INSIDETHETHIRD

n°1
WARD
 Hello!

We are a group of students from the Harvard University

Graduate School of Design, which is dedicated to the education
and development of design professionals in architecture,
landscape architecture, urban planning, and urban design.

This semester, we were invited by a small group of community

leaders to spend some time studying St. Louis’s 3rd Ward’s past,
present, and future. Composed of the northeast neighborhoods
of JeffVanderLou, St. Louis Place, Hyde Park, College Hill,
Fairground Neighborhood, and O’Fallon, the 3rd Ward—which
is 94 percent African American—has some of St. Louis’s lowest
home values, lowest life expectancies, and highest poverty rates.
Physically, block after block after block appear abandoned. But if
the 3rd Ward is lacking in population, economic development, and
basic social services, it is not lacking in pride, energy, and hope.
Indeed, the 3rd Ward is home to a robust (and youthful) network
of artists, activists, and community-based organizations who are
working together to build a healthier, more equitable 3rd Ward.

This newspaper--the first of two volumes--presents some of

our initial observations about the 3rd Ward. A second volume
(to be published in late 2018) will present some ideas for
how to help build the 3rd Ward that residents want to see.

If you have any questions and comments for us, please email us at
gsdinward3@gmail.com.
We look forward to seeing you around the Ward!
 FALL 2018

CONTENTS
#activism
“LIGHTING THE WAY”
“CITY OF PROTEST”
“BLACK LIVES & POLICY MATTER”
“A PARK AND ITS VISION FOR PEACE”
#interesting “LANDMARKS OF INJUSTICE”

#history
“THE JOURNEY OF A BRICK”
“THE TWO TOWERS OF THE THIRD WARD”
“POPULATION & THE WARDS”
“ART HISTORY”
#interesting “BOLLARDS”

#landuse
“THE WARD 3 UNDERGROUND”
“WHAT’S WITH ALL THE RAINGARDENS?”
“VACANCY OVER TIME”
“WHO OWNS THE LAND?”
“SECRET OF THE STREET”
#interesting “DISCOVER THE MURALS”

#how to
“UNTAPPED POTENTIAL”
“TAKE ME TO THE RIVER”
“A GUIDE TO WARD 3 PARKS
“GARDEN COMMUNITY”
“MOW TO OWN”
“WANT TO LEARN SOME REHAB SKILLS?”
“HOW TO BUY A VACANT LOT”
“THE FINEST 15”
“A HITCHHIKER’S GUIDE”
“IN NEED OF HOME REPAIRS?”
#interesting “CHOP SUEY”

#interview
“CODING FOR KIDS”
“PEOPLE WE MET”
INSIDE THE THIRD

LIGHTING THE WAY:

black feminist leadership in St. Louis and beyond
Civil Rights would not exist without
Black women. From Myrlie Evers, to
Angela Davis, and Kathleen Cleaver,
the intersectional, feminist
organizing efforts of
Black women
continue to
“Black women
fundamentally
transform our have defied and
society. However,
despite their indel-
ible shaping of who
re-imagined what
we are as a nation,
Black feminist
leadership looks
leaders have
historically gone like in action.”
unsung. These
women deserve to not only be
acknowledged for their contributions,
but celebrated.
In a recent talk at the Harvard
Law School, Dr. Janet Dewart Bell
discussed her book Lighting the
Fires of Freedom, which outlines the
immense contributions of Black
women throughout the Civil Rights
Movement. Bell discussed the
enduring attributes of Black
feminist leadership, arguing that it is a
leadership rooted in courage,
authenticity, and purpose. As she
writes in the book, throughout the
Civil Rights Movement Black women
Frankie Muse freeman (Photo from Missouri Historical Society; Collage by
Aleiya Evison)
done. They raised money and provied
housing and solace- all without
expectation of personal gain” (Bell, 1).
While Black women were often
portrayed in the background “sitting
quietly while the men strategized,”
as Bell asserted, these women “were
the strategy”. From organizing com-
munity meetings, to participating in
civil disobedience, and making sure
fellow activists were fed, Black women
have navigated Civil Rights with a
firece persistence.
Their leadership is
arguably a direct
challenge to what we
are told
leadership looks
like. While “leaders”
are often portrayed
as white, wealthy,
and at the very least
male, Black women
have defied and re-
imagined what lead-
ership is in action. They have histori-
cally operated with a less
hierarchical approach, leveregaing
collective strengths. “They’re not
cookie cutter-heroines,” Bell explained Brittany Packnett (Photo from Brittany Packnett; Collage by Aleiya Evison)
during her talk, “they’re real women”.
On Black Feminist Leadership Society). She was also nominated as is Vice President of the National Com-
the first woman to join the U.S. munity Alliances and Engagement
in the Law Commision on for Teach for
Out of St. Louis, activist Frankie Muse
Freeman was so tenacious in her
Civil Rights in
1964, where she
“We use everything at America,
Co-Founder
fight for social justice, that her com-
munity often referred to her as “Ms.
would serve for
16 years (St. our disposable to get of Campaign
Zero, and a
Frankie Freedom” (St. Louis Post Louis Post- current
Dispatch). She was an organizer
and a lawyer who graduated from
Dispatch). free...we use every- visiting
F u r t h e r , fellow at the
the Howard University Law School, Ms.Freeman
was a mentor to
thing we have to make Harvard
Kennedy
younger activists
such as things move.” School
Institute of
Elizabeth Politics. She
Eckford and Thelma has been instrumental to our 21st
Mothershed of the Little Rock Nine century struggle for Civil Rights.
(Missouri Historical Society). She
embodied community by When asked about what Black
supporting the next generation of feminist leadership looks like,
activists through her compassion and Packnett responded, “We watched
mentorship, while forging the path for Black women occupy so many spaces,
Black women in law. Her legacy and do it well, with great care,”
established St. Louis as a central referring to the leadership she
figure in U.S. Civil Rights, and created observed growing up from the
a succession of Black feminist matriarchs around her.
organizers to follow.
Pointing to examples of such
On Collective Leadership in leadership, Packnett explained, “I
Service to Community think of Mama Kat, who was always
there to feed us in Ferguson. She’s
As Brittany Packnett’s twitter back an incredible chef and leader in her
ground reads, “Black women are not own right. She understood that in that
a trend. Congratulations to folks who moment we needed to be fed and we
finally noticed how dope we are...but needed to feel love. I think other
we have been forever cradling people might see her cooking meals
civilizations.” Her remarks, like Bell, for protesters as small...but it was an
spending much of her life and career
point to the unacknowledged ways act of immense generosity, not only
in St. Louis. Freeman, who passed
that Black feminist activists have financially, but the amount of time
away at 101 this past winter, used her
always been present in the shaping of and care and love that she put into
background in law to further Civil
America. that, continues to fuel so many of us. I
Rights as the lead Attorney in the
think that Black women are the soul of
1952 case Davis v. St. Louis Housing
Packnett, a former teacher and so many movements, and Mama Kat is
Authority. Her efforts ended formal
longtime activist who contributed to an example of that.”
racial segregation in public housing
organizing efforts following the
across St. Louis (Missouri Historical
murder of Mike Brown in Ferguson, Packnett continued, speaking of her

#ACTIVISM

DeAndrea Nichols (Photo from DeAndrea Nichols; Collage by Aleiya Evison)
friend “Brittany Ferrell who is a
mother, and during many nights of
the protests we would see her with her
daughter Kenna- I saw her raising a
revolutionary child. Which is such a
powerful act. It is not just a ferocity on
the frontlines, but the way we rear a
child that can change the world.”
Packnett continues to find inspiration
and motivation in the Black feminist
collective, explaining how Black
women “use everything at our
disposable to get free. Whether it’s
our skills in kitchen, the way that
we mother, the way that we nurture,
the songs we play, the leadership we
show- we use everything we have to
make things move.”
Packnett’s friend, Diana Mitchell, who
is a Dean at Washington University,
leveraged her resources to empower
organizers following the Ferguson
protests through higher education. As
Packnett explained, Mitchell “was not
out there on the streets necessarily,
but her role was to make
sure that all of these activists who
emerged
from
Ferguson
the “We have to shake the
uprising had
the chance conditioning that we’ve
to continue
honing their had, which says optimism
skills. A lot of
those
organizers
is naive, or that opti-
are now go-
ing to Wash
mism is weak, or that op- Evident in
U, tuition
free, and they timism is not valuable.” her work as
a designer
are crush-
ing it. And of
course they are,” she said brightly.
“Black women are just so formidable-
I can stare down a police officer who
just tear gassed me on Monday night
and then go to school on a Tuesday
and turn in a paper.”
She continued, describing that these
students “knew they weren’t just going
to go over there and forget about the
people- they’re still running
campaigns and mothering- all while
going to school.”
Heeding the contributions of these
women, as Packnett continues
organizing, shaping national
discourse on race and politics, and
writing, she said, “I dream of joy.
Cause I think that’s what freedom feels
like. Right now it’s almost like we have
to steal our joy. We have to find the
hidden moments and spaces where we
can experience Black joy without gaze
and disapproval. Not constant joy, but
unencumbered joy where being able
to live as my full self is never seen as
threat to anyone else.”
On Imagining Freedom
When you talk to DeAndrea Nichols,
it becomes clear quite quickly that her
work is also driven by courage,
purpose, and optimism. “It is easy to
give up,” she explained,“to walk away
from a struggle. It takes a lot of
resilience, strategy, and willpower to
say ‘I am a believer that this thing can
be correct-
ed, that this
thing can
be changed.
I am
willing to
stay in this
and stay
unwaver-
ing.’”
for social
change at
Civic Creatives in St. Louis, is
is this very optimism. It seems to be
her superpower, challenging the
notion that staying optimistic- and
certainly staying optimistic as a Black
woman- is naive. “We have to shake
the conditioning that we’ve had,
which says optimism is naive or that
optimism is weak or that optimism is
not valuable” she explained, sharing
#ACTIVISM
why she has no plans to stop
imagining more equitable, abundant
communities.
With her optimism comes a very real
understanding that the work to be
done is vast. Nichols was also an
active organizer following the
shooting of Mike Brown in 2014, in
addition to the 100-day protest last
year when officer Jason Stockley
was acquitted for shooting Anthony
Lamar Smith. Nichols explained that
instances such as this- police brutality
and continued racial oppression in her
community- drive her to use her art in
protest. For example, she collaborated
to create the Mirror Casket- a to-scale
coffin covered in mirrors that protest-
ers held at the reflection of police
officers during the Ferguson Uprising.
In 2016 the piece was collected by the
Smithsonian Institute’s African Amer-
ican Museum of History and Culture
in recognition of its powerful
commentary on the current state of
Civil Rights in the U.S.
Despite national attention for her
work (Nichols is also a two-time
Clinton
G l o b a l
Initiative
“Part of my dream is that
Fellow, St.
Louis
my home will be a place
Visionary,
and was a of abundance, of free-
2017
Citizen
Artist
dom, of expression- liber-
Fellow at
the John
ated expression without
F. Kennedy
Center for judgement, without fear.”
Perform-
ing Arts in
D.C.), she
continues to be anchored in St. Louis.
She described the crux of her work as
a continued collaboration with those
in her community “who have been
told that they are not worth doing
anything, and helping them tap into
[their] worth and their own innate
genius”.
She does this by creating spaces for
the organizers and community
members who haven’t received
national attention for their efforts. In
her project Deliberate and Unafraid,
Nichols “chronicled and highlighted
the people who were not getting the
press. Let them express themselves
and share their stories and their
perspectives without editing. It
really centered that ntersection of
queer women of color femmes.”
Echoing Bell and Packnett, Nichols
grapples with the tendency of the
world to miscredit the efforts of Black
women, which is part of her
motivation to continue centering them
in her work. “So often in moments
when we are seeking social justice and
seeking rights and equity,” she
explained, women of color “haven’t
been centered in that work even
though we were behind the scenes and
FALL 2018
at the frontlines. I feel like often times
we are the people putting in the work,
the structure, the strategy, and the re-
silience to make sure our passions are
translated into sustainable change”.
In addition to recognizing the
contributions of Black women,
Nichols envisions a future where com-
munities are centered in abundance.
Through her work she strives for get-
ting to “a point where we have less
people who hoard riches, hoard re-
sources, and displace others. This is
something that will allow us individu-
ally, collectively, and in relationship
with each other, to solve a lot of issues
that have been in place for genera-
tions. To open up new possibilities.”
Systemically, she suggested that
“there is a lot of restructuring that
needs to take place. I don’t think that
reform is necessarily the solution
to more equitable, liberated
communities. Because we’ll be
working within the confines of people
who do not have the mass majority of
us in mind.” She suggested that
materiaizing equity may require
starting over
completely in
many ways,
which she
recognizes
as “a hard
choice. It’s a
radical choice.
In a lot of
communities
we have not
yet tested this.
Instead of
trying to fix
this thing that
was not
designed to be equitable… why not
start off all together with something
different?”
With this in mind, Nichols stays con-
nected to the activism and visionary
thinking that has always existed in
St. Louis. “There’s so much that I love
about this city,” she said joyfully. “Part
of it is that St. Louis still has a small
town feel, to the point that if you have
an idea, if your idea is something that
can progress anything in any type of
way, there are people willing to take
the chance to support you. That’s not
something that you see everywhere.”
She envisions St. Louis continuing as
a hub for creative activism, explain-
ing, “part of my dream is that my
home will be a place of abundance, of
freedom, of expression- liberated ex-
pression without judgement, without
fear. And so my dream is to manifest
something within St. Louis, whether
that’s a space, or a piece of art, that
can help unlock that feeling.”
What comes through as Nichols
describes her vision, is a spirit of
resilience. “There has yet to be any
force, any challenge, any person who
has made me believe this isn’t
possible.”
INSIDE THE THIRD WARD

THEblackCITY OF PROTEST
activism and response in st. louis

#ACTIVISM, #HISTORY

CIVIC DISSENT:
People in Protest
Since the time of the Civil War, St.
Louisans have proudly refused to
stay silent about inequities both in
the city and in the nation. St. Louis
1819 SLAVE STATE PROTEST
With the perennially controversial
CAUSES Missouri Compromise underway, blacks
protested making Missouri a slave state.
Free blacks and “white friends” protested
ACTIONS the political maneuver on the steps of the
Old Courthouse.
While Missouri ultimately became a slave
OUTCOMES state, a clause barring free blacks from
entering the state was removed.
1933 NUT WORKERS STRIKE
The R.E. Funsten Company was paying
CAUSES white women 50% more money for a less
labor intensive job.
Over 1,000 black women took to the streets
ACTIONS in protest, demanding change.
The black workers won all of their
OUTCOMES demands, setting a precedent for labor
movements around the country.
1963 BANK SIT-IN BY CORE
While 277 out of over 5,000 workers at
CAUSES Jefferson Bank & Trust were black, 99% of
those jobs were forms of menial labor.
After the bank rejected CORE’s letter
ACTIONS demanding clerical work for blacks, the
group launched a 7 month protest.
Jefferson Bank & Trust hired a few black
OUTCOMES tellers, pressuring other banks and
companies to hire more blacks as well.
1970
LEAD POISON PROTESTS
Due to high demolition rates and various
CAUSES environmental hazards, the children of St.
Louis faced high rates of lead poisoning.
ACTIONS
Community activists, like Hosia Martin,
organized a variety of sit-in protests at
realtors’ offices to force change.
While some of the living situations gar-
OUTCOMES nered upgrades as a result of the protests,
the lead rates remain high, even today.
1992 ANTI-VIOLENCE MARCH
Street violence resulted in many lives lost
CAUSES in St. Louis, a 22 year-old death inspiring
the anti-violence march in 1992.
Protesters marched from Williams Temple
ACTIONS Church of God in Christ to bring attention
to violence in the city.
This march became an annual awareness
OUTCOMES rally, the impact of the initial effort rever-
berating across the generations.
2016
NGA PROTEST
Developer Paul McKee sought eminent
CAUSES domain to sell land for the National
Geospatial-Intelligence Agency site.
The $1.6 billion deal angered nearby
ACTIONS residents, prompting a small group of
protesters to rally against development.
Several protesters were arrested. The
OUTCOMES deal is currently in a standstill as faulty
business dealings come to light.
FALL 2018
protests are wide-reaching and left, with a look at the specific details What’s important to a society can
diverse: protests have ranged from of each event, which are shown on be read through the things they are
race-based employment strikes to the right. A systematic division of passionate enough to rally against. The
marches against police brutality to each protest into causes, actions, and history of St. Louis carries no shortage
beer boycotts against companies with outcomes makes it simple for readers of passion, its citizens accumulating
racist hiring methods. This graphic to identify wide-ranging themes from social and economic victories across
timeline pairs images from St. Louis’ across the history of the city and to many centuries to enact a more just,
vast protest history, shown on the perhaps apply them to the present. more inclusive community.
1867 ST. LOUIS TROLLEY PROTESTS 1932 CCC DINER SIT-IN
Just after the end of the Civil War, black St. Louisans became increasingly, and justifiably, discontent with the The Colored Clerks Circle saw the many
CAUSES still-present inequalities in their city. Black St. Louisans were routinely refused access to trolley cars, ostensi- CAUSES new businesses opening in St. Louis that
bly cutting off their access to public transportation. refused to hire black workers.
In 1867, two different lawsuits were filed to attain equal access to transportation. This legal approach to The CCC started a “Don’t Buy Where You
ACTIONS attaining civil rights was a common strategy during this era, the violence of the Civil War putting emphasis on ACTIONS Can’t Work” campaign, boycotting an
array of businesses.
nonviolent means of desegregating society.
While the lawsuits were decided in favor of the black defendants, the victory proved hollow and often, unen- As a result of the protests, some black
OUTCOMES forceable. Rather than refusing service to black St. Louisans, trolley drivers simply began passing by black OUTCOMES workers were hired and subequent protest
citizens waiting to board the trolley leaving them, as before, without transportation. measures were taken.
1942 DEFENSE INDUSTRY & TELEPHONE OPERATOR JOBS MARCH 1944 GARMENT STRIKE
A letter writing campaign failed to get
President FDR stopped a march on D.C. that aimed to protest inequitable hiring in the defense industry. The
CAUSES president didn’t want these anti-racism protestors showing up in the capitol when America was supposedly
CAUSES downtown department stores to hire black
female sales clerks.
fighting a war against racism abroad.
St. Louisans refused to be silenced and instead staged a march in their own city to Carter Carburetor, a pro- Black women, later with the support of
ACTIONS duction company with not a single black employee in its 3,000 person workforce. The protesters also marched ACTIONS CORE, staged sit-ins at department store
to Southwestern Bell, a telephone operating company without any black operators. cafeterias for the better part of a decade.
A few black employees were hired into the 3,000 person workforce at Carter Carburetor. At Southwestern Bell, After 10 years, several department
OUTCOMES black female telephone operators were hired, but weren’t allowed to work next to white workers-- they were OUTCOMES stores agreed to desegregate their dining
forced to work in a segregated building apart from the white employees. facilities, though other fights followed.
1964 GATEWAY ARCH PROTEST 1969 PUBLIC RENT STRIKE
A range of racist lending and renting
CAUSES policies left black citizens with fewer
When the Gateway Arch project began construction, not a single black employee was hired to work on the choices for places to live.
CAUSES project. Because the project was granted federal funding, local black citizens were doubly perturbed about
the workplace injustice. Tenants of the failed Pruitt-Igoe public
ACTIONS housing project picketed the welfare of-
fice, demanding fair housing treatment.
When construction on the Arch reached 300’, activist Percy Green II and Richard Daly scaled halfway up
one of the legs in protest of the hiring inequity. Green and Daly were part of an organization, ACTION, that
ACTIONS splintered off from CORE a few years before. ACTION preached nonviolent, but purposefully annoying civil Nine months of protest led to the forma-
disobedience tactics. Many of their protests, like the Arch scaling, gained lots of media attention. OUTCOMES tion of the Civic Alliance for Housing,
which helped leverage a strike settlement.
1970
After Green and Daly’s stunt, several black workers were hired to work on the Gateway Arch. In the years that
OUTCOMES followed, Green filed a lawsuit against his construction company for race-based firing. Eventually, Green won BEER BOYCOTT
the lawsuit at the Supreme Court level, setting a national precedent for race-based workplace discrimination.
After a string of workplace equity vic-
CAUSES tories, St. Louisans criticized Anheuser-
Busch’s low black employment rate.
“...people have to do things.” ACTIONS
To protest a 2% black worker rate in a 50%
black city, blacks papered the town with
-Percy Green II
“Drink something else” flyers.
While a few more black workers were
OUTCOMES hired, ultimately, no major results
followed the boycotts.
2014 MICHAEL BROWN SHOOTING 1999 ANTI-VIOLENCE MARCH
A wave of police violence pushed focus
CAUSES onto other sectors of inequality, such as
On August 9, 2014, an unarmed black man, Michael Brown, was shot and killed by a 28-year-old white police the lack of minorities in construction jobs.
officer, Darren Wilson, the the St. Louis suburb of Ferguson, Missouri. After an alleged altercation between
CAUSES Brown, his friend, and the police officer, Michael Brown was shot in his front a total of 6 times.
Protesters from the St. Louis community
ACTIONS blocked off the I-70 freeway, making it
inoperable by cars.
After viral imagery of the event spread across social media, immediate protests ensued, both in St. Louis and
across the country. Protests in Ferguson continued for over a week, leading the police to establish a curfew
ACTIONS for the town’s citizens. This event spurred national attention, prompting discourse around police brutality and After the arrest of 125 protesters,
violence, one part of a larger conversation about inequality in the national media. OUTCOMES contractors agreed to increase minority
jobs and created a job training center.
2017
A grand jury was called to evaluate the actions of police officer Darren Wilson. Three and a half months
OUTCOMES after the shooting of Michael Brown, the grand jury decided not to indict Wilson. After the St. Louis decision, STOCKLEY VERDICT
the U.S. Department of Justice issued its own conclusion that Wilson shot Brown in defense. The incident
remains hotly contested, a tangible example of the long-standing tradition of injustice in America. In 2011, white police officer Jason Stockley
CAUSES fatally shot Anthony Lamar Smith after a
car chase over a suspected drug deal.
“Come out here, you know After a judge found Stockley “not
ACTIONS guilty,” protesters gathered outside the
what’s right and wrong.” courthouse and marched through the city.
-Ferguson protester
The peaceful protest was flecked with
OUTCOMES violence, bringing the discourse about
police violence back to St. Louis.
#ACTIVISM, #HISTORY
INSIDE THE THIRD WARD

