ST. LOUIS — There’s investment into downtown St. Louis via new retail and efforts to bring new life to old apartments. It's part of a business boom on Washington Avenue happening right now, and a local developer said he's not stopping anytime soon.
It’s a renewed vision for a more vibrant downtown.
"You can walk out the front door right here, and there's a Thai restaurant. There's a sushi restaurant. You can go to Rooster for breakfast. You've got Bella's for fro-yo,” St. Louis developer Alex Oliver said.
He wanted in on the action after building properties in other parts of the city.
"We've been in Central West End, DeBaliviere neighborhood, north of Delmar Loop area ... We've done quite a bit in south city over the years,” he said.
Now, his focus is downtown. Last year, Oliver Properties acquired the Six Cord apartment building at 10th Street and Washington Avenue. A $7 million renovation project is happening to upgrade appliances, amenities and overall décor.
On the first floor, there’s vacant space that will soon welcome more dining options. Directly across the street, Buddy's Wine Bar and Bistro opened last week, housed where the former Mango and Mosaic restaurants once lived.
"I've seen it in its ups and downs, and I feel like we’re at this renaissance phase. There's a lot about to happen downtown,” Owner Corey James said.
James lives and works downtown.
"We’re kind of doubling down. We're going all in … Next year should be one of the biggest years for conventions and we want to be a part of that,” he said.
Investment and intention: That's how you make a vision reality.
"The more of those residents move in down here, the more they become customers for these ground floor retail spaces. Those retail spaces may get more people that want to live here, and it becomes kind of this virtuous cycle,” Oliver said.
Oliver Properties is eyeing even more projects in the downtown area to continue building on the same model to step up foot traffic.