees an increase in local interest and new events are bringing young artists, cyclists, and new residents into the neighbor- hood to experience the emerging vibrance of the area. Urban Chestnut’s Grove Brewery & Bierhall has become home to many craft brew lovers; and the Ready Room is bringing hundreds of new people into the neighborhood for nightly concerts. With the commercial district as one of the driving forces for revitalization, the neighborhood is quickly becoming one of the most desirable places to live in the City.
Neighborhood Vision
Below is a link to the strategic vision for the Forest Park Southeast Neighborhood. The vision encompasses a series of specific and strategic recommendations for the neighborhood with the goal to improve the general welfare, experiential quality, perceptions, identity, safety, livability, and quality of life for all of the residents in Forest Park Southeast. The planning process for this was funded with Community Development Block Grants from the Community Development Administration of the City of St. Louis, and generous support from the Washington University Medical Center Redevelopment Corporation.
Neighborhood Form-Based Code
The Form-Based District as an overlay zoning district and a means of guiding future growth in an environmentally, socially, and economically sustainable manner.
The purpose of the District is to promote health, safety, convenience, comfort, prosperity, and the general welfare of the community by establishing unique allowed use and development standards for properties within the District.
These standards are intended to help preserve and protect the existing historic and distinctive character of the District by requiring new construction and additions to existing buildings to be integrated into and complement the built environment.
Through the application of these standards the relationship between building facades and the public realm, the form and mass of buildings in relation to one another, and the scale and types of streets and blocks are addressed.
The Code includes the following regulatory subjects: Building Envelope Standards, Development Standards, and use regulations.