BLACK LIVES & POLICY MATTER

The Black Lives Matter movement has put the spotlight on the deaths of unarmed
black men at the hands of police across the country. Recent victims, many of
whom were shot after being stopped for simple traffic violations, have garnered
nation-wide publicity and galvanized many in the African-American community
against the use of lethal force by police. In response, racial tensions in many
cities have worsened and large-scale protests have occurred. Despite this, the
movement has succeeded in changing both state and local policy in an effort to
stop the violence. This atricle traces several of these prominent incidents that UNKNOWN
have been the catalyst for many of these reforms.

LIVES LOST
Eric Garner – July 7, 2014 – A New York City police officer placed Garner,
43, in a chokehold during an arrest for selling loose cigarettes illegally. He NON-FATAL
was pronounced dead at the hospital approximately one hour later. The
medical examiner concluded that Garner was killed by “compression of neck,
compression of chest and prone positioning during physical restraint by police.”

Michael Brown – August 9, 2014 – 18 year old Brown was fatally shot by police
officer Darren Wilson in Freguson, MO after Wilson claimed Brown tried to wrestle FATAL
control of his gun from him. The death of Brown led to months of sometimes
violent protests and became a catalyst for the Black Lives Matter Movement.

Laquan McDonald – October 20, 2014 – Chicago police officer Jason

Van Dyke shot McDonald 16 times because he claimed McDonald lunged
at him and his partner holding a knife with a 3-inch blade. However,
thirteen months later, on November 24, 2015, a police dash-cam video of
the shooting was released, it showed McDonald walking away from the
police when he was shot. The knife he was carrying was found to be closed.
Walter Scott – April 4, 2015 – North Charleston, SC officer Michael Slager shot
8 bullets hitting Scott, 5 times in the back after being stopped for a broken brake
light. The incident was caught on cell phone video which later became crucial
evidence used to sentence Slager to 20 years in prison. A judge concluded
Slager had lied to the court and attempted to obstruct justice, claiming
he felt threatened after Slager tried to take his stun gun during a struggle.
Freddie Gray – April 12, 2015 – Six Baltimore police officers were involved in
the arrest and death of Gray while he was in custody. The 25 year old died after
suffering a spinal injury in a Baltimore police van, touching off weeks of protests.
Sam Dubose – July 29, 2015 – University of Cincinnati officer Ray
Tensing shot and killed Dubose during a traffic stop, claiming he
feared being dragged or run over when Dubose tried to drive away.
Terence Crutcher – September 16, 2016 – Tulsa, OK police officer Betty
Jo Shelby shot Crutcher, 40, shortly after she arrived to find Crutcher’s
SUV stopped in the middle of the road. Shelby claimed that she was afraid
because Crutcher didn’t obey her commands and appeared to reach inside
his vehicle. Videos from a patrol car dashboard and a police helicopter
show Crutcher had his hands in the air and did not have a weapon.
Jordan Edwards – April 29, 2017 – 15-year-old Edwards, was fatally shot by police
officer Roy Oliver in Balch Springs, Texas while unarmed. He was shot in the
back of the head while riding in the front passenger’s seat of a vehicle driving away
from officers that attempted to stop it. Officer Oliver and his partner were called
to the scene a of a house party, after an initial amicable encounter, shots rang out
from some nearby gang activity causing Edwards and his friends to flee. Oliver
claimed his partner was in danger at the time he fired the shots at the fleeing car.
Lethal Force:
5) Authorize deadly force only when there is an imminent threat to an officer’s
life or the life of another person and such force is strictly unavoidable (Tennessee
Deadly Force Law).
6) Require officers give a verbal warning, when possible, before using deadly
force and give subjects a reasonable amount of time to comply with the warning
(Las Vegas Metro).
7) Require de-escalation tactics be used first and that officers carry a less lethal
weapon such as a stun gun (Seattle).
Traffic Related Deaths:
8) Prohibit high-speed chases of people who have not and are not about to
commit a violent felony.
9) Prohibit officers from getting in front of or shooting at a moving vehicle.
10) Prohibit the use of traffic stops as a major source of local revenue.
POLICY OUTCOMES
Many police departments now require officers to attempt these de-escalation
techniques that prohibit the use of force in restraining suspects or as punishment
for attempting to flee. Officers are now trained to wait out or move away from
violent behavior and if force must be used and injury to a suspect is possible they
must administer aid in a timely manner.
Although chokeholds were already banned by the NYPD at the time of Eric
Garner’s death the failure of police and EMT’s to administer CPR may have been
a contributing factor in his death. Likewise, Baltimore police failed to follow a
6-day old procedure to secure Freddie Gray while he was in the police van. He
consequently suffered a spinal injury that lead to a coma and finally death.
CALVERTON PARK REVENUE FROM TICKETS & FEES
66%

DEESCALATION TECHNIQUES
Use of Force as Restraint:
VINITA TERRACE REVENUE FROM TICKETS & FEES 52%
1) Ban using force as punishment for talking back or running away (Cleveland).
2) Ban chokeholds, strangle holds, hog-tying and transporting people face down
in a vehicle (NYPD).
3) Intervene to stope other officers who are using excessive force and report
them to a supervisor (Las Vegas Metro).
4) Have first-aid kits available and immediately render medical assistance to an-
yone in police custody who is injured or who complains of an injury (Baltimore). A large percentage of police budgets are garnered from traffic tickets.

PAGE # #ACTIVISM

Police retraining reiterates that deadly force should only be authorized after
all other reasonable means have been exhausted. Current rules in some
jurisdictions allow an officer to fire on anyone who has committed or attempted
a felony using force. In the past police were trained to neutralize a threat by
aiming at vital body parts rather than shooting to handicap. Today, the Seattle
Police Department equips its officers with stun guns and prohibits their use
more than three times on a suspect in order to avoid possible health risks.
In Ferguson, MO and in many places, police used traffic violations as a means to
increase municipal revenue from which police budgets were derived. As is often
the case economically disadvantaged African Americans failed to pay these
tickets and incurred late fees and court fees as well as prison time. Terence
Crutcher, whose care broke down in the middle of the road and Walter Scott
who had a broken tail light unfortunately paid the ultimate price. Officers are
now prohibited from engaging a moving vehicle, when a driver attempts to
speed away from the scene, as was the case with Sam Dubose and passenger
Jordan Edwards.
FALL 2018
While many police departments are hesitant to share information, most do keep
track of incidence reports in each officer’s internal file. Establishing an early
intervention system to correct officers who use excessive force has decreased
the number of complaints against officers by an estimated 50%. However, it
is often the case that some officers are responsible for more than their share of
complaints or examples of unnecessary use of force. Internal investigative units
are being empowered to investigate officers and not just recommend but rather
enforce the suspension or termination of problem officers. Most importantly,
courts are now more willing to indict officers involved in the most egregious
cases of unnecessary use of force. Just recently Ray Oliver was sentenced to 15
years in prison for the murder of Jordan Edwards, while Jason Van Dyke was
found guilty of second degree muder for the death of Laquan Mcdonald. He
faces a miimum of 20 years in prison.

TRANSPARENCY & ACCOUNTABILITY

Transparency:
1) Require reporting of police killings or serious injuries of civilians and whether
or not they are armed (Colorado).
2) Report all uses of force to a database with information on related injuries and
demographics of the victims (Seattle, Indianapolis).
3) Require the names of both the officer(s) involved and victim(s) to be released
within 72 hours of a deadly force incident (Philadelphia).
4) Require the suspension or termination of an officer attempting to cover up
excessive use of force or misrepresenting the truth.
5) Monitor and report the amount of revenue created through traffic
These are just some of the reforms that have succeeded.
violations.
PROGRESS SINCE FERGUSON
There is no excuse for police violence
Not only have state and local policy changes made a difference but the federal
government has also played a significant role. The Department of Justice,
sometimes at the request of the city, has investigated police department conduct
and recommended reforms in cities such as Philadelphia, Chicago and Las Vegas.

0 15
Cities with similar populations but vastly
different rates of fatal police shootings
Investigation:
6) Require that an officer’s tactical conduct and decisions leading up to using
deadly force be considered in judgements of whether such force was reasonable
(LAPD).
7) Analyze trends in the uses of force, searches and seizures and other law
enforcement activities that create a risk of officer misconduct.
8) Create a new unit specifically trained and responsible for investigating serious
se of force and has the power to suspend or terminate an officer (Chicago).
Repeat Offenders:
9) Establish an early intervention system to correct officers using excessive force.
10) Report officers who receive two or more complaints or use of force incidents
in the past quarter.
11) Require officers to attend re-training and be monitored by an immediate
supervisor after their first quarterly report and terminate an officer following
multiple reports.
12) Require police departments to notify both state and federal officials when an
officer is found to have willfully violated department policy or the law, committed
official misconduct, or resigned while under investigation for these offenses.
13) Maintain this information in a database accessible to the public and prohibit
these officers from serving as police officers, teachers or other governmental
employees (Illinois).
In fact, seven of the 10 cities with the largest reductions in police shootings had
one thing in common: federal intervention. Cities that voluntarily adopted DOJ-
recommended reforms saw a 32 percent decline in officer-involved shootings
in the first year. The police departments that were forced to take on reforms
through binding agreements with the DOJ saw a 25 percent decline that year,
including Baltimore, whose agreement began this year. In Chicago, shootings
by cops dropped by more than 50 percent after McDonald’s death, an incident
that prompted a DOJ investigation and a package of recommended reforms
In the years since Ferguson, the total number of police shootings has fallen
by about 20 percent. Yet, St. Louis has the highest per capita rate of police
“St. Louis has the highest per capita rate
of police shootings”
shootings among the 50 largest police departments in the United States. Cities
that adopted some of the reforms outlined in this article, including improved
training and new policies around use of force and accountability, saw their
number of police shootings decline by about 29% on average. While the
remedies varied from city to city, many were the same: create a civilian review
board to provide independent oversight, improve officer training, update use-
of-force policies to stress the importance of de-escalation and the sanctity of
life. It is clear much more needs to be done here in St. Louis and across the
nation, but the people of Ferguson are proud to be at the forefront of this work.

SHEDDING LIGHT ON THE PROBLEM

Former FBI director, James Comey called the lack of federal data on police
killings “embarrass-ing” and committed the agency to a new initiative to collect
statistics from police departments. In some jurisdictions there is no system in
place to track fatal or nonfatal shootings. Neither is information collected on
whether or not victims of police shootings are armed, which is estimated to be
around 8% of the time. In fact, Chicago and Los Angeles did not keep data
on the racial makeup of victims of police violence. These facts alone make it
exceedingly hard to judge why and how often cops use deadly force or the efficacy
of reforms. Although, it remains to be seen if body worn cameras (BWCs) are
effective in decreasing the number of police shootings, there is no doubt they
have been crucial in not only revealing the truth of what is happening on our
streets but sharing that truth with the world thru social media. The Black Lives
Matter movement has called on more information to be made public in order to
shed light on how deep and systemic the problem of police violence against is.

#ACTIVISM PAGE #
INSIDE THE THIRD WARD
A PARK AND
ITS VISION
FOR PEACE
The community members of the
College Hill neighborhood have big
dreams for what is possible. Some of
those dreams are being directed into
plans to revitalize Peace Park at East
Grand Avenue and Strodtman Place.
The park, on one side a small orchard,
Jameice Shannon, 10, shares her vision for Peace Park in 5 years (photo by Minzi Long)
and on the other side shaded by huge
trees, has been in the works for years.
It was originally imagined by Otis
Woodward, a local activist, preacher,
and community advocate. Wood-
ward turned the once vacant lot
into the park with hope that having
a new community space in College
Hill would bring a sense of belong-
ing and safety. The neighborhood, in
part, is known for pervasive violence
and substance abuse. Initially when
Woodward created the park, he
provided clothing and warm meals out
of a shed on the park grounds, which
has since been taken down. As many
community members will attest, he
was driven by a desire to be of service,
striving to make Peace Park not just a
place to play, but a place to experience
dignity and belonging. In honor of
Woodward, who passed away in 2015,
a determined group of College Hill
neighbors are working to continue
bringing his vision to life.
At a recent meeting hosted by the
North Corridor Collaborative at Grace
Hill, community members came
#ACTIVISM
Participants from the public forum survey Peace Park (photo by Minzi Long)
together for on of many planning ses-
sions. In partnership with the Harvard
Graduate School of Design, neighbors
worked with visiting students in archi-
tecture, landscape architecture, and
urban design to narrow down designs
for the park. Many participants in the
planning process have been involved
for a year or more, and the prospect
of plans moving forward is a matter
of celebration. When asked why she
wanted to get involved with Peace
Park, Jasmine Hughes, 28, said, “I be-
lieve it was last October or November,
I came and visited the North Corridor
Collaborative community meeting....
and I was ecstatic that there was a
possibility that there could be more
to do in our neighborhood than there
is.” Hughes, who has lived in St. Louis
since she was 4 years old, explained
that prior to getting involved with
the Peace Park, she struggled to find
welcoming community spaces. “for
a while I was unemployed, and the
only places I felt safe, particularly in
the area, was maybe to the bus stop,
maybe to Divoll Library- that’s really
all I can think of ”she said,
continuing, “Divoll was really the only
place I felt I could hang out and just
be. Everywhere else you have to be on

