Bryan Cave will stay

The Bryan Cave law firm will remain in its current space in downtown St. Louis rather than move to Clayton or build a new building in south dowtown, acoording to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The city of St. Louis had offered the firm lots of tax incentives for building a new building at either Cupples Station or "Ballpark Village," a move that may have fueled an unsustainable boom in downtown office construction. Other companies would have no doubt wanted similar incentives. Under the present deal, the city is providing a $300,000 forgivable loan so that the firm can expand its space in the Metropolitan Square building from 7.5 to a full 9 stories.

This is good news for downtown, which has recently lost many offices even as it has attracted residents. Downtowns hould not only be a vibrant residential neighborhood but should be the preeminent place for large and important firms in law, finance, engineering, architecture, etc. In short, it should be downtown. I don't expect it to ever regain its status, but that doesn't stop me from hoping that my expectations are foiled.

As for Ballpark Village, I guess it will have to wait for its first new building. I'm not holding my breath.

While Cupples Station could have used a large tenant, it seems to be stable once again. Supposedly Amy and Amrit Gill (of Moolah Temple fame) and McCormick Baron Salazar are both interested in rehabbing some of the remaining buildings, and Downtown Now! has put on hold its stupid plan to demolish Building 7, one of the two remaining Cupples buildings on the block bounded by 10th, Spruce, Clark and 11th.