union station
Before there were trains, people or any mammals at all, an immense ocean covered much of the Midwest, including most of what we call Missouree, except for those who call it Missour-ah. If you’ve forgotten all about that, it’s understandable—give or take a handful of centuries, it was about 300 million years ago. The fossil record tells us there were sharks in these parts. By the summer of 2019, there will be again: A new ocean ‘environment’ … along with lake and river environments (in separate tanks) and thousands of the critters therein … will occupy 120,000 square feet of the former train shed at St. Louis Union Station. Sharks, rays and other sea life that hasn’t changed much since back in the prehistoric day will have 1.3 million gallons in which to frolic (if sharks, indeed, frolic) in a new aquarium. McCarthy Building Companies Inc. broke ground at the end of November on this water feature, the next phase of development at the National Historic Landmark train station downtown. The aquarium, part of a $160 million family entertainment complex that also will include a Ferris wheel and an outdoor park for entertainment and food and beverage services, will take up much of the station’s former mall area, with entry at the south plaza. Aquarium designer PGAV Destinations already has been very busy at Saint Louis Zoo, designing environments including Polar Bear Point, Sea Lion Sound, Penguin & Puffin Coast and the new Grizzly Ridge. At Union Station, the first phase of this intriguing development—the fire and light show at the lagoon—opened in November 2016, and a boardwalk has since been installed for folks to completely soak in this spectacle.
eureka
Construction plans are a little ways off, but we figured we’d let you know now: An erstwhile Blockbuster Video store in Eureka, which was transformed into a branch of the St. Louis County Library, is to be replaced in the next few years by a brand-new, full-service library more than twice its size. SLCL plans to build a new Eureka Hills Branch, with construction to start in 2020. The library has purchased a 3.5-acre parcel at 500 Workman Road to replace the branch at 156 Eureka Towne Center, a leased space of about 6,500 square feet, which will remain open while its 15,000-squarefoot replacement is under construction. The new branch will feature an expanded collection, dynamic children’s area, private study rooms, space for programming, quiet reading room, community meeting room, business center and a space for teens. The branch will be adjacent to a new housing development and elementary school. The Eureka project is not part of the ‘Your Library Renewed’ campaign to renovate or replace 19 of SLCL’s 20 branches. At the time the original Facilities Master Plan was developed, the branch had just moved into its larger space. Library administration has since determined that the growing community needs a full-service branch. Architects will be selected through a competitive bid process in 2019. The new branch is projected for completion in summer 2021. Meanwhile, go hang out in the existing library. Check out a book, CD or DVD. It’s all free of charge, unlike any of the stuff on the racks at the Blockbuster store that used to be there.
st. louis
The concept is so wonderful, you have to keep it where the sun don’t shine. It’s men’s and women’s underwear made in the Dominican Republic with organic pima cotton sourced from Peru. The waistband of each pair of Marc Skid underwear contains one recycled plastic water bottle. And $4 from each pair sold ($29 for men’s, $20 for women’s) goes to a charity of the purchaser’s choice. The e-commerce concept comes from one Dan Barry, a former Anheuser-Busch marketing exec who decided to pursue a dream when he was laid off in 2014. (Thanks, Obama … or, maybe we mean InBev.) Born and raised in the StL, Barry now lives in the AtL—OK, that’s enough hipness for a tooclever- by-half brief about briefs. These soft goods target millennials. Let’s say, instead, that Barry, a former St. Louisan, now hails from Atlanta, and he handles everything from his house for now. But the brand name? Well, for this 60-plus fella, it’s just dumb. Maybe my whities are a little too tightie, but why didn’t the team keep brainstorming before someone decided that Marc Skid was absolutely the best idea? The first half of the tagline on the three we’ve seen is ‘Feed/Cure/Save the World,’ which is displayed on a graphic rendering of the globe. But that’s not as far as it goes. ‘Make Your Marc on the World’ is at the bottom. Geez! Who thought that was the ideal tagline? I mean, most folks will get it; winkwink, nudge-nudge. Some will laugh, but others will cringe. Maybe Barry’s focus groups consisted only of snickering fifth-grade boys. Anyhow, for all the good his company could do, we think it would do even more under a different name.
wildwood
If we’re facing balmy, not wintry, weather like we had most of last year, skiers will be frustrated by the shortage of snow at our local resort, Hidden Valley in Wildwood. The slopes in our little corner of the Ozarks count not so much on natural snow to fall, as for temperatures to. Snowmaking equipment is expected to keep enough of the white stuff around and packed down. But if the weather is above freezing as it often was the past two years, local ski bunnies won’t be nearly as bummed as Peak Resorts, the publicly owned Missouri company that operates Hidden Valley and other ski areas in the Midwest and Northeast. After all, they have investors to hold them accountable. Peak’s good news: Mount Snow in Vermont and Wildcat in New Hampshire opened Nov. 11, thanks to a long-enough period below freezing to make beaucoup fake snow. Peak’s notso- good news? Wildwood. The city is reluctant to allow the company to install as ambitious a zip-line operation as the company has planned. You see, even with Hidden Valley’s 80 days of winter operation (as touted on the area’s website) for tubing, boarding and skiing, there have to be ways besides golf to make money the other 285 days of the year. But the city has residents to consider as well when it comes to hours of operation and proximity of the attraction to neighborhoods, so Wildwood’s planning and zoning commission voted to pull Peak’s horns back. Peak has threatened to pull the plug not only on its $2.5 million ZipTour, but on Hidden Valley overall. But there’s still hope for a compromise. The commission has kicked its ‘nay’ decision to a subcommittee for further evaluation. Meanwhile, we all should consult Farmer’s Almanac for a precise long-term weather forecast.
u. city
Jeff Gerhardt must have creativity to burn. The co-owner of Cursed Bikes & Coffee in U. City is an architect. Almost. He got ‘this close’ to becoming one, but decided at the last minute not to take the licensing exam. Now he tunes bicycles for sale or rent at his shop. As the weather turns cooler, he anticipates more java aficionados and fewer cyclists. Meanwhile, he is set for the holidays: His ‘tree’ is artificial, but certainly not what you’d expect. There’s no greenery, for one thing. Its conical shape derives from bicycle tires and rims that start out big at the bottom and get smaller as they ascend. Instead of a star, the topper is a gear. He’s strung it with lights, but doesn’t have to sweep up needles. It doesn’t need lubrication, as there are no moving parts. (Now, if it’s a ‘Festivus pole,’ we should gather around it on Dec. 23 to air our grievances and wrestle one another.) The odd construction inspires good cheer. Patrons giggle. Gerhardt takes full credit for creating the conversation-starter. Cursed’s other co-owner— his wife, Erin—is usually too busy. Although she handles the establishment’s social media, she has a demanding full-time gig elsewhere. She’s an emergency-room doctor at St. Mary’s Hospital in Richmond Heights.