your way somewhere, or doing some-
thing on a mission”.
Hughes went on to explain that she de-
cided to continue coming to the North
Cooridor Collaborative meetings after
that first initial meeting because there
were,“wonderful people with wonder-
ful ideas. I didn’t really get to see that
implemented, in a way, until I went to
that meeting. Going to that meeting, I
thought “oh!”, well if they have some
sort of plan, something concrete that
we can go off, I would be willing to
sink a lot of my energy in time to this,
because it’s something I really want to
see.” Hughes has been coming back to
the meetings ever since, and over the
past year has helped to brainstorm
and work through various ideas for the
park. As she described, “I wanted to
get involved any way I could. I didn’t
really have anything monetarily to
offer, but I at least wanted to give my
time and my experience in anyway I
could”.
Though Hughes is now employed full-
time, she said that she still wants “to
come to the meetings and see what
things I can contribute. This is some-
thing I really want to see happen- I
want to see it succeed.” Over the past
year, residents like Hughes have been
committed to meeting at the Grace
Hill Water Tower Hub with other
stakeholders in the community on a
monthly basis to continue solidifying
ideas for Peace Park. Ideas throughout
the past year have included communi-
ty garden beds, public art, and design-
ing a multipurpose pavilion for music,
community engagement, and theatre.
Those engaging in the process come
in all ages, from 10 years old to 70.
As Jameice Shannon, 10, described “I
have actually never been so engaged
[with] the neighborhood, so it’s kind
of a big step for me.” Shannon has
been coming to the meetings with
her sister Jasmine Shannon, 11, and
her grandmother Oprah Johnson, 62.
Johnson explained that she has
also been involved in community
engagement by supporting her s
on who throws “block parties to bring
the community together…[we’re]
all about getting people to get along
and stop the violence”. In addition
to the block parties, Johnson became
involved with Peace Park because she
was involved in the partner organiza-
tion For the Sake of All, and she knew
Otis Woodward. As the older Shannon
sister, Jasmine, expressed, “it’s re-
ally important to keep his [Otis Wood-
ward’s] dream on- I think he would
have wanted us to keep his dream alive”.
Another participant in the project,
Elaine Laura, 68, explained that she
found out about the Peace Park
project through Washington
University. She explained, “I attended
a Wash U seminar on disparities in
the greater St. Louis community. One
of the illustrations of how the city of
St. Louis has not spent tax dollars on
the Northside, was through the com-
FALL 2018
parison of parks”. As Laura described,
parks in the Northside have been
largely underfunded, and as in the
case of College Hill, some neighbor-
hoods on the Northside haven’t even
had designated community parks.
When asked what they are most
excited to see in the park, neighbors
excitedly described what they imagine
for the future of Peace Park. Carmen
Long, 59, who was in the partner
organization For the Sake of All and a
resident of 11 years explained that she
wants to see, “neighbors, people,
different people, nationalities, colors-
we need everybody. This is your park.
We want to make the North side look
like peace, rather than war. Because
when I travel over here from Delmar,
I feel like I am in a warzone.” Long
referred to the Delmar divide, an
intersection between the North and Jasmine Hughes, 28, shares her ideas for the future of the park
Southside of St. Louis that strikingly (photo by Minzi Long)
encapsulates the city’s continued
segregation of race and socioeconom-
ic resources. Erika King, in her 30s,
echoed this sentiment saying, “it is
a close-knit community. It’s a family
around here, and we’ve gotten away
from that a little bit, but we want to
bring that back... we like to look out
for each other. We want to bring that
back in a major way.”
Hughes added that she is hoping the
finished park will allow her to, “stop
by after work and just sit in the park,
or just swing on a swing or some-
thing like that...and then walk home
feeling like I’m safe to walk home.” She
added that she is most excited “for the
possibility that I’ll get to meet more of
my neighbors, [who] I haven’t been
able to see, simply because there was
no reason to come out here in the first
place. There’s an opportunity where From left: Carmen Long, Oprah Johnson, Erica King, Elaine Laura,
people might BBQ out here- that and Lauren Billingsly (photo by Minzi Long)
would be great! Maybe we can have a
BBQ competition! I’d like to see that”.
Like the other community members,
Hughes’ hopes for the park mostly re-
volve around the potential for deeper
community building in College Hill.
As she further explained, “there’s a
possibility that there is going to be a
community garden. It would be great
if people from the community felt like
they could come in and pick [some
vegetables].” She added, “There will
be more to do- there will be more- you
know that saying that crowds draw
crowds? Knowing that there is some-
thing for us as a community to do
here here, and that we can enjoy our-
selves as a community in this space,
that in and of itself will draw other
people to want to come and see this
space and think, ‘hey, what’s going on
here? This is neat’ I like all of that”.
Following the most recent meeting, the
students from the Harvard Graduate
School of Design will be further devel- Community members brainstorm designs for the park alongside
oping designs for Peace Park, continu- Graduate students from the Harvard School of Design (photo by
ing the conversation between neigh- Minzi Long)
bors and community stakeholders.
#ACTIVISM
 INSIDE THE THIRD WARD
LANDMARKS OF INJUSTICE
Lewis and Clark
Florissant
Northwest
Ferguson
3
Airport
4
Normandy
Midland
6
Creve
7 5
Coeur University
Clayton Hadley
Jefferson
Bonhomme
LANDMARK MAP OF ST. LOUIS COUNTY
On August 9, 2014, a Ferguson,
Missouri policeman shot and killed
an unarmed black teenager. Michael
Brown’s death lead to several protests
throughout the country and brought
the Black Lives Matter movement to
national prominence. The national
spotlight was now on Ferguson and
questions arose concerning how a
A restritive covenant is a covenant
imposing a restriction on the use of
land so that the value and enjoyment
of adjoining land will be preserved.
This tool was used by many in the
white community to avoid selling their
property to African Americans when
relocating. This practice was upheld
in a Supreme Court case in 1926.
PAGE #
Rivers prejudiced real estate agents who
Spanish Lake
St. Ferdinand
2
Norwood
1
St. Louis
foremerly white suburban community
was now majority African American.
How did this come to be? We are
taught to believe that “white flight” is
the cause. When African Americans
move to the suburbs to escape
poor inner city schools, the white
population moves elsewhere. We are
THE SHELLEY V. KRAEMER HOME
But, in 1948 the United States
Supreme Court overuled the Supreme
Court of Missouri and held that state
courts could not enforce them without
violating the 14th amendment to the
Constitution, which requires equal
protection of the law. This decision
came down in two cases one in Detroit
and one in St. Louis but soon became
#INTERESTING
taught that African Americans moved
to Ferguson specifically because of
steered homeowners to Ferguson
and away from other towns that
were able to preserve their almost
entirely white, upper-middle class
communities. They did this not only
by enacting zoning rules that required
only expensive single family homes
but also through taking advantage
of deliberate federal, state and local
land use policies that did not simply
encourage but many times mandated
racial segregation.
According to Richard Rothstein author
of an Economic Policy Institute article
entitled, The Making of Ferguson,
these policies included the creation of
“segregated public housing projects
that replaced integrated low-income
areas, federal subsidies for suburban
development conditioned on African
American exclusion, federal and local
requirements for, and enforcement
of, property deeds and neighborhood
agreements that prohibited resale
of white-owned property to, or
occupancy by African Americans,
municipal boundary lines designed to
separate black neighborhoods from
white ones and to deny necessary
services to the former, real estate,
insurnce, and banking regulators who
tolderated and sometimes required
racial segregation; and urban renewal
plans whose purpose was to shift
black populations from central cities
like St. Louis to inner ring suburbs
like Ferguson.”
This is an unkown history to most. It
is a history that is little discussed and
often overlooked. Yet the places where
this history took place is all around us.
known as the St. Louis case, Shelley
v. Kraemer. Fern Kraemer, a white
St. Louis homeowner objected to
the purchase of a home near hers by
the Shelley family, who were African
Americans.
Kraemer’s neighborhood was under
a restrictive covenant organized by
the Marcus Avenue Improvment
Association made up of 2,000
property owners. The trustees of the
Cote Brilliante Presbyterian Church, a
signatory to the convenant, sponsored
Ms. Kraemer’s lawsuit with funds from
the church treasury. The Supreme
Court ruled against Ms. Kraemer and
her sponsors not on moral grounds but
because the homeowner who wanted
to sell his property to the Shelleys had
equal protection under the law and
Here I highlight 7 historic landmarks
in the St. Louis area. These sites shed
light on the dark hidden history, of
racial segregation and how we got
where we are today. By telling the
actual story of these places we are also
speaking to the strength and pride of
the African American community to
withstand these injustices. Only by
acknowledging and publicizing what
has happened here, explaining why
and how it happend can we work to
fight racial segregation in St. Louis.
As seen on the map, white flight away
from St. Louis has been primarily to the
southwest, while African Americans
have moved to the north west.
Communities closer to the inner city
that were historically integrated are
now segregated. Today’s integrated
communities are continuing to
slowly segregate. The first of the 7
landmarks, the Shelley vs. Kraemer
house is the only one in St, Louis
proper and the only one marked with
a monument seen below. The next
three speak to the African American
movement away from the inner city
and to the northwest suburbs. The
last three explain how whites in the
southwest of the county where able to
exclude African Americans from their
communities.
As Rothstein notes, racial segregation
in the past was characterized
by majority African American
communities in America’s inner cities
with suburbs dominated by upper
middle-class whites. Today the inner
city is gentrifying becoming a majority
white enclave surrounded by inner
ring suburbs made up of African
Americans and an outer ring of upper
middle class whites.
could sell their property to whomever
they chose.
Although, the ruling did allow
the Shelley family to occupy the
home, it had no major impact on
discouraging racial segregation
in America’s suburbs. The ruling
did not cover rental apartments or
newly constructed homes that were
springing up outside the inner city.
There the discriminatory practices of
the real estate business, home building
industry, and financial institutions
continued for the most part unabated.
However, the case was seen as a
triumph for civil rights. The Shelley
family was represented in the Supreme
Court by an African American attorney
and a prominent St. Louis civic leader
named George L. Vaughn.

LARMAN WILLIAMS, THE FIRST AFRICAN AMERICAN RESIDENT OF FERGUSON
The Williams home on Buckeye Drive
LANDMARKS OF EXCLUSION: OLIVETTE & ELMWOOD, BIERNE PARK, AND MALCOLM TERRACE PARK
One of the first African Americans to
settle in Ferguson, MO were Larman
and Geraldine Williams and their three
daughters. When Mr. Williams first
came to see the house on 21 Buckeye
Drive, in 1968, the real estate agent
refused to show it to him. However,
Williams belonged to a church with a
white pastor who contacted the real
estate agent on his behalf only to be
informed that the neighbors objected
selling property in the neighborhood
to Negroes. The pastor then decided
to gather the owner of the home and
his neighbors together for a prayer
meeting, after which the owner agreed
to sell the house to the Williams.
The Williams family had been living in
a St. Louis ghetto and Larman worked
THE VATTEROTT DEVELOPMENTS OF ST. ANN & DEPORRES
The St. Ann housing development,
pictured to the left and the DePorres
housing development pictured below
it were built by Charles Vatterott.
Vatterot, a devout Catholic, was a
St. Louis-area builder with the most
liberal attitudes on matters of race
during his time.
Vatterot began building St. Ann
in 1943 under a Federal Housing
Administration guarantee, intending
it for lower middle-class Catholics.
Sales to non-Catholic whites was
allowed but sales to blacks was not
in accordance with FHA guidelines.
Deeds on St. Ann homes states that
“no lot or portion of a lot of builder
erected thereon shall be sold, leased,
rented or occupied by any other than
those of the Caucasian race.”
Olivette in St. Louis County annexed
a portion of an unincorporated
community of Elmwood Park in 1950.
Olivette was an all white middle-
class community while the Elmwood
Park neighborhood was made up of
37 dilapidated home that were often
subjected to flooding from the Des
Pres River. Elmwood Park was settled
Bierne Park, was built on a site with
a very storied history. One tool used
nationwide by suburbs to maintain
racial segregation was eminent
domain, the power to condemn and
seize land for public purposes. In
1959, Howard and Katie Venable, an
African American couple, purchased a
residential lot in the mostly white St.
Louis suburb of Creve Coeur. The
In the WWII period the city of St. Louis
revised its public housing plans and
designated the DeSotto Carr housing
project for African Americans only,
with a separate project designated
for whites called Clinton-Peabody.
Clinton-Peabody was built south of
downtown St. Louis in an area that
was formerly integrated. Both of
these projects opened in 1942 initially
#INTERESTING
as an assistant principal for a school in
Wellston, an all black St. Louis suburb.
Geraldine was a state special eduation
teacher. They could afford to live in
middle-class Ferguson and decided
to move to protect their daughters
from the violence of their St. Louis
neighborhood and provide them with
better schooling.
Larman had previously lived in
Kinlock an all black suburb adjoining
Ferguson. At the time Ferguson was
a ‘sundown town” which meant the
presence of African Americans was not
allowed after dark. As was common in
other suburbs of St. Louis, Ferguson
blocked off the main road from
Kinloch with a chain and construction
material but kept a second road
Despite this, Vatterott insisted, over
resident’s opposition, that the golf
course, he built as part of the St. Ann
development be open to nonresident
African Americans. He then went on
to build a separate but lower quality
sub-division for African Americans
named DePorres in the town of
Breckenridge Hills, a few miles away
from St. Ann.
The DePorres buyers had incomes and
occupations similar to those of St. Ann
yet because DePorres was intended for
African Americans Vatterott could not
secure FHA financing and so many of
the homes were rented. Vatterott did,
however set up a special savings plan
by which residents could put aside
money to purchase their homes in the
future.
after the Civil War by former slaves.
It had few paved roads or sewers.
Olivette took the portion of Elmwood
Park north of the city but south of the
railroad tracks that bisected the area.
This both provided more industrial
land for the growing city and created a
physical barrier between Olivette and
the rest of Elmwood Park. Soon after,
Venables had their building permits
approved and construction began when
town residents discovered they were
black. A hastily organized citizents
committee raised contributions
to purchase the property but the
Venables did not not budge. The city
then condemned the property for use
as a park and playground known today
as Bierne Park. The couple challenged
for war workers and then returning
veterans. St. Louis continued this
practice of racial segregation after the
1949 Housing Act was passed. The act
did not formally require segregation
but also did not encourage integrated
projects, rather it financed each as
was local custom. St. Louis used this
program to build the John J. Cochran
Garden Apartments for whites only on
FALL 2018
during the day so housekeepers
and nannies could come to work in
Ferguson. The school district that
had once been united was segregated
until court ordered integration in
1975. Slowly the African American
community in Ferguson expanded
from 1% in 1970 to 14% in 1980, 25%
in 1990, 52% in 2000 and 67% in
2010. Other northwestern suburbs
saw the same expansion while the
southwesterns suburbs and St. Louis
itself became more white. Larman and
Geraldine and another early resident
named Adel Allen, an engineer who
came to St. Louis in 1962 to work
at the McDonnell Space Center,
testified about their experiences at
a 1970 hearing of the United States
Commission on Civil Rights.
The DePorres development also lacked
the community facilities such as the
park, playground, and golf course
incorporated into the St. Ann
subdivision.
Today the developments of St. Ann
and DePorres are vastly different.
St. Ann is now an incorporated town
boasting amenities not seen in other
nearby local communities. Property
values are high, houses are large,
streets are safe and lawns are well
maintained.
DePorres on the other hand is now
part of another community and so
does not have the strong identity St.
Ann enjoys. In some neighborhoods,
houses remain small and of poor
quality with lower property values.
Olivette erected a barbed-wire
fence between the Elmwood Park
neighborhood and the nearest white
subdivision in Olivette. Throughout
St. Louis county today there exist
driveways that once sat by houses
that do not connect to adjacent streets
in order to create physical separation
between whites and blacks.
the action in court but a Missouri
appeals court ruled that courts could
not inquire into the motives for a
condemnation provided its purpose
was for public use. Fifteen years
later, the city again took similar
action by ousting its one small black
neighborhood, characterized by small
homes on small lots in order to build
Malcolm Terrace Park.
land that was also once integrated.
In effect, the city of St. Louis had
wiped away several integrated
neighborhoods in favor of segregated
housing projects. When a federal court
banned this practice in 1955, African
Americans were allowed residence in
the white only housing projects but by
this time federal promotion of white
flight to the suburbs was in full swing.
PAGE #
INSIDE THE THIRD WARD

THE JOURNEY OF A ST. LOUIS BRICK

Most us went through the Hydraulic Press Brick Company, where we got transformed from raw
materials to what we are today: Bricks. A process of grinding, screening, being pressed into shape and
finally brought to the kilns to be burned.

We all came from

the soil around St
Louis, clay deposits
which were once
up to 60ft deep
spread all around
town, in Oak Hill,
Cheltenham and
the Hill for instance.

But why did St Louis build on us?

There are many reasons. One is that
we are fire resistant! Others praise
our durability, you name it!

Each of us, has its origin stamped on the topside.

So we became …to the water towers of St Louis.

the number one
building material
in town for all
different kinds
of projects, from
family houses...

#HISTORY
 FALL 2018

....even to big cities as Chicago and New York, where they were used in
A lot of us travelled all over the country from east to west to serve different construction purposes... skyscraper construction.

Though times have

changed we are still
there and are precious.
Vacant houses are
torn down to reuse
We contributed us, sometimes even
to the prospering without permission.
times of the
Indeed, people steal us!
city, when
identities and
neighborhoods
were built on
bricks.

Today, bricklaying isn´t affordable anymore, so we get sliced into

thin bricks. One of us turns into multiple. Unfortunately, we lose a But People just love our patina, so we end up as interior cladding in bars or in
lot of our characteristics, for instance our structural strength. living rooms all over the country.

But I am still here, out on the field waiting. What will the future bring?

The most beautiful ones were lucky and are today

shown to the public at the National Building Arts
Center.

#HISTORY
INSIDE THE THIRD WARD

The Two Towers of

the Third Ward What are they for?
Standpipe water towers, built in the
late 1800’s were once used to release
pressure from pressure-driven water
distritbution systems in cities. They
were once common around the United
CAST IRON
MOLDING States and 423 of them are recorded
AT TOP
to have existed. Now only six towers
remain standing in all of the United
States, two of these just so happen to
be in the Third Ward.

DID YOU KNOW

THAT THE THIRD
WARD HAS 2 OF
THE 7 REMAINING
STANDPIPE WATER
TOWERS IN ALL OF
BRICK AND TERRA COTTA EXTERIOR

THE U.S ?
What’s Inside?
Each tower is constructed of brick,
terra-cotta and stone. The base of the
Grand Avenue tower is pure stone and
the walls at its base at 2ft thick! The
shaft is tapered as it reaches the top of
the column, the wall at the top meas-
ures 1ft in thickness. The top of the
column is made out of pure cast-iron.
STAND PIPE

This is a drawing (on the left) shows

what the Grand Avenue water tower
might have looked like inside. Cen-
tered around a 5ft diameter pipe
made of iron is a spiral staircase that
allowed maintenance crews access.
Unfortunately the staircase and iron
pipe have been dismantled and re-
5’
placed with an iron ladder that allows
for maintenance access. Bissell Street
Water Tower (seen in the background
2’
of the photo at left) does still contain
a staircase as it was restored in the
1970’s. However both towers are cur-
rently closed to the public.

Both the Grand Avenue Tower and

WATER MAIN
Bissell Street Tower are designated
landmarks on the National Register
of Historic Places. The hope is that
BLAIR AVE

Grand Ave Tower

one day they can be restored fully and
GRAND AV
E open to the public to get a bird’s eye
view of North Saint Louis and the Mis-
N. 20TH ST

sissippi River. The Grand Ave tower is

154ft tall and the Bissell Street tower
stands at 194ft. As the tallest struc-
BISSELL ST
Bissell Street Tower tures in the neighborhood, both would
give one a formidable view.

#HISTORY
 FALL 2018

A Short History 1902 STREET CARS RULE

1871 GRAND AVE WATER
TOWER IS CONSTRUCTED
The expanding city of Saint Louis de-
cides to construct a water treatment
plant at the site of the current Bissell
Point Wastewater Treatment Plant. At
this time, potable water was pumped
by steam engine through the City’s wa-
ter pipes, building up excess pressure
which could cause pipes to burst. To
remedy this issue, the Grand Avenue
water tower was constructed to hold a
large iron pipe , 5ft in diameter, which
would allow the release of excess pres-
sure by pushing large amounts of wa-
ter up through a giant pipe concealed
by a 154 ft tall brick-terracotta tower.
A bustling city needs a robust trans-
1912 OUT OF SERVICE
With an advancement in technology,
portation system. The Grand Avenue
water tower became an anchor point
the steam-engine, piston-driven wa-
of the street car system (red lines on
ter distribution system was changed
to a spinning pump system that made
the map below). The street cars are vis-
the need for water towers obsolete.
ible in this photo of the Grand Avenue
However, the towers having been con-
tower, opposite a horse and cart. The
structed from terra-cotta, brick and
water towers helped serve as useful
stone to prevent the water in their
landmarks as visitors arriving for the
stand pipes from freezing, were ex-
1904 World’s Fair navigated the City.
tremely sturdy and could not be eas-
St. Louisians were extremely proud of
ily torn-down. What was the city to do
this amazing technology that brought
with them?
water directly into their homes.
1920-1930 NEW PURPOSES
Trying to make use of the now-obso-
lete infrastructure, the City of Saint
Louis re-porpused the towers ac-
cording to its needs. Aviation lights
were placed on top of the Grand Av-
Painted postcard of the Bissell Street
enue tower in the 1920’s to help guide
tower from 1888.
planes attempting to locate the local
airfield. As time went on, these tow-
ers became landmarks with local
1969 LANDMARK STATUS
businesses proudly incorporating the These 19th century relics and neigh-
word “Tower” into their names so as borhood landmarks were finally pro-
to associate themselves with a particu- tected from demolition in 1969 when
lar location in the city. an official report was entered into the
National Register of Historic Places.

