Marine Villa- South St. Louis Neighborhood sandwiched between Cherokee and Jefferson/Broadway showing signs of life

The neighborhood’s name is a tribute to the many rivermen who once lived and worked in the area. Originally part of the St. Louis Commons, this area was subdivided and gridded in 1855. The Lemp Brewery relocated from downtown to the northern edge of the Marine Villa neighborhood in the 1860s, and the neighborhood saw an influx of German immigrants. By the 1890s the streetcar came through the neighborhood along Broadway creating an explosion in population and construction. Yet Marina Villa experienced serious disinvestment especially in the segment of the neighborhood south of Broadway Ave. The northern half of the district has benefitted from the reinvestment along Cherokee St. While Marine Villa is still loosing population it is at a much slower rate than it was before 2000. There are also some signs of life in the housing market.

From an urban perspective Marine Villa needs to continue to build off of its strong edge along Cherokee St and relatively healthy housing market north of Broadway. This includes the Jefferson Business District which grows more stable the closer to Cherokee one gets. Hopefully the planned north-south Green Line becomes a reality as it could really transform the neighborhood and bring back a historic streetcar line. Marine Villa simply needs more density and investment which would drive better retail & cultural amenities to areas outside of just Cherokee Street and clean up the significant amount of blight south of Broadway.

Click here to view my Marine Villa Album on Flickr

URBAN STRENGTHS:

* Sidewalk infrastructure is fine but ADA curb cuts only include about 1/2 of all intersections.
* Decent tree canopy throughout Marine Villa unless it’s a more industrial section.
* Nice bike path that cuts through Marine Villa and connects all the way north to Dwtn. Convenient access to dwtn across all modes being only an 8 minute drive or a 25 min bus ride.
* Solid diversity indicators esp. racial and generational. The neighborhood is 1/2 Black but with large White and Hispanic populations. Economic diversity is not a great as there is still pretty high poverty (20%) and mostly low-moderate incomes.
* Some rentals but not a ton. 1-beds lease btwn $800- the low 1Ks, 2-beds in the low-mid 1Ks. Some 3 & 4 beds as well that generally lease in the mid-high 1Ks.
* Very attractive historic bldgs and breweries along Cherokee St (the main biz district) or a couple blocks south. Generally solid stock all the way to Broadway. South of Broadway there are more mid century ranch homes mixed in and the historic stock is less well maintained.
* Good urban form and streetscaping along Cherokee St. Decent urban form along Jefferson. Broadway Ave however is pretty blighted and autocentric.
* Cultural amenities are concentrated along Cherokee and including a nice array of restaurants, bars, and cafes along with a couple  local breweries in historic brewing bldgs. Also a live music venue, and  couple historic mansions.
* Several boutiques, gift stores, and antiques/home good stores especially along Cherokee St known as antique row. Also a couple book stores, several salons & barbers, a couple doctor’s offices, a Save-a-Lot, and a couple dessert joints.

URBAN WEAKNESSES:

• Good amount of blight still remains across Marine Villa especially south of Broadway. Crime is def higher than the City’s higher end districts but appears pretty average for St. Louis.
• Below average density for an urban district. Marine Ville was historically much denser.
• The street grid gets messed up by Broadway Ave cutting across it and the industrial uses.
• Some decent parks in adjacent neighborhoods but literally none within Marine Villa.
• Several smaller schools within or nearby Marine Village but the few that are rated are rated poorly.
• Not a ton of for sale product on the market in Marine Villa, which tells me the % of homeowners is likely pretty low or the price points are low enough that few homeowners list on the MLS.
• Modern in-fill is very limited in Marine Villa. What does exist is generally auto centric crud.
• Missing several key retail amenities including churches, drug stores, etc.”