ST. LOUIS — A public agency is set to acquire a Laclede's Landing garage, demolish it and eventually build out and operate a park on the site.
Susan Trautman, CEO of regional parks and trails district Great Rivers Greenway, said Thursday that it's set to close on a garage owned by St. Louis Parking Co. at 701-713 N. Wharf St. The city of St. Louis' Land Clearance for Redevelopment Authority has approved granting Great Rivers Greenway $186,000 for the purchase, and another public entity, the St. Louis Port Authority, is to pay LCRA back over time, using revenue generated from levy parking along the Mississippi riverfront. That arrangement was necessary, officials said, because Great Rivers Greenway cannot pay above appraised value for property.
A green space under construction at a cost of $442,000, The Katherine Ward Burg Garden, is situated nearby, adjacent to the Eads Bridge, but the garage is an "impediment" to further developing the riverfront north of the Arch, Trautman said.
During years with large floods, the structure has been inundated, causing its closure, she said.
Trautman said the organization would look to demolish the structure "as soon as feasible," but that its proximity to a railroad trestle could complicate matters.
Great Rivers Greenway has $750,000 in its budget for demolition and greening over the site, Trautman said, but it doesn't yet have funding to create a park on the site. She expressed optimism that federal funding could become available for the project.
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