The view at street level around the

Grand Avenue tower.

The Grand Ave water tower made it

onto this 1875 Pictorial St. Louis map
by Richard Compton and Camille
Dry. Note the farm land and dirt
roads surrounding the tower.
1886 BISSEL STREET
WATER TOWER BUILT
To accommodate its growing popu-
lation, St. Louis constructs another
water tower, this one modeled after a
minaret instead of a roman column.
This one surpasses the Grand Avenue
tower, standing at 195’ tall and con-
tains an iron standpipe 6 feet in diam-
eter.
Postcards circa 1886 boasted of “the New Water Tower”
The Crystal Water Co. Map of St
Louis in 1902 with street car lines in
red. Note the “Water Works” building
at the bottom of the map.
In this photo from the Missouri His-
tory Museum dated to the 1920’s, one
can clearly see the Grand Avenue
Water Tower’s entrance and tiny
windows running up to the top of the
tower.
1930-1960 THREAT OF
DEMOLTION
Requiring major upkeep, St. Louis’
three water towers were under threat
to be demolished by the City. Lo-
cal businesses and citizens rallied
around the cause of preserving the
landmarks and when the City real-
ized that it would cost more to demol-
ish the structures rather than leave
them in place, they relented. In 1954,
the Grand Avenue tower underwent a
restoration, and remained the pride of
many local business which continued
to operate in its immediate vecinity.
Excerpt from National Register of
Historic Places report showing the
precise location of the Grand Ave
Tower.
TODAY:
A CALL FOR RESTORATION
St. Louis’ third water tower- Compton
Hill Water Tower - located in Reservoir
Park, near the intersection of S. Grand
Ave and Russell Ave. was restored in
the 1990s at a price tag of $19 million.
It is now is open for tours and one can
climb up the 198 stairs to the top. The
Bissell Street tower was last restored
in the 1970’s by the U.S. Department
of the Interior, however it is now
closed. The Landmarks Association of
St. Louis has recently raised $40,000
for a detailed engineering assessment
of both towers. The organization hopes
to then raise money for their complete
restoration. This would allow them
to more fully serve the community as
the incredible landmarks they are and
provide a small glimpse into St. Louis’
history of technology and innovation.

#HISTORY
INSIDE THE THIRD WARD

POPULATION & THE WARDS

A CHANGING DYNAMIC
The Wards Over Time
Since 1957, the city of St. Louis has
been broken up into 28 wards each
with its own alderman. Each ward
Ward
WARDComparison
COMPARISON
Total
TOTALPopulation
and alderman is awarded an equal
share of revenue used to develop their
ward. Over the last few years there has POPULATION
been a movement to cut the number of
wards and aldermans in half to 14, as
Population
POPULATION Population
POPULATION Population
POPULATION
recognition of the fact that the city’s
Ward
WARD
2000 2010 CHANGE %%Change
CHANGE
population has dropped substantially
from a high of about a million. There
2000 2010 Change
is much fear that this move would
change power dynamics in the city,
1 11,900 9,875 -2,025 -17%
weakening northern wards and
discouraging development in areas
2 11,882 10,351 -1,531 -13%
that are in dire need of it. As of now 3 11,832 8,478 -3,354 -28%
the city has been unable to make this
change because of the lack of political 4 12,043 8,965 -3,078 -26%
will among many public officials.
Today the city population is right 5 11,843 12,095 252 2%
under 350,000, a number of residents
that must be split evenly among each 6 12,017 14,259 2,242 19%
of the 28 wards. This means that each
ward must ecnompass around 12,000 7 11,990 14,555 2,565 21%
residents. When the census occurs
every decade, the city of St. Louis often 8 12,976 10,881 -2,095 -16%
needs to adjust the boundaries of the
wards to ensure each has an equal and 9 12,951 11,323 -1,628 -13%
sufficient amount of residents within
its jurisdiction. To do this the shapes 10 12,967 11,984 -983 -8%
of the wards often transform, growing
smaller or larger as necessary. 11 12,945 11,996 -949 -7%
The Wards Today
12 12,607 12,271 -336 -3%
Here we have created a list of the
13 12,497 12,019 -478 -4%
change in ward population from 2000
to 2010. Most of the wards have lost
14 12,991 11,962 -1,029 -8%
residents as the cities population has
decreased during this time period.
15 12,982 12,046 -936 -7%
We have also detailed the change in
3 specific wards. First the 3rd Ward
16 12,999 12,252 -747 -6%
which has lost 28% of its residents,
the most of any of the wards. The
17 12,771 12,060 -711 -6%
second is the 5th Ward, next door to 18 12,149 10,937 -1,212 -10%
the 3rd, which has remained relatively
stable growing by just 2%. The third 19 11,832 12,402 570 5%
is the 7th Ward, which incorporates
the downtown distric that has seen a 20 11,931 10,662 -1,269 -11%
21% increase, the highest of any of the
wards. In the diagrams we can see the 21 12,633 10,534 -2,099 -17%
change of shape of each of these three
wards in response to these population 22 11,906 9,302 -2,604 -22%
dynamics. The darker the color the
larger the population is in each area 23 12,961 11,961 -1,000 -8%
of the ward. We can see that the 3rd
Ward gets lighter in 2010, while the 24 12,903 11,744 -1,159 -9%
5th does not get darker but nonethless
its shape changes dramatically in 25 12,991 11,657 -1,334 -10%
order to allow neighboring wards such
as the 3rd to have the correct amount 26 11,940 11,107 -833 -7%
of residents. Finally we can see the
7th ward has gotten substantially 27 12,178 9,834 -2,344 -19%
darker in 2010 but its shape has not
changed dramatically because the
28 12,572 11,782 -790 -6%
shape of neighboring wards have also
remained relatively unchanged.
TOTALS 348,189 319,294 -28,895 -8%

PAGE # #HISTORY
 FALL 2018
POPULATION

2000 2010
1260 - 2021
2022 - 2684
2685 - 3477

3478 - 4687
4688 - 6795

WARD 3: POPULATION DECLINE -26%

WARD 5: POPULATION STABILITY +2%

WARD 7: POPULATION GAINS +5%

#HISTORY PAGE #
INSIDE THE THIRD
ART HISTORY
african-american history as seen through St. Louis’ murals
WALL OF FAME (2017)
ARTIST: Grace McCammond and
the Boys & Girls Club students
LOCATION: 4243 Manchester Avenue
This 2017 art piece popped up in the
Tower Grove neighborhood after the
unfortunate removal of the orignal
“Wall of Fame” mural in 2011. The art-
work celebrates notable St. Louisans
from the past two centuries. Check
them out below!
BACK ROW: Henry Armstrong, James
Bell, Katherine Dunham, Nelly, Robert
Guillame, Chuck Berry, Redd Foxx, Jackie
Joyner-Kersee, Dick Gregory, Miles Davis
FRONT ROW: Johnnie Johnson, Maya
Angelou, Josephine Baker, Cedric Kyles, Tina
Turner, Scott Joplin, Harriet Scott, Dred Scott
JAMES “COOL PAPA” BELL
Born in 1903 in Starkville, Mississippi,
Bell played in the Negro baseball
league from 1922 to 1946.
Bell was widely revered for
his quick pace, leaving a
legend of remarkable ath-
leticism in the face of certain
segregation when he died in
St. Louis in 1991.
SCOTT JOPLIN
Scott Joplin is an early example of an ap-
propriation of African-American
musical tradition white
mainstream audiences.
Joplin, “the King of Rag-
time,” made ragtime music
popular for the masses,
and even wrote two operas
in his free time.
MAYA ANGELOU
An icon of American poetry and litera-
ture, this St. Louisian has written on
behalf of American presi-
dents and Civil Rights ac-
tivists. Prolific, to say the
least, Maya Angelou is one
of the best modern exam-
ples of artistic excellence
in the country.
REDD FOXX
Born John Elroy Sanford, Redd Foxx
worked as a stand-up comedian and ac-
tor for fifty years. Foxx, while of-
ten remembered for his use
of explicit language, both
produced and starred in the
1970s sitcom Sanford and
Son, a show that helped di-
versify family TV comedies.
KATHERINE DUNHAM
Katerine Dunham was an artist and a so-
cial commentator. Though born
in Illinois, Dunham made
her mark in the art world
after settling in St. Louis
in the 1960s. A dancer,
choreographer, and ac-
tivist, Dunham rightly
earned her place on this wall.
CORNELL “NELLY” HAYNES, JR.
Nelly moved to St. Louis as a teenager
and gained local popularity as a
member of the music group
the “St. Lunatics.” Now an
establish rapper, songwrit-
er, and entrepreneur, Nelly
still remembers his St. Lou-
is roots, and resides there
when not performing.
“You may not control all the events that
happen to you, but you can decide not to
be reduced by them.” -Maya Angelou
DICK GREGORY
Dick Gregory proved talented in many
ways: as a comedian, a writer, an activ-
ist, an actor, and as an en-
trepreneur. Perhaps Greg-
ory’s greatest legacy, after
passing away last year in
2017, is his refusal to shy
away from bigotry and rac-
ism in his comedy sets.
#HISTORY
CHUCK BERRY
A pioneer of rock and roll music, Chuck
Berry set the country on fire with his
original sound and ambitious
musical work. A native St.
Louisian, Berry continued
producing music until he
was 90 years old, even put-
ting out a record during his
last year of life in 2017.
JOSEPHINE BAKER
Though born in St. Louis, Baker left
America for Paris when she
was just 19 years old.
There, she became a nota-
ble entertainer and activ-
ist, even working for the
French Resistance during
World War II; her legacy
is international.
DRED SCOTT
Dred Scott was at the heart of one of the
most gut-wrenching Supreme
Court cases in American
history, Dred v. Sandford.
This landmark case ruled
that Scott could not sue for
his freedom, as blacks were
not considered citizens. It
has been overturned.
JACKIE JOYNER-KERSEE
Jackie Joyner-Kersee, while now retired
at the age of 56 years old, is con-
sidered one of the
greatest track and
field runners in his-
tory. This East St.
Louis native won six
different medals at
four different Olympics.
TINA TURNER
After moving to St. Louis as a teen, Tina
rose to fame in her 20s after collabo-
rating with Ike Turner.
An amazing performer
and talent, Tina Turner
earned over 120 awards
and had many top chart-
ing songs. Look out for
her next musical hit!
HENRY ARMSTRONG
Armstrong holds a unique legacy in the
history of boxing. A world boxing cham-
pion, Armstrong remains one
of the only fighters two win
in three or more weight di-
visions. Proving his ability
on multiple fronts, he
defended his feather-
weight title 19 times.
HARRIET SCOTT
Harriet Scott, married to Dred Scott,
was an African-American slave wom-
an who fought for her
freedom in pre-Civil War
Missouri alongside her
husband. Scott later earned
her freedom and lived out
her life in St. Louis as a
laundress.

BEYOND THE WALLS (2016)
ARTIST: CHRISTOPHER GREEN
LOCATION: Page Avenue, St. Louis
In 2016, St. Louis non-profit
group Better Family Life commis-
sioned local artist Christopher Green
to address the negative aesthetic ef-
fects of vacant homes and to build the
morale of the community through the
medium of art. This 2016 mural pro-
ject sought to ammeliorate the visual
and psychological effects of living in
a neighborhood with failing infra-
structure and that is continually over-
looked by policymakers. Through art,
the neighborhood could move forward
together.
The art depicts famous and
influential black St. Louisans-- artists,
authors, athletes, and more. Painted
on colorful backgrounds, the faces of
these prominent, successful black fig-
ures remind res-
idents of possi-
bility, even in the
most trying of
“I want to give hope
times. The pro-
ject also serves
to people who come
as a quasi-role
model for kids in from neighborhoods
the area. By see-
ing the heights
that previous
like this.”
St. Louisans
reached in their
-Christopher Green
professional ca-
reers, so too can the city’s youth be re-
minded of the inherent value of their
own lives, no matter the obstacles they
might face. By creating a platform that
exposes kids to a variety of ways to
succeed, St. Louis residents will feel
empowered to follow whatever path
they lay out for themselves.
FALL 2018
art to provide a temporary face lift to MIKE BROWN MURAL (2014)
abandoned buildings, a source of light
for the community amid a long history
of darkness. ARTIST: JOSEPH ALBANESE
days after Brown was fatally shot: he
In an interview with the St. LOCATION: 1902 Union Blvd, St. Louis finished it that same day. This mural
Louis American, artist Christopher stands as a visual reminder of this
Green said, “I had the idea of putting In 2014, the St. Louis particular tragedy and many more
dignitaries on derelict buildings as a community came together to protest like it, both in North St. Louis and
positive image, to show that people accumulated injustices, namely the across America. Creative resistance,
from tough neighborhoods can be- murder of eighteen-year-old Mike like this piece of art, helps keep
come respectable citizens.” Green, Brown by Ferguson police officer history alive while making sure that
who grew up in “the Ville” neighbor- Darren Wilson. Artist Joseph Albanese we keep fighting against its systematic
hood in St. Louis, understands the began working on this mural just nine continuance in the future.
local issues that residents of this area
face on a daily basis. The “broken
window theory” corroborates the idea
that a deteriorated built environment
can communicate negative narratives
about a community to those outside
and, unfortunately, those within. By
using his artistry to address social
issues, he brings attention both to
the rich historical tapestry woven by
black St. Louisans and the inequities
of housing stock in St. Louis.
This project il-
licits ideas for
other tempo-
rary measures
that could re-
hab the image
and
of
morale
Northern
St. Louis. Sta- Here’s a list of a few of the St. Lou- Jamala Rogers, author & activist
tioned in a isans featured in Green’s work:
O.L. Shelton, politician
part of the city
historically left
to deteriorate,
Devon Alexander, pro boxer
Kevin Cunninham, police officer &
this project Norville Brown, police officer boxing trainer
proves effective predominantly be-
cause of its refusal to wait for outside Katherine Dunham, artist & activist Virvus Jones, novelist
help. Immediate actions with tangible
results, these murals promote the idea Donald Suggs, dentist & activist Robin Smith, news anchor &
of strength from within, also stand- politician
ing as a signal to the outside world of Grace Bumbry, opera singer
the value and resolve of this St. Louis Betty Thompson, politician & civil
neighborhood. Bernie Hayes, radio & civic leader rights activist

Just as important as the sub-
ject matter of the art is where the art
is being placed: on the boards of va-
cant homes in St. Louis. Because the
city’s population dropped from over
1,000,000 to just over 300,000 with-
in the last century, St. Louis has a vast
inventory of abandoned and dilapidat-
ed homes to pull from. These paint-
ings prove a tangible step towards
correcting this diaspora. Rather than
waiting for the slow drudge of policy
to propel the city into the 21st centu-
ry, the Beyond the Walls project uses
Ultimately, the project works
as a visual reminder of the dual po-
tentials and limitations for black St.
Louis residents. The art, a love let-
ter to black St. Louisans, works more
subversively as a reminder of the ine-
quality of housing policies in St. Louis
because of its positioning on aban-
doned homes. Hopefully, projects
like Green’s will help open up dialogs
between city officials and residents,
so that everyone is given equal oppor-
tunity to, one day, be painted on the
wall.
Zaki Baruti, community organizer
Thelma & David Steward, entrepre
neurs & philanthropists
William Clay, politician
Ron Henderson, police chief
Robin Boyce, talk show host
Tyrone Thompson, philanthropist
Eddie Hasan, politician
Jet Banks, former state senator
Henry Givens, educator & activist
Freeman Bosley, Jr., St. Louis’ first
black African-American mayor
Jimmie Edwards, judge
Denise Thimes, jazz musician and
performer
Anthony Shahid, civil rights activist
& community organizer

Art by Christopher Green, collage by author

#HISTORY
INSIDE THE THIRD WARD

STOP!
an observation on traffic bollards in St.Louis
BUDDY IN WARD 6: INGRASSIA BALLS

K
Christine Ingrassia is the alderman who called for traffic calming measures in
her ward(6th Ward). Someone nicknamed the bollards “Ingrassia Balls” when
they first appeared in 2017. Ingrassia thinks these balls are useful and economic

R
measures for traffic calming by narrowing lanes. The pilot has been launched on
Compton Avenue to discourage large trucks from using Compton as an alternate

S COMPTON AVENUE
A
route to Grand Avenue. Discouraging larger trucks from using Compton as an
alternate route to Grand was part of the plan — it’s better for commercial vehicles
to use major roadways rather than residential streets. But the narrow turns are

P
proving difficult for residents to navigate in their own, smaller cars as well.

“What we are used to here in St. Louis are

LAFAYETTE
these ridiculously wide lanes,we just had
a number of pedestrians and cyclists not
feeling safe.”
Christine Ingrassia, alderwoman of Ward 6, spearheaded an effort to slow
traffic along Compton Avenue, using $300,000 of her ward’s budget.

SHENANDOAH

S COMPTON AVENUE
M A G N O L I A
R U S S E L L

“I’ve seen moving trucks

do five-point turns just
S COMPTON AVENUE

to do a turn... It’s like

threading a needle now.”
A R S E N A L

#INTERESTING
 FALL 2018

BOLLARD IN STL
The City of St. Louis (which is an independent city separate from St. Louis by some residents as a way to decrease traffic on their streets. But they’re also
County) has a tremendously fractured street grid, with a variety of physical criticized for hindering firefighters and police who respond to emergencies.
structures used to create cul-de-sacs or otherwise block traffic from using And their often untidy appearance is frequently a complaint.
streets. These so-called “Schoemehl pots” and "Ingrassia balls" named for two
political figures whose tenure brought the arrival of many of them, are lauded

Credit to Street Not Thru: St. Louis

Barriers Project SCHOEMEHL POTS
There is no more recognized symbol of a grid interrupted than sewer pipes
stationed in the middle of streets in St.Louis- “Schoemehl pots,” named for a
former mayor Vincent C. Schoemehl whose tenure brought the arrival of many
of them from 1982 with the notions of decreasing traffic on their streets and
closing off streets created a space over which residents felt greater ownership .
The large-scale push led by his administration to get them out started around
1982 or 1983 and was very controversial, he said. The idea stemmed from the
notion that closing off streets created a space over which residents felt greater
Mid-block Closures ownership.

“It’s this blend of creating a sense that

Multiple Closures
‘this is my street,’ while keeping it
reasonably accessible for people who live
on that street.”
Vincent C. Schoemehl, Jr. was the 42nd mayor of St. Louis, Missouri, serving
three terms from 1981 to 1993.

Partial Closures

Simple Closures

Partial Closures
“ Most of them, I don’t
like because I’d feel
like a prisoner in my
own neighbourhood. "

Partial Closures

#INTERESTING
INSIDE THE THIRD

THE WARD 3 UNDERGROUND

what’s beneath the neighborhood?
1764: THE NASCENT CITY
St. Louis sits at the confluence of
the Missouri and the Mississippi
Rivers, making the land extremely
fertile and wildly desirable. Before
European settlers came, the territory
was occupied by American Indian
tribes, people well aware of the site’s
productive land. These tribes had a
tradition of building large mounds,
mounds which were demolished to
make room for urban development.

