North St. Louis

A few weeks ago, I was lamenting the sad state of the downtown riverfront. I took it as a sign of decline in St. Louis. Other signs have been the apparent loss of momentum in revitalizing areas like the Washington Avenue district, midtown, and Cherokee Street.

Today, I went for a ride up in North St. Louis, and it was kind of an eye opener. I saw quite a few revitalization projects. It occurs to me that my view of what is happening in St. Louis is limited by what parts of the city I spend time in. There may in fact be all kinds of things happening in North St. Louis, and I wouldn’t know, because I mostly avoid the area.

Indeed, I would have to agree that North St. Louis is really the part of the city that needs improvement the most, simply because that is where the most economically depressed populations are. This is the area that needs improved housing, transportation, and jobs.