One of the first soil surveys of the land,

conducted by the state of Missouri in
1919, marks the city’s soil as majority
“silty clay loam,” a soil type often
used to manufacture high quality
brick products. With this soil, the St.
Louis’ construction industry could
locally source and quickly assemble
buildings, one of the main reasons that
so many of St. Louis’ buildings today
are made from brick, a visual marker WHAT’S GOING ON BELOW...?
of the city’s underground resources. 1. SURFACE SOIL
2. SILTY LOAM
The clay deposits central to brick-
making were often buried beneath a 3. SUBSOIL
layer of natural coal. Remarkably, the
earth held both the raw material to 4. SILTY CLAY
make brick and the substance needed
to form the brick, localizing the brick-
making operation to just one site. 5. BEDROCK

1910: THE GROWING CITY

Clay and Coal Deposits
The rich material properties that made
the soil desirable ultimately led to its
degredation, the emphasis on mining
one of key players in the depletion of
the soil’s mineral resources. Over time,
the mining of St. Louis’ soil has left it
somewhat barren and homogenous,
a far departure from the rich, varied
mineral mix of the same soil just over
a century before.

With the clay deposits exhausted,

original St. Louis bricks are now held
at a premium, as there isn’t a way to
produce more brick in any significant
amount. Now, the city faces a wave
of “brick thievery,” where people
use fire, force, and other destructive
means to pry off and steal brick from
vacant structures. Just as the soil was
depleted in order to make bricks, RESOURCE MINING
so too are the brick buildings being 1. SURFACE SOIL
stripped of their material richness.

The modern soil of St. Louis no longer 2. COAL LAYER

holds the means for production, but

serves as the record of the production
of an entire material culture, the 3. CLAY DEPOSITS
vestige of a tradition of construction
and demolition. 5. BEDROCK

#HISTORY, #LAND USE

 FALL 2018

“The practice of dumping materials into the foundations was common

until the mid-2000s, when the city restricted the practice.”
-Michael Allen, Senior Lecturer at Washington University in St. Louis

1930: THE DEVELOPING CITY

Urban Soil Compaction
While urban devlopment can be good
for humans, it physically changes the
material properties of the ground
we walk on through a process called
“soil compaction.” Soil compaction
happens when the air and water in
the soil gets compressed, leaving less
space for microbes and plant growth.
Soil compaction can occur through
regular pedestrian use, construction
stress, automobile traffic, or even
through stormwater runoff, hardening
the soil through use.

The amount of developed parcels in a

neighborhood gives one major clue as
to how compact the soil might be: the
more extensive the development, the
more likely the compaction.

While undeveloped space is often SOIL COMPACTION

understood through the lens of failed 1. DEBRIS
2. SURFACE SOIL
economic growth, in this sense, non-
development is a positive sign, one
that the basic soil chemistry of the land 3. COMPACTED SOIL
might still be intact. Reframing vacant 4. CLAY DEPOSITS
lots as environmental strongholds
could refashion conversations about
Ward 3, offering a new narrative on
place-making. 5. BEDROCK

1990: THE BURIED CITY

Underground Material Disposal
In St. Louis, a vacant lot is never
empty. Each piece of land has a history
of occupation, of use, of life. People
ought to challenge the conception
that vacant parcels in the area are
“empty” and should instead push to
understand how a seemingly bare
space might have an entire history
layered just below the surface.

Up until the mid-2000s, burying

the rubble from previous buildings
underground was a perfectly legitiable
and acceptable method of material
disposal. However, this practice was
made illegal just over 15 years ago
and this piece of this specific material
culture was relegated to subterranean
spaces.

By understanding vacant lots as BURIED RUBBLE

potential “brickfields,” we can 1. DEBRIS
unearth a history unique to the
demolition culture of the city of St.
Louis, a treasure map to the past. 2. BUILDING MATERIAL
Buried beneath the tangible sites
of the present lies the record of past 3. COMPACTED SOIL
development, physical remains that
carry with them the memory of people,
places, and community. 4. BEDROCK

#HISTORY, #LAND USE

INSIDE THE THIRD WARD

N.Vandeventer Rain Garden in Jeff VanderLou Planter Boxes in Jeff VanderLou Beacon Ave Rain Garden in Walnut Park Geraldine Ave. Rain Garden in Mark Twain

What’s with all the

Background
Rain Gardens?
In 2007, the Environmental Protec-
tion Agency (EPA) filed a lawsuit
against the Metropolitan Saint Louis
Sewer District (MSD) for its viola-
tion of the Clean Water Act, accusing
MSD of discharging large amounts of
untreated sewage into the Mississippi
River. By 2011, the Department of Jus-
tice filed a settlement between the two
ry
da
parties (a consent decree) which re-
quired the MSD work to fix this issue.
By 2012, the consent decree was offi-
cially in effect and numerous system-
wide infrastructure projects were
started. These projects, all meant to
reduce or eliminate the discharge of
untreated sewage into waterways,
are estimated to cost of approximate-
ly $4.7 billion spent over 23 years.
Why is this a Problem?
Untreated sewage contains toxins,
trash and pathogens that are extreme-
ly harmful to people if they come into
contact with this water. Its discharge
into rivers also leads to algae blooms
which can cause fish and other aquat-
ic life residing in waterways to die.
Therefore this is something to avoid,
and if possible, eliminate all together.
What Now?
MSD has decided to approach the dump-
ing of untreated sewage in two ways:
(1) Constructing green infrastruc-
ture projects (such as rain gardens,
bioswales, and detention basis).
(2) Through the physical separa-
tion of its sewage system from
its stormwater collection system.
What is a CSO - Combined
Sewer Overflow?
The process of water filtering through
the plants in a rain garden also filters
out the potentially harmful pollut-
ants that the stormwater carries with
it such as animal feces, heavy metals,
asbestos, bacteria, and oils from cars.
When the water has returned to the
ground, it can be used again for drink-
ing. If the planting of rain gardens is
multiplied across a neighborhood,
this can lead to a major reduction in
stormwater washing into the sewer
system during a rainstorm.
Why use a Rain Garden in-
stead of a Separate Pipe for
Stormwater?
Rain gardens and other forms of
green-infrastructure such as bi-
oswales and detention basins, soak up
excess rainwater and allow it to slowly
infiltrate back into the ground. The
plants planted in the rain garden nat-
urally filter out the potentially harm-
ful pollutants carried in stormwater. A

Bissell Point
A combined sewer and stormwater col- pipe built to carry stormwater under-
un

Wastewater
ground is extremely costly by compar-
Bo

Green-Infrastructure Treatment lection system is an old-fashioned way

Plant
is

Pilot Program Area of collecting all of a city’s wastewater ison and must be properly maintained
u
Lo

(sewage and rainwater) and putting it over its 100-year lifetime. To separate
.
St

through a series of pipes that lead to out the approximately 10,000 miles of
of

a wastewater treatment plant. If it be- combined sewer lines that the MSD
ty

Extent of
Ci

Ward 3
Combined gins to rain a lot, the system gets so full
Sewer System
of water that it can no longer be pro-
cessed by the wastewater treatment
plant. Instead of allowing the untreat-
ed wastewater to back-up into peo-
ple’s homes (a major health-hazard),
the water “overflows” out through a
pipe an into the nearest body of water,
Green-Infrastructure in this case, the Mississippi River. The
Focus Area
CSO or combined sewer overflow is
the pipe through which the untreated
wastewater “overflows” into the river.
CSO
How do Rain Gardens help
reduce the number of CSO
er
currently maintains would involve
digging up all of the streets in St. Louis
and could cost as much as $7,000 per
foot to replace, adding up to a whole
lot more than the $4.7 billion dollars
currently set-aside for this project. A
rain garden, by comparison, is much
less expensive to install, involves lit-
tle maintenance, and can be left in
place for an indefinite period of time.
It also beautifies the city with green
vegetation and wild flowers. Lastly,
rain gardens allow for water to filter
into the ground instead of going to
a river, creating water we can drink.
Stormwater flowing out of a pipe into

events? a river still contains the contaminants

Riv

Rain gardens and other forms of it picked up while flowing over-land

pi
ip

and the river has limited mechanisms

iss

“green-infrastructure” act as sponges

iss

on the land, soaking up excess rain- for cleaning this water, especially as it
M

water run-offing from homes, parking is already full of contaminated run-off

lots, sidewalks & streets, allowing it to from the farms along its banks.
Map showing location of St. Louis’ combined sewer area (light grey), MSD’s slowly infiltrate back into the ground.
Green-Infrastructure Focus Area (dark grey), MSD’s Pilot Program Focus
Area in North St. Louis (darkest grey), and CSO locations (black dots).

#LAND USE

Demolotion funded by the MSD
on an LRA-owned Property
Rain garden or other form of
Green-infrastructure
Why are there so many Rain
Gardens in North St. Louis?
MSD selected the wards north of I-64,
as the location of its $3 million-dollar
Pilot Program from 2011-2015. Part of
the reason these wards were selected
is due to their proximity to the Mis-
sissippi River. When it is raining, and
the Bissell Point Wastewater Treat-
ment plant cannot handle all of the
combined sewage and rainwater, it
overflows through 17 different CSOs,
directly into the Mississippi River.
North St. Louis also has a large num-
ber of vacant or abandoned land
parcels – some with structures on
them and some without. The MSD
recognized these parcels as potential
N. Sarah St Rain Garden in the Ville
barriers to stormwater infiltrating
into the ground on these properties.
Thus the MSD decided to partner
with the Land Reutilization Authority
(LRA) to decrease the amount of land
in North St. Louis with abandoned
buildings or pavement that were pre-
venting stormwater from infiltrat-
ing into the ground. The MSD thus
funded $1.5 million dollars in LRA
demolitions on parcels in North St.
Louis and worked to implement one
of three different green-infrastruc-
ture strategies on these properties:
(1) Planting of a rain gar-
den on the parcel (if topogra-
phy and location away from oc-
cupied buildings were favorable)
Clinton St. Rain Garden in Old North
#LAND USE
I-
70
Ward 3
(2) Placing a deed-restriction
on the parcel, mandating that any
future development manage its
stormwater run-off on-site through
green-infrastructure and not through
a connection to the sewer system
Or
(3) Putting in place a develop-
ment incentive for the parcel, stat-
ing that should a future develop-
ment be considered on the parcel,
the parcel’s stormwater is already
filtered through a large, neighbor-
hood-scale rain garden, that is
owned and managed by the MSD.
According to the MSD, the LRA and
MSD’s partnership resulted in the
demolitions of 221 buildings on 219
Warne Ave Rain Garden in O’ Fallon
FALL 2018
Mis
sis
sip
pi
Riv
er
LRA-owned parcels. This reduced
the amount of ground covered
by buildings or parking lots (sur-
faces that cannot be penetrat-
ed by rainwater) by 9.4 acres.
By partnering with the LRA, MSD
was able to be deeded land on which
to construct neighborhood-scale
rain gardens in the Third Ward and
surrounding wards. Access to land
became a crucial part of the MSD
being able to carry out its massive
green-infrastructure program as part
of its consent decree with the EPA.
Welcome to the Third Ward, MSD!
Going forward, we hope you will
better communicate your inten-
tions to the community, work-
ing with us and not just for us.
Geraldine Ave. Forebay in Mark Twain
INSIDE THE 3RD WARD

VACANCY OVER TIME

how the city and population have changed
Hyde Park over time

1910, Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps 1950, Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps

1900s 1920s 1930s 1950s

1,000,000

total po
pulation

white
popu
lation

500,000

tion
black popula

1950
1910 population
peak Pruitt-Igoe public housing bu

PAGE # #LANDUSE
 FALL 2018

St. Louis developed through the
main port of the Mississippi River
during the 19th century. As once
one of the largest cities in the United
States, has developed economically
with manufacturing, trade, and
transportation of goods and tourism,
and after, the city has become
known for its medical phamaceutical
precsence.
The expansion of the city was big
enough to say it is one of the biggest
cities, but it has suffered from the
vacant lots and vacant buildings
which has been followed by a series of
sociopolitical urban issues, demand for
new housing, unhappiness with urban
management and public services, and
white flight. It has over 12,000 vacant
lots and over 7,600 vacant buildings.
The property maintenance costs have
exceeded $ 5.7 million over five years.
It is true that the cost of management
and demolition buildings that are
abandoned is a problem, but the urban
population has been continuously
decreasing and the atmosphere is
deteriorating. The city has been
suffering from this unsustainability
and repetition of this vicious circle.
The urban population and economy
that developed along the Mississippi
River began to decline in the 1850s,
and in the 1900s, its manufacturing
economy recession also has casued the
manufacturing employment reduce.
The changes in St. Louis can be easily
indicated by the building footprints
over time from 1900s.

1996, Google aerial 2018, arcGIS

1960s 1970s 2000s 2010s

5,000

2,000
vacant buildings

15,000

13,000

employment

population

uilt Pruitt-Igoe demolished 1990 shooting in Ferguson 2018

#LANDUSE PAGE #
INSIDE THE THIRD WARD

WHOexamining
OWNS THE LAND?
properties in st. louis
AMOUNT OF MADRAS REAL ESTATE
(SPECULATOR)

PROPERTIES
EAST GRAND LLC

OWNED ENERGY MARKETING

DOUGLAS ST
MADRAS REAL ESTATE (SPECULATOR)
(SPECULATOR)

speculator and private owned neighborhod

industry and abandoned lots

PRIVATE OWNER

PRIVATE OWNER

NORTHSIDE
REGENERATION LLC
(SPECULATOR)

PRIVATE OWNER
MOST

NORTHSIDE
REGENERATION LLC
(SPECULATOR) NORTHSIDE
REGENERATION LLC
(SPECULATOR)
LEAST

speculator and private owned neighborhood

private homes and vacant lots
The ruin like appearance of St. Louis, its patchwork of brick, industry, aban-
donment, and vacancies is a result of a deep and tragic history of federal and
state segregation regulations. Delmar Boulevard divides the city into two dis-
tinct and unequal halves. The southern district consists mostly of white resi-
dents, brick houses, and tree-lined streets. The northern parts of the city house
large populations of black residents. There are scattered buildings fragment-
ed by crumbling buildings and empty lots. These visual differences are the
lasting results of racist housing policies implemented by the city years ago.

The map above illustrates this narrative by drawing the city as a tapestry of
ownership. Each parcel is colored based on the number of other properties the
landowner owns. The darker colors show that the landowner owns several other
properties, where the lightest color expresses an owner who possesses one plot,
perhaps their own house. This spectrum varies throughout St. Louis but there is
a large concentration of darker patches in the northeast portion of the city. The
properties with darker colors could be a result of vacant lots taken over by the LRA
or speculators buying property and time. These occurrences correlate with the
racially black parts of St. Louis suggesting that there are fewer individual home-
owners in this area, or that previous homeowners were no longer able to pay for
their homes and the properties were either abandoned or bought. In contrast,
the south side most likely is filled with streets of homes where the landowners neighborhood of privately owned homes
live. Thus, reinforcing St. Louis’ histories of segregation over the last century.

#LANDUSE

LAND OWNERSHIP
IN WARD 3
This map represents the average number of properties owned per parcel
rather than per individual lot.
SPECULATION IN WARD 3, THE STORY OF NORTHSIDE COMMUNITY LAND TRUST, AN OPPORTUNITY TO BUY
REGENERATION LLC Community Land Trusts are nonprofit, local organizations that guarantee
Paul McKee is a formidable property developer and real estate specula-
tor for McEagle Properties. He’s a powerful figure in the St. Louis com-
munity, on the board of BJC HealthCare, the city’s largest employer, and a
sponsor to both political parties, whoever will further his business agenda.
For the last decade McKee has been buying properties in St. Louis’ north
side under the Northside Regeneration LLC. He’s proposed the Northside
Regeneration project to redevelop the neighborhoods to include commer-
cial centers, retail, office space, new homes, and parks. As part of the pro-
ject he entered a Redevelopment Agreement with the city that allowed him
to receive tax incentives. After ten years, the project has still not broken
ground. The land remains vacant, with no promise of development. Mean-
while, McKee has received over $43 million in tax credits from the city.
McKee was continuing to covertly buy up properties in the north-
ern neighborhoods in St. Louis. Despite resident objections, he re-
fuses to sell the empty lots, even to legitimate buyers. This past sum-
mer on June 12, the city nullified its agreement with McKee and his
ambitious yet fictional redevelopment project. As of that decision, Northside
Regeneration LLC owned 1,630 properties in the city, second only to the LRA.
#LANDUSE
FALL 2018
A PRIVATE PERSON OWNS THE LAND?
Often homeowners care to keep their homes in good condition, mowing the lawn,
taking the trash out, keeping the front and back yards free of litter. Homeowner’s
wealth is tied into their real estate. However, often in disinvested communities,
where speculators are buying up land, house values depreciate. Lack of home
maintenance might be a result of a owner no longer able to afford the dues on a
house, leading to deteriorated surficial maintenance. Two houses might be be-
long to single owners but may appear drastically different. There are no gener-
alized characteristics of privately owned properties. Much of Ward 3 succumbs
to vacant and abandoned land, there are still many privately owned homes.
A SPECULATOR OWNS THE LAND?
Real estate speculators buy dilapidated properties without intent to rehabilitate,
live, or rent out the buildings. The sole intention for the buyers is to resell these
properties for a profit. The purchased land remains undeveloped and as it de-
preciates in value it effects the value of properties in the surrounding area. This
makes it easier for the speculator to buy the surrounding land around the original
site. This cyclical process allows the speculator to buy more and ultimately sell all
of it for a much higher price to a developer or to the city. Speculators negatively
effect homeowners and residents in a neighborhood. The northeast side of St.
Louis has been negatively impacted by the speculators over the past several years.
THE LRA OWNS THE LAND?
Land Reutilization Authority, owns over 12,000 parcels in St. Louis. The LRA
collects abandoned or vacant properties throughout the city by recieving titles
for all tax delinquent properties that are not sold at the sheriff’s safe. The SLDC
(St. Louis Development Corporation) maintains, markets, and sells the proper-
ties for beneficial future developments. The department is dedicated to selling
property to individuals or entities that are willing to use the vacant land for pro-
jects that stabilize the neighborhood or benefit the existing urban populations.
The goal is to return the land back to housing or industry that produces taxes for
the city. LRA land is often characterized by vacant lots, cleared of housing debris.
AN INDEPENDENT AGENCY OWNS THE LAND?
The St. Louis Housing Authority, an independent agency, is a local group that
seeks to build and maintain desirable affordable housing for residents in St.
Louis. These goals are achieved through leadership trainings, innovative part-
nerships, progressive technology, and expansion of resources. The St. Louis
Housing Authority looks to improve quality of life for residents and com-
munities while also providing employment opportunities, education, train-
ing, and professional services. Within the city, the authority owns 166 prop-
erties all are public housing properties that provide quality and safe rental
housing for low income families, elderly people, and people with disabilities.
long term housing affordability. The trust, comprised of community mem-
bers, acquires land through purchases or donation. The trust maintains own-
ership of the ground. Prospective homeowners have the opportunity to buy
a home but enter a renewable lease with the Community Land Trust to lease
the property beneath the building. When a homeowner sells, they make
money from the sale but a portion of it goes to the trust. This ensures that
the property remains affordable for future low to moderate income families.
prospective buyers purchase the building
the CLT owns the land beneath
INSIDE THE 3RD WARD FALL 2018

SECRET OF THE STREET

Many houses in the 3rd ward look the same but look closely and you’ll find subtle differences

Exmaple 1: John Avenue

Example 2: Destrehan Street

Example 3: Penrose Street

#LANDUSE
INSIDE THE 3RD WARD FALL 2018

HOUSING PROTOTYPE
There are varies of houses in the 3rd ward, your house, your neighbor’s house,
your friend’s house, and others. They all look different from each other, with
unique shapes, windows, doors, or roofs. But on some streets of the 3rd ward,
all the houses are variations from one prototype. One example is houses on John
Avenue. By carefully looking at the houses on John Avenue and ignoring the
material differences, we found out the prototype of those houses (Fig.1). Every
house on John Avenue is different from each other while keeping some generic
characteristics from the prototype.
Example 1 examines the differences between each house and the prototype, and
green drawings mark all the differences. Interestingly, the degree of difference
varies from house to house. For some houses, the only difference is the external
window shading, while some other houses have a different roof shape or loca-
tion and size of the window.
These houses are over 80 years old and it is difficult to find out why these varia-
tions happen. One potential explanation for these variations is that new owners
renovated the houses when the ownership changed, assuming they looked the
same when they were built. Another possible explanation is that the architecture
design at that time is looser than today so that they are designed as different
styles. Whatever the reason is, have fun with the game below, go out to the street
and find more by yourself! Fig.1: Housing Prototype of John Avenue

Gamerule: Compete with your friends;

1. Grab a black ink pen and a colored pen. who found more differences?
CAN YOU SPOT 2. Trace the elements of the drawing that match with the
THE DIFFERENCE? pohoto Go out to the streets, find
3. Draw the different elements (window, door, etc) with your other streets and make your
colored pen, just like the examples on the left own documentation

Game 1: Kennerly Avenue Difficulty: Casual

Game 2: Harper Street Difficulty: Challenging

#LANDUSE
INSIDE THE 3RD WARD
DISCOVER THE
inspiring mural projects in neighborhoods
Inspirational artists
Discover the murals in the neighborhood
Murals play a role in a valuable pub-
lic service: They invite and bring
in people to the vertical spaces and
create inspiration and empathy by
filling the empty mundane walls
of buildings. They are not only to
entertaine but also to give certain
messages in subtle ways as well as
to initiate sensitive conversations.
PAGE #
MURALS
1400 St. Louis Avenue
1902 N. Union Blvd.
5415 Page Blvd
St. Louis has inspirational murals in
different neighborhoods as well as
on the designated art walls. The map
below is a mural map in St. Louis for
people who want to discover those art
pieces.
There are some annual mural events
you can visit in St. Louis.
#INTERESTING
William Burton, Jr.
is one of the most versatile visual
artists from St. Louis. Working in a
variety of mediums, he specializes in
(but not limited to) murals, canvas
paintings, pyrography, illustrations,
and airbrushing. William’s talents
extend over vast artistic area.
2703 N 14th St
N Florissant Ave & N Market St
2600 N 14th St
The Mural Mile is a graffiti wall
which is located along the riverfront,
on the Mississippi River floodwall,
south of Gateway Arch. The annual
event is held every laborday weekend,
started in 1997.
Paint Louis is was started with a
small group of local artists in 1995. In
2001, since the event has been popular
What inspires you?
I grew up in, live in, and work in
inner city communities that don’t
get celebrated much. When my
community is portrayed to those who
live outside of it, they generally see
negative images of poverty, crime,
and violence. These same negatives
messages are consumed by the people
living in my community, although
they know they have families,
friends, schools, churches, and other
institutions that bring them joy, serve
their needs, and give them a sense of
belonging. I create murals in these
spaces that my people, my neighbors,
and my family members inhabit.
https://undergroundart.weebly.com
and successful, some artists bombed
the city and it was in jeopardy of being
shut down. However, it started again
in 2013 having 300 artists and around
1,000 attendees to appreciate the art.
INSIDE THE THIRD WARD

Untapped Potential
How the 3rd Ward Could Benefit from More Historic Districts
Map of St. Louis Historic Districts Discrepancy in Location
The City of St. Louis currently has
17 historic districts that are eligibile
for government funds to repair and
remodel the homes and businesses
within the district. It is clear from
the map of historic districts that the
majority of them are located in South
St. Louis. This discrepancy does not
match up with the age of St. Louis’
housing: Many of the houses in North
St. Louis are the same age or older than
the districts that have been preserved
in South St. Louis. The fact that there
are fewer districts in North St. Louis
indicates that less funding is available
to repair and restore the many vacant
and abandoned properties in addition
to assisting with the repair of occupied
homes.

HOW TO APPLY FOR HISTORIC DESIGNATION:

STEP 1:
Commission an architectural or historic survey of the area being considered for
Ward 3
historic designation. This will later become evidence to help show why a particu-
lar area deserves historic designation.

STEP 2:
Once a survey is completed and one of the following takes place (A) 10% of the
proposed district’s property owners, or (B) the Alderman of the ward, or (C)
the staff on the St. Louis Preservation Board agree(s) that the neighborhood
deserves recognition, a petition is filed and sent to the Preservation Board and
Board of Alderman of St. Louis.
r
ive

STEP 3:
pi R

The Preservation Board and the Board of Alderman hold multiple public hear-
sip

ings to discuss the proposal, and then they must vote to approve the petition for
sis

a historic district.
Mis

0 1.5 3 mi
What does this mean for the
property owners and neigh-
bors?
Once a neighborhood has been des-
ignated a historic district, the com-
munity creates a set of rehabilitation
and design standards that govern the
historic district for it to maintain a
historic look and feel. The standards
are put into place in the form of a city
ordinance. When a property owner
decides to renovate their building,
they are eligible for grants and tax
credits to offset the cost of their reno-
vation, specifically because their prop-
erty falls within a historic district. The
renovation must be approved by the
City of St. Louis Cultural Resources
Office to make sure it follows the city
ordinance that was put in place by the
community to maintain the historic
look and feel of that district. As a rent-
er in a historic district, one benefits
from these improvements as they help
to keep vacant homes from being de-
molished and make the neighborhood
safer.
Historic District
“THEY DON’T BUILD THEM LIKE THIS NO
Open Space MORE. THIS IS 3 LAYERS OF BRICK. THEY
Structure
Built before
1918
JUST DON’T BUILD THEM LIKE THIS AT
ALL.” - Eltoreon Hawkins, Author of the ‘Finest 15’
Types of Funding for Fixing
Up a Property Inside a His-
toric Distric
Federal:
A tax credit is granted by the Internal
Revenue Service to property owners
for 20% of construction costs incurred
on the upkeep of a historic property
for 5 years from the start of occupancy.
For example, if one spent $10,000 per
year for 5 years to fix up a house one
was living in, that amounts to $2,000
back per year for those 5 years, or a
$10,000 tax credit in total.
State:
The Missouri Department of Eco-
nomic Development offers a 25% state
home rehabilitation credit to proper-
ties located in a recognized historic
district. To qualify, the renovation
plan must be submitted to and ap-
proved by the State Historic Preserva-
tion Office (SHPO). Fortunately SHPO
offers addtional grants from their
Historic Preservation Fund. For more A house with a slate roof on Athlone Ave in the 21st Ward of
info visit: https://dnr.mo.gov/shpo North St. Louis, dating this home to the early 1900’s.

#HOW TO
INSIDE THE 3RD WARD

TAKE ME TO THE RIVER

what makes you reluctant to get to the riverfront

Lv.1 Lv.2

START POINT

Vacant lots Freeway

A housing unit is vacant if no one is
living in it. Units occupied entire-
ly by persons who are staying two
months or less and who have a more
permanent residence elsewhere are
considered to be temporarily occu-
pied, and are classified as “vacant.”
Interstate 70, an east-west highway,
runs roughly from the northwest
corner of the city to downtown St.
Louis. This highway is connecting
the North and the South, and at the
same time, disconnecting the neigh-
borhood from the Mississippi River.

PAGE # #HOWTO

St. Louis and Mississippi River
Lv.3
Industrial site
In the 19th Century, St. Louis tran-
sitioned from a frontier outpost and
trading center to an industrial pow-
erhouse. That legacy survives today in
the form of numerous factories, ware-
houses, breweries and power plants
that punctuate the city’s landscape.
FALL 2018
St. Louise is a city of river. During the only physical distance, but also mind-
19th century, St. Louise was devel- set. Now the river has been what the
oped as a major port on the Missis- people are scared of and avoid. What
sippi River, and it was ranked as the has been made of this reluctance?
4th-largest city in the United States.
However, the distance to the river
has been farther since the economy
base of the city moved to the west. Not
The way to the river
Lv.4 START POINT
MISSISSIPPI
RIVER MISSISSIPPI
RIVER
Although St. Louis is very close to the
Mississippi River, the sense of distance
to the local residents is very significant.
In this page, face the obstacles you
may have while you reach the Mis-
sissippi River from the residential
area by solving the maze puzzle!
River
The Mississippi River is the chief
river of the second-largest drain-
age system on the North American
continent. It flows generally south
for 2,320 miles to the Mississippi
River Delta in the Gulf of Mexico.
#HOWTO PAGE #
INSIDE THE THIRD WARD

A GUIDEneighborhood
TO WARD 3
facts and history
PARKS
did you know
1 Fairground Park has a
bear pit from the old
zoo?

WINDSOR did you know

built 1947 Windsor Park used to
be quarry?
FAIRGROUND
built 1908

WARD 3 HYDE
PARKS built 1854

did you know

Plant4Peace planted
new trees in Yeatman
Park last fall

YEATMAN
built 1906
2

WHAT ARE YOU

LOOKING FOR IN YOUR
LOCAL PARKS? did you know
Strodtman Park was STRODTMAN
email upgraded with the help built 1924
gsdinward3@gmail.com of Students 4 Change?
with your ideas

#HOW TO

87 % lawn
6% water
3% sports fields
SPORTS FIELDS TAKE UP THIS MUCH SPACE
14 tennis courts 12 baseball fields
1 FAIRGROUND PARK
RIOT
In 1913, Fairground Park was home to
the largest public pools in the Ameri-
can Midwest. At four hundred and
forty feet long, the pool could hold
up to twelve thousand swimmers.
Twelve thousand white swimmers.
As the city’s black population moved
North, pressures increased to open
to the pool to all. John O’Toole, the
city official in charge of parks and
pools stated that he “could see no
basis for keeping negroes out of the
pools. They are citizens like every-
body else and have every legal right
to enter any public facility.” Thus, the
pool opened to all on the first day of
the summer season, June 21, 1949.
On opening day thirty black swim-
PARK BREAK DOWN
ever wonder how many sports fields there are in ward 3?
how much space the do you think trees take up?
lets find out.
5 basketball courts 3 football fields
mers lined up at the entrance with
the regualr routine white swimmers.
Throughout the day a large crowd of
white residents violently gathered at
the gates of the pool. They held base-
ball bats and clubs, shouting hurtful
slurs and profanities. As the crowds
expanded the white police officers
escorted the black swimmers out of
the pool but made no attempts to
subdue the belligerent masses. The
riots became aggressive and physical.
This event must not be erased from
the “collective memory” of the city.
It represents a culmination of a long
history of forgotten racial divisions in
the city. While the pool is no longer
segregated, the effects of those poli-
cies are still evident and embedded
into the way the city operates today.
#HOWTO
TREE CANOPIES TAKE UP THIS MUCH SPACE
1 soccer field 1 hockey rink
2 CITYBEAUTIFUL,ST.
LOUIS AND 20TH
CENTURY PARKS
The City Beautiful Movement sprung
up in the early twentieth century to
reform architecture and cities. City
Beautiful emerged alongside with city
planning, both serving as methods to
alter the environment aesthetically
to improve city resident’s behaviors.
The theory was that if the city was at-
tractive, citizens would be encouraged
to take better care of their neighbor-
hoods, thus avoiding undesirable ac-
tivities like crime.
St. Louis adopted the City Beautiful
philosophy in 1902 by forming the
Civic Improvement League. With the
Louisiana Purchase Exposition ap-
proaching, the government decided
to invest in urban reform and lo-
cal environmental improvements.
Visitors would flock to St. Louis for
the exhibition and the the fair be-
came an excuse to revitalize the city.
St. Louis hired American Landscape
Architect George Kessler to create
the city’s first comprehensive plan to
connect the street grid with a series of
green boulevards and parks. Kessler
redesigned Forest Park, today one of
FALL 2018
P
1.5 % buildings
+ parking
.02% playgrounds
2% paths
495 TOTAL TREES
St Louis’ main attractions. He planted
thousands of trees, developed a drain-
age system, designed views and open
spaces. The greenery aimed to dimin-
ish the pains of an overcrowding city.
Kessler followed up with design-
ing the Kingshighway Commission,
a circular boulevard design which
connected several greenways to the
park. This plan provided greens-
pace, street paving, riverfront design,
planting trees, and building monu-
ments. The key remnants of this
planning effort include the St Louis
City Hall Building, the Civic Courts
Building, and the Public Library.
The Kessler city plan also revealed
that the resident’s west of Grand
boulevard had one acre of park land
per 96 people, but between Grand,
and the river, there was one acre for
every 1,871 residents. This realization
led St. Louis to establish a permanent
City Plan Commission in 1911 to focus
on these disparities. The development
of the Commission aided in the imple-
mentation of several playgrounds for
neighborhood children like Strodt-
man and Windsor Park. However the
city had invested too much money
on the exhibition and did not have
enough left over to implement all
of the planning recommendations.
INSIDE THE THIRD WARD

GARDENS IN COMMUNITY
an overview of current attempts on community garden in St.Louis
HOSCO SHIFT
HOLISTIC ORGANIC SUSTAINABLE training and community development.
COOPERATIVES is a Sustainable Expect for 20 types of micro greens
Food Cooperative Incubator for that HOSCO is now specializing on,
Economic Development. they are planning to diverse our fresh
vegetable production with new and
Their strategy is to empower people advanced urban farming technology--
living at or below poverty levels by hydroponics & aeroponics system.
training and providing skills needed to
work or run their own food business.
HOSCO shift the consumer based
mindset towards a producer mindset
provide an opportunity to obtain trade
“Well, you have to
skills that become life skills.
grow more growers.
They aim to empower other individuals
into developing their own products in You have to teach
the local St. Louis community. They
have grown operations to include
sustainable farming, food production,
other people to
food systems development, education,
become growers.”
SWEET POTATO PROJECT “I’m able to take
The Sweet Potato Project is a program
offered by the North Area Community young people who
Development Corporation (NACDC),
a 501 organization. In the summer
of 2012, NACDC introduced the
were raised in the
Sweet Potato Project. Journalist and
community activist, Sylvester Brown,
same environment
Jr. was the visionary behind the
project that was founded to address I was raised in
two significant needs: young men and
women in North St. Louis need an
opportunity to earn money and gain
when I was a kid
job training through dignified work;
and many neighborhoods in North
and say ‘you’ve
St. Louis need to become a more
safe, economically reliant and self- got something
sustainable.
special, here is the
opportunity.”
SUNFLOWER+ PROJECT
and two of winter wheat- with the
The Sunflower+Project: StL is goal of maximizing and measuring
remediating and making productive the efficacy of the remediation efforts.
vacant, previously developed urban While the test is being performed the
lots through the cultivation and project will serve as a neighborhood
planting of sunflowers and winter
wheat. These hyper-accumulators
have been shown to extract lead and
“Our hope is that
other contaminants contained in
previously developed urban soils. through this project
The Sunflower+Project: StL looks to
demonstrate and study the viability,
affordability, practicality and
we really are
potential for employing this strategy
at the urban scale through the use of
building a dialogue
a single urban lot. The team is using
Lot 4 as a learning lab and test site for to think differently
the implementation of this strategy.
Over the course of two years we plan about vacant land.”
to cultivate, plant, and harvest 4 crop
rotations in total – two of sunflowers

#LANDUSE
 FALL 2018

WHY COMMUNITY GARDEN?

A community garden can be seen as a collective space to which members of
the community can contribute for social, cultural and environmental reasons.
Successful community gardens may have broad neighborhood benefits such
as increased nearby property values, increased community engagement and
pride, and improved safety. Community garden participation is associated with
increased levels of social capital, neighborhood engagement, and satisfaction.
Interviews with Latino community gardeners in New York suggest that gardens
can host social, educational, and cultural events, and in some cases, promote
local activism.

GIBRON JONES
- Founder of “HOSCO SHIFT”
- Social Architect

“ When I see children

interested in growing
food, that gives me
hope.”

SYLVESTER BROWN
- Founder of “Sweet Potato Project”
- Writer
- Journalist
- Public Speak

“ You are the young, urban pio-

neers who will help revitalize
our neighbourhoods and create
jobs and opportunities for your
siblings and peers.”

RICHARD REILLY

- Founder of “ Sunflower+ Project: STL”

- Energy/Sustainability
- Photography
- Art

“ We’ve made a vacant

lot that people thought
was an eyesore into a
head-turner.”

#LANDUSE
INSIDE THE THIRD WARD

Mow to Own
increase your property by mowing for 24 months!
What is the LRA?
The Land Reutilization Authority (LRA) is a land bank and is part of the city
of St.Louis. If someone stops taking care of their property and stops pay-
ing taxes on it for 5 years, the plot is seized and auctioned at the sheriff ’s
auction. If nobody buys the seized plot, it gets transfered
to the LRA. 25,000 of the 129,000 properties within
the city limits are vacant or abandoned, nearly half of
wich are owned by the LRA. Mow to own is one of
many programs trying to give the land back to the
people in order to reactivate communities and
help opportunities grow. Nobody is trying to
make money off you here. Rather, the Land
Reutilization Authority (LRA) is trying to
reduce their 60 million dollars a year in
expenses, used to take care of vacant
property they own. So make sure you
are part of the mowment!

This map shows all th plots that were

claimed through the Mow to Own

PAGE # #HOWTO
 FALL 2018

The plot next

to your house Less than 40 feet Owned by the Not bordering
should be: wide LRA more than 3 LRA
properties
1. Assess
During this time you make sure that the
lot next to your house:
– Is owned by the LRA (check here: tiny-
url.com/lra-property)
– Doesn’t border with 3 or more LRA
properties
– Has a frontage of 40 feet or less
Also you should:
– Make sure hat you paid all the taxes on
your property and that you have all the pa-
perwork proving you are the owner of it.
– Fill out the application-form (https://ti-
nyurl.com/mowtoown-application)
– Pay the 125$ Fee
This also applies to businesses!
When all of this is true, you can go to the
Land Reutilization Authority, hand in
the documents and pay the fee. The LRA
Council will decide if you can be part of
the program, they meet once a month.

2. Mow
Once all the paperwork is set, get out
your Gardening gear and, of course, your
mower! The Forestry Devision is going
to come by every now and then to check
on your plot and make sure you keep up
your side of the bargain. As long as you are
mowing your plot, you are already alowed
to use it.
Buying a mower isn’t too expensive either.
Hand pushed lawn mowers start at 47 $.
You might want to consider investing into
a motorised one though. These start at 85
$, but you should consider that the list of
best mowers at popularmechanics.com
starts at 280 $.
Mow to own is an opportunity that is
getting very popular. 74 parcels have
been claimed in 2017 each one having
approximately 8 acres.

3. Own
After 24 Months you get a deed in your
name for the mowed plot, and then it’s
all yours! You can use it to build another
house, host parties, or just plant a chair
and enjoy a cold beer on your property.
Given that this also applies to businesses,
you could add an outside terrace to your
restaurant! Or expand your kitchen!
Be aware that you will have to pay prop-
erty tax on your new lot. Given the size
of the average vaccant plot owned by the

Land Reutilization Authority

(314) 657-3721
1520 Market St., Suite 2000
St. Louis, Mo 63103
8:30 A.M. - 4:30 P.M.

#HOWTO PAGE #
INSIDE THE THIRD WARD
WANT TO LEARN SOME REHAB SKILLS ?
DREAMBUILDERS FOR EQUITY
Dream Builders for Equity is an organisation working
with young adults to assist them attaining financial
ownership in real estate, through a process of life- and
job-skill courses. The aim is to strengthen community-
development in low income neighbourhoods.
The program covers real estate management and investment,
construction experience and awareness of assisting
underprivileged families. The young adults are required
to document their process in a book and reflect on their
experiences. The profits earned from the real estate and book
sales will be allocated to their future educational expenses.
What can I learn?
Drywalling, painting, plumbing, HVAC, electrical,
carpentry, journal writing, real estate trade
16-22 years
PAGE # #HOWTO
HARAMBEE
Harambee provides job trainings for teens and works
on volunteer community service projects for low-income
homeowners. They are specialized on tuckpointing, a
valuable technique to rehab old brick structures. This
technique is taught through summer-programs and after-
school programs. Young adults which graduated from the
teen trainings can join the production crew to work on a
professional-level job. You get the opportunity to learn a
healthy work ethic, self-discipline, confidence and team
dynamics as well as profitable skills in the construction
trades.
What can I learn?
Tuckpointing,
brick repair on exteriors and basement stone foundations
Age: 12-18 years

JOIN THESE YOUTH PROGRAMS BELOW !
BUILDING FUTURES
Building Futures is a program run by group of design
professionals to inspire the youth through hands-on design
build workshops. They provide a variety of workshops
for teens from 4th to 12th grade. They conduct in-school
programs, after-school programs, summer camps and free
workshops every Saturday throughout the entire year.
Workshops are run in a 5000 square feet environment
in the 3rd ward with classrooms and two separated work
areas. In the process students are challenged to discover
practical applications in their everyday life and realize
their own designs.
What can I learn?
Workshop experience, working with power tools,
computers, drawings, model-building and problem solving
Age: 10-18 years
#HOWTO
FALL 2018
YOUTH BUILD
St. Louis Youth Build is an alternative school/pre-
apprenticeship program, offering a supportive learning
environment for high school drop outs. They support
young adults to earn a high school equivalency certificate
and acquire job skills in the construction field. The program
includes leadership development training, computer skills
instruction, occupational training and special opportunities
to earn nationally recognized construction certifications. For
instance, you can get certified in carpentry, green building,
weatherization and OSHA-10. Furthermore, they prepare
you for your future career with a soft skills education.
What can I learn?
A variety of skills in the construction field (earning
differnt certifications), gardening, landscaping
Age: 16-24 years
PAGE #
INSIDE THE THIRD WARD

WANT TO BUY A VACANT LOT? IT’S POSSIBLE!

Purchasing a vacant lot in the 3rd ward can be easy and cheap
“OWN A VANCANT LOT
LOCATE A VACANT LOT
IS GREAT, BUT IT ALSO STEP 01 - Locate it on the Map on the next page or LRA website

MEAS RISK AND RESI- L O C AT E A

VANCANT
- Search “LRA-Owned Property Search” on Google and click the first
result
- Search by neighbood, ward, zip code or street and select Vacant Lot
BONSIBILITIES.” LOT under Usage for detailed information

Check List INSPECT THE LOT

When you find a vacant lot you like, thoroughly STEP 02
Identify the boundaries. inspect it in person by getting detailed informa-
tion of the land from LRA and walking the entire
INSEPECT
Soil and underground condition.
property. Use this general checklist when eval- THE LOT
Access to utilities and road. uating a piece of land.
Land clearing and leveling issues.
LRA Property Search Page
Neighborhoods and their lifestyle.

Distance to work, shopping, restaurant and school.

STEP 03 PREPARE THE DOCUMENT
Any noises, smells or hazards nearby?

Previous uses of the land.

PREPARE 1. Complete the Offer to Purchase Form
- Download from the QR code below
THE
DOCUMENT

Offer to Small Project Credit Informations

Purchase Form Planning Sheet for Individuals
STEP
2. Complete Credit Information for Individuals and Small

DID YOU KNOW?

04
Project Planning Sheet
- Download from the QR code above
- Or go to LRA office at 1520 Market St., Suite 2000, St. Louis, Mo
- Property Owner: Own a side lot for free 63103, complete with the help of LRA staff
The ‘Mow to Own’ Program enables residents to own a va- 3. Valid Identification
cant lot that is located next to an occupied residential or - Drivers License or State ID or Military ID
commercial property that they own, for a nominal fee. 4. Most recent checking and/or saving account statement
YOUR HOUSE - Contact your customer service representative of your bank
OWN IT FOR FREE 5. Most recent tax return and W-2 Form
- Download from the QR code below

- Residents: Own a lot for garden for $1.00 a year Tax Return Example of
The “Garden Lease” Program encourages the creation & W-2 Form Pay Stub
of vegetable and flower gardens, which allows residents 6. Two most recent pay stubs, or proof of income
to lease LRA lots for a five year period for $1.00 a year - Other proof of income: Letter from Employer, Profit and Loss State-
($5.00 total). ment, Social Security Benefits Statement
$1.00/year

STEP 04 1. Make an appointment through (314) 657-3721

SUBMIT
THE
A P P L I C AT I O N
Discover more at the LRA website
through this QR code
2. Pay the fee through check to St Louis Development Corporation
[SLDC].
3. Go to LRA office at 1520 Market St., Suite 2000, St. Louis, Mo 63103
4. Apply before 12 noon Oct.10 for the Oct.31 meeting and 12 noon
Nov.13 for the Dec.5 meeting for consideration

#HOW TO
 FALL 2018

The city of St. Louis has more than 1,900 vacant lot and abandoned properties. A vacant lot is a neglected parcel of property that has no buildings on it. In many
cases, houses were on these lots, but as they fell into disrepair, they were burned or demolished. Vacant lots are an issue of concern because they disrupt a neigh-
bourhood’s sense of community and lower property values. In the 3rd ward, the biggest problem is the number of vacant lots and the lack of a sense of commu-
nity. The best way to help reduce these problems is to own a vacant lot by yourself and build a nice property on it to form a community. You might think that is
not possible since the price is too high and the procedures are too complicated. However, with the help of the LRA, purchase a lot is easier and cheaper today.
You no longer need to figure out the ownership of the land, and you will be able to purchase a lot at only about thousands of dollars. If the lot is for residential
use, the price will be even lower. And if you intend to buy a side lot with the lot, you only need to pay about 30% of the side lot’s original price. We calculated the
price/sqft of the lots for residential use with the side lots, and surprisingly some lots only cost about $0.15/sqft. We created this map and the instruction to help
you explore the possibility of purchase a lot. Feel free to take a look at the map and consider buying one.

VANCANT LOT PRICE MAP (RESIDENTIAL USE)

AMAZING
LOW
PRICE!
$1075

COLLEGE HILL

Price: ¢14/sqft, Area: 7250sqft

FAIR GROUNDS

TWO
PARKS
NEARBY!
$1720

Price: ¢15/sqft, Area: 8034sqft

HYDE PARK

JEFF-VANDER-LOU

OLD NORTH
ST. LOUIS
NEAR
COMERCIAL
STREET!
$1720

Price: ¢15/sqft, Area: 7120sqft

LOW
VACANCY
AREA!
$1094 NEAR
ELMENTARY
SCHOOL !
Price: ¢36/sqft, Area: 3006sqft $1445

LEGEND (¢/SQFT)
¢0 - ¢20
Price: ¢20/sqft, Area: 7130sqft ¢20 - ¢40
¢40 - ¢60
> ¢60

#HOW TO
INSIDE THE THIRD WARD
Angela Drake and Eltoreon Hawkins in front of
a finest15 house.
What is the finest 15 ?
The Finest 15 is a workshop that
provides information on how to
purchase LRA properties and offers
resources to help renovate those
properties.
How did the finest15 idea emerge?
Tell us something about its history.
3 years ago SLACO - St. Louis
Association of Community
Organizations - started a initiative on
vacancy. Each participating member
choose a committee to participate on
and 4 of us choose what’s called the
LRA Committee. When we started
meeting we talked about what were
our goals as this committee. We
decided our goals would be to educate
people on how to purchase a LRA
property and getting resources to fix
that property up. So we started having
workshops called the Finest 15 and
we advertised the BEST 15 properties
in the neighborhood that we were
advertising.
What is the relation to the LRA?
When we started our committee we
asked the Director of LRA Laura
Costello, if we could meet to discuss
with her what our objective and
goals are and from there we created
a relationship that has been really
supportive from her office.
How do you try to achieve your goals
and what strategies and processes
are involved?
We try to achieve our goals by having
different resources at the workshop
on hand speaking to give the audience
information that will assist them with
making this purchase. Eltoreon does
a presentation that teaches who, what,
where, when & why. Those are all
things that should be thought about
when someone wants to purchase one
of these properties.
PAGE #
THE FINEST 15
How you can buy your own neighborhood back !
Who is part of the finest15 team. What
are your responsabilites and how do
you split up your work?
We are currently 4. Me, Angela Drake
as a chair of finest15 is responsible
for the public relations. Eltoreon
Hawkins as co-chair is taking care of
coordinating different opperations,
working on social media, for instance
the Facebook videos. He is conducting
property tours for perspective buyers
and gives presentations at the
workshops on steps to renovate your
home. Further we have two commitee
members, Lillie Clay and Alvin Willis.
Lillie Clay communicates with
resources that will attend and speak
at workshop. Alvin Willis as a LRA
committee support is working with
the LRA to pick homes for preview,
taking photos and advertising the
workshops.
How do you evaluate and rank the
vacant houses. What knowledge is
needed? Do you get help from external
resources?
The committee looks at the
neighborhood, we plan on advertising
and checks the inventory of what’s
available. Alvin and Eltoreon go out
to preview homes and then we talk
about the condition and that let us
know which homes we are choosing as
a committee.
Eltoreon Hawkins on a house tour in the 3rd ward.
What are the most important things
folks need to take care of buying a
finest15 house?
(1)We always encourage people after
they purchase this home to purchase
insurance to protect their investment,
(2) map out a plan of what they are
doing first so they don’t become
overwhelmed,
(3)see if they are able to utilize some
of the resources we shared with them
at the workshop, start on their project
soon as possible don’t let the home sit
vacant,
(4) make sure they have secured their
building to best of their ability to
protect their investment.
#HOWTO
What is the most common problem
these houses have?
No plumbing and possible leaking
from old gutters.
What are the estimated costs to rehab
a finest15 house?
We really can’t say a cost. It always
depends on what the buyer is trying to
do. Prices can be basic or get extreme
with the renovation.
You conduct workshops to inform
about current finest15 houses in the
neighborhood, what is its history and
how successful is it?
When we started in May of 2017 we
had 7 people at our first workshop. At
our 4th workshop in February 2018 we
had 165 people and it was a standing
room only.
How do you communicate the events
and how can people follow your
updates?
We communicate our events by
posting on facebook and SLACO
shares with all of their neighborhood
members who share with others by
word of mouth or facebook.
“We always tell people
to send us an email if
they are interested in
a workshop for their
neighborhood and we can
put them on our 2019
schedule! “
Selection of finest15 houses at a workshop.
Do you collaborate with builders to
help people rehabbing?
We don’t collaborate with builders.
We understand that these homes are
not in the price range of a builder to
make any money from that buyer and
a lot of times these are people who
don’t have a very large budget. We
are looking to create a contractors/
handymans list. We will be speaking
with Habitat for Humanity on getting
some contractors that we can add to
our contractors list.
Do you offer inspections or
certificates on the houses, for instance
lead,aspest, mould contamination,
for perspective buyers?
No, those are things the buyer needs
to speak with a inspector on.
Discussion at a finest15 workshop.
Were there major changes in the
behavior of buyers towards vacant
houses?
I would say yes there’s always changes
in behavior when someone is excited
about something they can purchase
and excited about making a difference
in a neighborhood.
How many houses did you sell in the
last months?
We currently don’t have numbers
for the previous month but we do
know that we advertised 20 homes
in the Walnut Park Neighborhood
and helped to sell 27! So 7 homes that
weren’t even advertised. But Eltoreon
shared them with people that called
him personally and were interested.
Also from our workshop at the Hyde
Park Neighborhood Association are
now at least 4 homes under contract
and possibly ready to close.
Do you have experience working in
the 3rd ward?
No we never did a workshop in the 3rd
ward.
The questions and answers
provided here are based on a e-mail
correspondence with Angela Drake,
chair of the finest 15.
 FALL 2018

Just 5 steps to follow:

#1
follow the Finest 15 on Facebook to
keep track of upcoming events and
new updates !

#2
join a workshop to be introduced
to the finest 15 houses in your
neighborhood.

#3
schedule a house tour with me or the
city to see the property.

#4
finally, get your papers ready,
including LRA application form,
project plan and credit statement.

#HOWTO PAGE #
INSIDE THE THIRD WARD

A HITCHHIKER’S GUIDE ST.LOUIS ARC: Em

https://www.slarc.org/progra

for 3rd Ward’s Young Gear Gleaner What they can bring you?
-For employee
Work Readiness Trainning
Job Placement
A lot of useful and free resources are availabe for our kids and the youth in Ward come you to explore new opportunities. Following Career Coaching
3, including off-campus activities, skillset building workshop and job seeking are some useful information selected, for more in-
related events. To build an effective and healthy self-development framework formation, please scan the QR code or website ad-
for the youth and kids in 3rd Ward St. Louis, this hitchhiker guide invites our dress.
community member to glean the following “gears” as you need and also wel-

Free Summer Camps LinkSTL Youth Council

https://www.stlouis-mo.gov/ http://www.linkstl.org/youth-council/

The City of St. Louis and Playtime Recreation announce Youth Council works to empower the youth of the community so th
open registration for free summer camps for City youth they have a voice that can be heard and can create a positive chan
ages 5-17. neighborhood.

Art/Basketball/Cheerleading/Cooking/Fishing/Foot- -Join us in trying to clean up our park.

ball/Robotics... -Come to our monthly meetings and make your voice be heard.
-Become a mentor to our younger neighbors

OFF-CAMPUS ACTIVITIES?
(For those 6-18)
Blueprint4Summer
https://blueprint4summer.com

A web app providing easy mobi

events in the local area so you c
fun activities.

START HERE!

#INTERESTING
 FALL 2018

mployment and Training Youth Development Grant

https://urbanawarenessusa.org/youth-grant/
ams/adulthood/employment-training/
Kars4Kids is accepting grant applications from
nonprofits that provide educational initiatives and
youth development programs. Grants range from
$500 to $2,000.

LEARN A SKILL?
(18-25)

hey know
nge in the

STL YOUTH JOBS

http://stlyouthjobs.org/

What they can bring you?

-For employee: STL Youth Jobs summer program
and STL Youth Jobs:North County
-For employer: they provide trainning for youth
and job-ready youth

FIND A JOB?
(20-25)

Help for Jobseekers

m/ https://www.stlouis-mo.gov/

ile access to summer camps and (20-25)

What they can bring you? TO BE
can plan your summer around -For employee
Training & Apprenticeships/ Employment Assis- CONTINUED!
tance/Programs & Initiatives

Day Camps Besides , we also highly recommended

you to reach out the Youth Council
Attendance
and communicate with them about
Conquering Fear your need and concerns. Remember
New Interests... you always have a voice that can be
heard and your voice can create a pos-
itive change in the neighborhood. You
are not alone. Together we can achieve
success.

#INTERESTING
INSIDE THE THIRD WARD

IN NEED OF HOME REPAIRS?

minor and major home repairs funded by government
NEIGHBORHOOD REPAIR PROGRAMS
With the incoming NGA development
looming in North St. Louis, many
community members are worried
about gentrification and losing
their properties to eminent domain.
The new development will employ
Interested homeowners can apply
through the North Newstead
Association website. If selected, the
homeowner will identify their home’s
exterior and interior problems. From
there an inspector will assess the
St. Louis Place
Old North St. Louis
house and define a scope of work. Jeff Vanderlou
North Newstead will work with the
Near North Riverfront

hundreds of people from outside
the neighborhood who might search
for housing close to work justifying
existing residents’ fears. Lucky the
St. Louis Community Development
Administration with HUD funding
is providing money to residents in
some of the neighborhoods in North
St. Louis for repairs. Fixing existing
problems with a house will increase
city and constructors to bid the work
out to find a fair deal. If the repairs
cost between $1-$10,000, the cost will
be in the form of a forgivable loan. For Carr Square
the first 5 years after the project, 20%
of the principal, interest free loan, will Columbus Square
be forgiven. After 5 years of paying
80% of the loan, if the homeowner is
still living in the home, the entire sum
will be forgiven, and the homeowner Midtown

property values and decrease the will have no further obligation. If your Downtown West

likelihood of the government taking
away your home through eminent
domain.
The Community Development
Administration has allocated funds to
the North Newstead Association. The
funds are distributed to two major
programs. The first is the Choice
Neighborhood Home Repair program.
This program funds serious home
repair for projects up to $30,000, such
as roof replacement, tuckpointing,
replacing HVAC systems, etc.
CHOICE NEIGHBHORHOOD HOME
REPAIR PROGRAM
roof replacement
repairs cost more than $10,000, the
first $10,000 will be in the form of
a forgivable loan and the rest will be
considered an interest free deferred
payment loan. This will need to
be paid back by the time the deed
changes names, or the house is sold,
and the remainder of the payment will
be transferred back to the home repair
program.
This program is in effect for residents
living in the eastern tip of Jeff-Vander-
Lou, the bottom half of St. Louis Place,
the bottom half of Old North St. Louis,
Residents within these boundaries can use repair programs.
Columbus Square, Carr Square, the
northern third of Downtown West, the
northern third of Downtown, and the
bottom of Near North Riverfront (see
the map above). In order to qualify
for the program you must meet or fall
below the minimum required income,
own and live in your house for the
last two years, have a clear title to
the property, have insurance for your
FREE MINOR
HOME REPAIR
do you need help with...
Downtown
home, have paid your real estate taxes,
and be up to date on your mortgage
loan payments.
The second program, the Minor Home
Repair program is to aid homeowning
seniors, 62 years or older with
small repairs. This includes leaky
faucets, needing grab bars installed,
replacing small sections of pipes, air
conditioners inspected or cleaned,
installing ceiling fans etc. Residents
are eligible if they meet the age
requirement, are homeowners paying
property taxes and insurance and are
residents of Mark Twain/I-70, Wells-
Goodfellow, Greater Ville, Ville, Carr
Square, St. Louis Place, Jeff-Vander-
Lou, Old North St. Louis, Penrose,
O’Fallon, Fairground, or Gate District.

See NorthNewstead contact

information below.

installing grab bars

If you are interested in the

Minor Home Repair or
Choice Neighhorhood Repair
Program
fixing a leaky faucet please contact:

NORTH NEWSTEAD ASSOCIATION

4601 Pope Ave., St. Louis, MO 63115
Office: (314) 385-4343
https://northnewstead.org
email: northnewsteadassociationstl@gmail.com
replacing a broken pipe

tuckpointing

BEFORE AFTER inspecting and clearning your air

conditioner

#HOWTO
INSIDE THE THIRD WARD
Chop Suey!
Chop Suey comes in many shapes and sizes in the 3 Ward
DID YOU KNOW?
The Aim of Chop Suey was the integration
of Chinese Immigrants into the American
society. Like many others they were seen
as less by the American population. The
first Chinese men arrived during the gold
rush in California, to work in the mines
and then went on to build the railroads,
to then slowly spread towards the East.
Discrimination lead them to open their
own businesses: laundries, grocery shops
and restaurants, resulting in ‚Chinatowns‘.
In many towns these were the only shops
to serve African Americans during times
of segregation.
Today, the US counts more then 40.000
Chinese restaurants, that’s more then
every McDonalds, Burger King and
KFC restaurant combined! Proving that
Chinese cuisine is in high demand in this
The Stand-Alone The Add-On
Chop Suey Recipe for 6 from epicurious.com
INGREDIENTS:
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon oyster sauce
- 1/2 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
- 1 pound pork tenderloin, cut crosswise
into 1/8-inch-thick strips
- 2 celery ribs diagonally cut into 1/4-inch-
thick slices
- 6 oz snow peas diagonally cut into
1/4-inch-thick slices
- 1/2 lb bok choy, cut into 1/4-inch-thick
slices (leaves and ribs separately)
- 1/4 lb mushrooms cut into 1/4-inch-
thick slices
- 1 onion, halved lengthwise and into
1/4-inch-thick strips
- 1 green bell pepper cut into 1/4-inch-
thick strips, then halved crosswise
- 1/4 lb mung bean sprouts, rinsed and
drained
- 1 (5-oz) can sliced water chestnuts
- 1 (5-oz) can sliced bamboo shoots
- 1/4 cup chicken broth
- Vegetable oil
- Water
- Salt and pepper to taste
PAGE #
FALL 2018
rd
The Add-On
Its hard to drive by this place and pass it when you’re hungry – Jarvis
country. While it is very diverse today,
most of the Chinese cuisine was Kanton-
ese until the 1970ies, when other parts of
china started moving to the US.
As an architect, I channeled my fasci-
nation for Chop Suey restaurants into
drawings. While doing so, I noticed three
different building typologies: The stand-
alone, the add-on and the inside job.
The stand-alone caters to the idea of the
cowboy. With great self eastem it defeats
all the troubles of the wild wild west by
itself.
The Add-on would love to have the
bravery of the stand-alone and is nearly
there, but sill holds on to another build-
ing. Clingint to it like a scared Kid to its
mother’s leg on the very first school day.
The inside job is stealthy. Hiding inside
Bing Lau Chop Suey – 3101 N Grand Blvd
The Inside Job
Only place me and the hubby go for Chinese food.– Whitney
The Inside Job
Stir together garlic cloves, 1 tablespoon
oyster sauce, soy sauce, salt, and 1/2 tea-
spoon cornstarch in a bowl. Stir in pork
and marinate 15 minutes.
Keep cut vegetables separate. Heat a
wok over high heat until a bead of water
dropped onto cooking surface evaporates
immediately. Drizzle 1 teaspoon vegetable
oil around side of wok, then stir-fry cel- Canton House Chop Suey – 4100 N Grand Blvd
ery, seasoning with salt, until crisp-ten-
der, about 2 minutes. Transfer celery to a The Inside Job
large bowl. Reheat wok and stir-fry each Soo good – Nicki
remaining vegetable separately in same
manner (but allow only 1 minute for bean
sprouts), adding 1 teaspoon oil to wok be-
fore each batch and seasoning with salt.
When stir-frying bok choy, begin with
ribs, then add leaves and 1 tablespoon wa-
ter after 1 minute. Transfer each vegetable
as cooked to bowl with celery.
Stir together chicken broth, 1 teaspoon
oyster sauce, and 1 teaspoon cornstarch.
Reheat wok over high heat until a bead
of water evaporates immediately. Drizzle
1 tablespoon vegetable oil around side of
wok, then stir-fry pork until just cooked
through, about 2 minutes.
Return all vegetables to wok and toss.
Make a well in center, then stir broth mix-
ture and add to well. Bring sauce to a boil,
undisturbed, then stir to combine with
pork and vegetables. Serve immediately,
with cooked rice. New Light Chop Suey – 4004 W Florissant Ave
#INTERESTING
INSIDE THE THIRD WARD FALL 2018

The Stand-Alone The Stand-Alone

Henrys is the best. – Lady Best St. Pauls EVEERRRR!!! – Stuffy

Wing Hing Chop Suey – 3900 Natural Bridge Ave Newstead Chop Suey Cat Fish – 3812 Newstead Ave

The Stand-Alone The Stand-Alone

This place is small but mighty. – Anthony They The Best This is the only one I go to – Maxie

Delmar Chop Suey – 3336 Delmar Blvd Florissant Chop Suey – 3721 W Florissant Ave

The Stand-Alone The Stand-Alone

Yoooo I love Harold’s! One of the best in the Metro! – Stephanie Great food,fast service – RaZoole

Harold’s Chop Suey – 1122 Union Blvd Union Chop Suey – 2846 Union Blvd

#INTERESTING PAGE #
INSIDE THE THIRD WARD
Coding for Kids
How coding kids can change the third Ward
Brandon Bosley is the Alderman of the
3rd Ward, Inside the Third asked him
about his plans for the future genera-
tion of constituents.
Why do you think that kids
should learn to code?
Every generation throughout history,
has had the skills necessary to be
able to survive and create work for
themselves and to be able to help
create the world around them. They
had particular skills that needed to be
learned. 100 years ago people weren’t
learning how to code. There were only
few that were working on systems like
that. People were learning skills of their
time, they were learning how to build,
how to weld, things that are needed
and necessary now but have come to a
technological age. Everything that we
do involves computers, involves that
we utilize coding. What we used to do
“I want to have an
entire generation
of young people
who can create
their own future”
manually, we do now in collaboration
with machines and computers, these
systems are manipulated with code. In
100 Years everything will be coded, it
will be basic knowledge of everybody
who lives, because everything in
existence will be based on code. But
coding is just a language, that you need
to learn. It is the basic, the very fabric
of the world the kids will grow up to
live in, every single thing they will do
will be embedded in code.
A lot of children today don’t have
physical books in some schools, they
actually have iPads. I would not want
that age to come and the children that
live right now to only know how to
use an iPad, they need to know how
to create an iPad, they need to know
how to take the pieces apart, to know
what the motherboard is for, to be able
to create the inside and the outside
of it. The Kids need to know what Is
happening behind the scenes, inside
the computers. We have to give them
the opportunity to understand the
factors that shape the world around
them, allowing them to get outside the
world they live in.
Brandon Bosley is the Alderman for the third Ward.
It‘s important, because 15-20 Years
from now, this hyper-technological
world will be a reality for them. We
have to teach them the very basics of
what will be necessary by the time they
hit 18 so they know in which direction
to go in. And no matter which one
they choose, they will need basic
programming to be able to understand
the world around them and to get a job
and get into a good college, because
everything will be computers by then.
Is there also an immediate time
factor in this idea?
Lot of kids don’t have anything to do
after leaving school and they don’t
have parents that are really active in
their lives. Giving them a space where
they can grow and learn how to use
your time wisely is crucial.
We have a lot of kids in the ward that
live in households that try to make
ends meet every month. The kids have
to take care of their little brothers,
they have to take care of what they
eat, figure out how to keep the lights
Did you know?
It is estimated that by
2020 1 million tech jobs in
America will be unfilled
on. These kids have a lot of creativity,
knowing how to stretch a few hundred
dollars into making them appear as
thousands. This creativity just needs
the right toolset to achieve great things.
They have to be given the opportunities
to really enhance their lives. The most
#INTERVIEW
amazing creations were made by people
that were in distressed environments,
who were trying to fill their needs in
their lives with creativity.
“I would just
rather have a place
where kids grow
up to build their
environment rather
than just be part of
it”
We have to breed that kind of behavior,
by creating a haven for that to grow. I
think coding is everything because it
doesn’t take money, it doesn’t take a
whole lot to be able figure out how to
build a program you just have to invest
the time in order to figure it out and
get it done. The very basics of building
is having tools. And coding is the most
important tool in the world that they
are going to live in.
If I were a 10-year-old kid in the
3rd Ward how would I learn to
code?
Coding is a language and Children
respond to games, it would be easy
to teach them how to code with
something that is already common use
when teaching languages. I would start
with basic coding with Java Script and
C Sharp and I know there are other
languages out there that they need to
learn but learning just those few and
being creative is something that brings
them very far. It is nothing where they
need to invest a lot into hardware.
With java they can create an amazing
game, they can take it with them on
their phones, show it to their friends,
share it with other people, they can put
it on google and sell it. And that’s an
amazing tool to have, that’s a realistic
thing that you can do and learn how
to do in 50 weeks. So it takes you
under a year to learn how to create
something that will last and you can
transfer from person to person. People
can take it home and say that this kid
from the 3rd ward made an amazing
game. This quick gratification fuels the
interest and lets them become more
and more involved. When they are
sitting at home, they will be playing
games on their phones that they
created themselves, thinking how they
can improve it, how to make it better.
Thinking that they can’t wait to get
better and can’t wait to get back to the
coding place to improve their game.
Instead of the kid asking for a ready-
made game for Christmas or a ready-
made toy for Christmas, the kid will be
asking for a computer for Christmas,
so you can code more and invest
more time on your own and do better
games. They will ask for a 3D-Printer
to print their own toys because they
will understand that, together with
the knowledge how to use it, they will
have access to an unlimited number
of toys that they can design and print
themselves. The goal would be to
create small project and utilize code
to make them a physical, real object, a
real material thing they can be proud
Scratch
The MITs Media Lab created this
coding language. Aimed at teaching
coding to children, it is built up in
a library of visual blocks, which can
be combinde into games. A first
desktop version of the language has
been published in 2003. Today, it
has over 32 million registered users.
scratch.mit.edu
 FALL 2018

of and enhance and work on. I think

games would be great and 3d print,
which doesn’t take coding in itself, but
it takes designing and it takes coding for
that design to work. I want them to be
able to create the designing programs,
instead of just passively using them.
That’s a bit more enhanced of course
but it all starts with getting them
involved with something on a more
basic level that you can materialize,
so they can start creating something
every month with code, doing
something physical and being proud
of it. On top of that, this knowledge is
not bound to the physical location, one
can go to a friend’s house and do the
same thing there, the knowledge isn’t
bound to any infrastructure. It’s time
that we start taking advantage of these
incredible resources around coding.

#INTERVIEW
INSIDE THE 3RD WARD FALL 2018

PEOPLE WE MET
We met many organizations who can support and help the local community during the trip

THE NORTH CAMPUS

NORTH NEWSTEAD ASSOCIATION

North Campus is a community centered

around education. They provide free after-
school tutoring, mentoring, meals, and trans-
The North Newstead Association is a Com-
portation services. We also rehab and trans-
munity Based Development Organization.
form vacant buildings on campus into safe
Its mission is to bring community partners
places for kids to learn. They are going to
together to promote economic well being in
open their new pizza shop, Sanctuary Pizza
the local area by providing affordable housing
soon.
and family support services to the areas low
and moderate-income residents.
Contact Information:
Antonio French
Contact Information:
Founder, The North Campus
Sal Martinez
antonio@thenorthcampus.org
Executive Director, North Newstead Associa-
tion
smartinez@sfm-stl.com

NORTH CITY FOOD HUB

“FORWARD THROUGH FERGUSON” SWEET POTATO PROJECT H

The vision of the North City Food Hub is mak-

ing a local food system in North St. Louis a
reality. The NCFH will establish a shared use
kitchen and function as an incubator for en-
trepreneurs in urban agriculture and culinary
to increase income potential and availability
of healthy food.​It will provide cooking train-
ing and lessons in entrepreneurship soon.
Forward throug Ferguson is a report wrote by Sweet Potato Project is a program that seeks T
The Ferguson Commission to study the situ- to empower low-income youth and adults w
Contact Information:
ation and prove a path toward change. Their through land-ownership and urban agricul- e
Mildred Mattfeldt-Beman
goal is to work with St. Louis institutions by ture. The project was designed to promote t
Project Coordinator, North City Food Hub
providing information, trainings, and policy urban farming, basic business skills, healthy c
alayna.ncfhstl@gmai.com
recommendations to ultimately embed racial behaviors, and healthy choices among youth o
equity into all aspects of society. in low-income communities. It provides a 10- i
week summer program for students. h
Contact Information:
David Dwight Contact Information: C
Executive Director, Forward Through Fergu- Sylvester Brown M
son Program Director, Sweet Potato Project S
david@forwardthroughferguson.org sylvesterbj@gmail.com m

#INTERESTING
 INSIDE THE 3RD WARD FALL 2018

During our trip to the 3rd ward from September 23 to September 28, we’ve
met varies intereting people and have had so many meaningful conversations.
These meetings showed us how energetic this ward is and how talented people
here are. There are people who are trying to provide job opportunities and in-
come for other residents, organizing events to inprove the living condition of
the neighborhood, building affordable housings for low income people, advis-
ing gorvernment to promote equity-driven policy making and providing educa-
tional programs for teenagers. It is also very excited to see that people who are
making tremendous efforts to eliminate racism are not only from a single race,
but from various races and neighborhood, even cities that are far from the 3rd
ward and St. Louis. However, during our trip, we found that most of the resi-
dents in the 3rd ward still don’t know that there are so many people and or-
ganizations who are trying and are able to help them. We made this map with
a description of these organizations about who they are and what they do. We
also provided the contact information of the founders or main members of each
organization. We encourage you to contact these organizations if you found that
they can provide something you need or you are interested in the things they
are doing.

FINEST 15
NORTH SIDE COMMUNITY HOUSING LINK STL

Finest 15 is a non-profit organization lead by

NCHI is a non-profit, community develop-
ment corporation. Its mission is to provide
high quality housing that is affordable to low-
and moderate-income area residents and
to create opportunities for them to improve
their lives and revitalize the community.
Their new project near Lincoln Ave is under
construction and will be finished soon.
Contact Information:
Michael Burns
President, Northside Community Housing
michael@nchistl.org
Link Stl is a place-based community organiza-
tion, it focuses on linking people to opportu-
nities. It serves as the community center for
community gatherings, a resources boards
to provide job and education opportunities,
it also helps local community by one on one
interviews, connecting stakeholders and con-
necting service providers to residents Derectly.
Contact Information:
Timetria Murphy- Watson
Director, LinkStL
tmurphywatson@gracehillsettlement.org
Eltoreon Hawkins. He dedicated to encour-
aging home ownership with the young people
by select best 15 homes available for purchase
owned by the Land Reutilization Authority,
and helping people to understanding and
submitting the legal application process to
own a peoperty.
Contact Information:
Eltoreon Hawkins
Founder, Finest 15
eltoreonhawkins@yahoo.com

SEWCIAL IMPACT

Hyde Park Neighborhood Association ANTI-RACISM COLLABORATIVE

Sewcial Impact Project is a social enterprise

working with ten young people, ages 12-20 to
reflect on their current experiences getting
around the city, imagine radical alternatives,
and produce a quilt depicting a scene from
the world they have imagined. We joined one
of the event to help local youth sewing protest
banners.
The Hyde Park Neighborhood Association Anti-Racism Collaborative’s purpose is to
was formed to connect neighbors – both rent- provide a joint analysis which can result in a
Contact Information:
ers and homeowners, promote (remove ac- set of shared beliefs in guiding our anti-racist
Umeme Houston
tivities) and foster community activities and organizing work. They are white anti-racist
CCP Lead, Sewcial Impact
civic engagement while improving the quality activists who come together to further anti-
umemejay@gmail.com
of life for those living, working, or attending racist organizing among progressive white
institutions within the Hyde Park neighbor- activists in the St. Louis area.
hood.
Contact Information:
Contact Information: James Meinert
Michelle Dufe Anti-Racism Collaborative
South Hyde Park Developments david@forwardthroughferguson.org
mduffe@ndconsulting.com

#INTERESTING
WHO WE ARE

Aleiya Evison, 22 Hannah Lyons-Galante, 28 Melissa Green, xx Jakob Junghanss, 24

Louisville, Colorado Cambridge, Massachusetts New York Basel, Europe
my feature my features my features my features
“LIGHTNING THE WAY” “WHATS WITH ALL THE RAIN GARDENS?” “A GUIDE TO WARD 3 PARKS” “A JOURNEY OF A BRICK”
“THE HISTORY OF WATER TOWERS” “WHO OWNS THE LAND?” “WANT TO LEARN SOME REHAB SKILLS?”

I am in my first year of the Master’s

I am a Master of Landscape I am in my third year in the GSD I am an Architecture student from
in Design Studies Program, with a
Architecture student. I am interested Harvard of Landscape Architecture. Switzerland, studying on exchange at
concentration in Art, Design, and the
in Ecology, Habitat Conservation and I am interested in incorporating the GSD Harvard. I am fascinated by
Public Domain. My passions include
the Design of Community Open Space. vernacular tools into practice. the history of the built environement
equity design and progressive politics.
and it´s possible futures.

Kun Luo, xx Eunsu Kim, xx Lanie Cohen, xx Minzi Long, xx

Shanghai, China Louisville, Colorado Henderson, Nevada XX, XX
my features my features my features my features
“HOUSES IN THE 3RD WARD” “TAKE ME TO THE RIVER” “3RD WARD UNDERGROUND” “XX”
“XX” “VACANT VS. GREEN” “CITY OF PROTEST” “XX”

Hi, I am Kun and I am currently I am studying landscape architecture I am a Master of Landscape I am a Master of Urban Design
learning architecture design at the at Harvard Graduate School of Design. Architecture student. I’m interested in student. I am interested in shifting
GSD. I like traveling and watching I want to investigate into public spaces making places that address social and the focus of design to a more human-
movies. in St. Louis! environmental inequalities. centered experience.

Luka Travas, 24 Rudy Botros, xx Andy Lee,xx Daniel D’Oca , xx

Vienna, Austria Louisville, Egypt Louisville, Colorado New Jersey
my features my features
“XX” “WHEN IT COMES TO BLACK LIVES POLICY
“XX” ALSO MATTER”
I am an Associate Professor in Practice
“LANDMARKS OF EXCLUSION”
of Urban Planning, and principal and
HI, I am Luka, I am an exchange I am of Egyptian decent but grew up
I am a Teaching Assistant (TA) co-founder of Interboro Partners,
student from Zurich, Switzerland, in the States since I was 5. I am a
studying .... I have a background in .... a New York-based architecture,
where I study Architecture. Master’s of Urban Planning student.
. My passions include .... planning, and research firm.politics.