| St. Louis Five Year Consolidated Plan Strategy | |
| Neighborhood Description - Lindenwood Park | |
|
LINDENWOOD PARK (9)
LOCATION
HISTORY
By and large, the local housing stock was well-built and has been well-maintained ever since. Blocks tend to be frame (usually earlier) or brick (usually later), but some are mixed. Housing size, designs, landscaping, parcel dimensions, and so on. vary widely from street to street or along the same block. The end result is a broad spectrum of urban middle-class housing types from nineteenth century "urban farmhouses" to 1920s' bungalows to 1950s' prestige show homes to art-deco apartment buildings. Maintaining and improving this housing stock, the community's greatest assets, is the core neighborhood concern. Relatively low crime and residential turnover rates help achieve these goals. Three primary commercial or mixed commercial-residential corridors coalesced to serve local residents as well as nonresidents. They are along Hampton, Chippewa, and Watson. The Chippewa strip is almost exclusively commercial from Hampton west to Jamieson and around the River Des Peres, but significant amounts of housing and housing converted to commercial purposes dot the Hampton and, in particular, Watson corridors. There are also noteworthy commercial nodes along Arsenal, Lansdowne, and Ivanhoe. Industrial development is minimal, comprising a handful of scattered locations. The Lindenwood Park neighborhood has been overwhelmingly white and middle-class throughout its history. As recently as 1990, its population of 10,905 was more than 99 percent white. During the 1990s, however, larger numbers of black and other nonwhite households have joined the community. There has also been a small but noteworthy influx of southeast European immigrants, as signified by the recent presence of the "Bosnian Inn" restaurant on Chippewa just west of Hampton. CHARACTERISTICS
There is virtually no undeveloped land suitable for new construction. For example, several vacant acres immediately adjacent to the Southwest Station Post Office at 3232 Clifton are, reportedly, subject to sinkholes. Demolition or new construction that does occur is almost exclusively within established commercial or institutional settings. The recent development of two medical office/outpatient facilities are cases in point. The University Care structure, at 6435 Chippewa, replaced a former restaurant that had been vacant for years. An underutilized nursing home parking lot became the site for the SSM Health Care building at 6555 Chippewa. The diversity and quality of Lindenwood Park's housing stock appeals to a wide variety of middle-income people. The U. S. Census determined in 1990 that there were 5,408 dwelling units in the neighborhood, with 5,063 occupied and 345 vacant for a vacancy rate of 6.4 percent. A total of 3,443 of the occupied units were owner-occupied-63.7 percent of the housing stock. Many local vacancies occur when older adults are institutionalized or die. Months can pass before a home is sold or otherwise occupied. Most, but not all, tenants rent apartments just as most, but not all, owners live in single-family homes. In any case, there is a high correlation between owner-occupancy and high maintenance levels, which holds true in Lindenwood Park. The physical condition of individual structures range from marginal to immaculate, with most falling between good and excellent. Some years ago, however, the ongoing presence of several problem structures motivated the formation of the Linden Heights Housing Corporation, which serves roughly the northern two-thirds of Lindenwood Park. The 1990 U. S. Census categorized housing by the number of units within structures. It determined that the 5,408 dwelling units in Lindenwood Park could be grouped as follows: Structure Number Percent Single Units (Detached) 3,693 68.3% Single Units (Attached) 46 0.9% Two Units 332 6.1% Three/Four Units 741 13.7% Five to Nine Units 98 1.8% Ten to Nineteen Units 207 3.8% Twenty to Forty-nine Units 266 4.9% Mobile/Other Units 25 0.5% Total Units 5,408 100.0% The architectural styles of these residential structures, as previously suggested, is eclectic. Individual structures vary from the modest to substantial, but few suggest either poverty or great wealth. INSTITUTIONS AND ORGANIZATIONS
There are numerous churches located within and outside Lindenwood Park that serve both local and nearby residents. Among those located within Lindenwood Park are:
Some of these churches provide social services for church members as well as for other people. No other social service providers have offices in Lindenwood Park. Several neighborhood organizations are active in Lindenwood Park. The Lindenwood Neighborhood Association covers the entire area and works for the general betterment of the area, with special emphasis on Lindenwood Park, the single municipal park located in the neighborhood. The Tilles Park Neighborhood Association serves an area overlapping and outside Lindenwood Park. Within Lindenwood Park, it is concerned with the area bounded by Scanlan to the north, Hampton to the east, Chippewa to the south, and Watson to the west. It seeks to nurture and maintain a strong, cohesive, and viable residential and business environment in and around Tilles Park, a municipal facility on Hampton at Fyler across from the Lindenwood Park neighborhood. In addition, the Hampton-Chippewa Business Association, as well as the Southwest St. Louis Landlord Association, have members in Lindenwood Park. As previously noted, the problem of isolated marginal residential structures is being directly addressed by another local group. The Linden Heights Housing Corporation serves roughly two-thirds of Lindenwood Park, as well as some nearby areas. It assists individual homeowners and undertakes more demanding rehabilitation projects. PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT
No large-scale neighborhood planning has occurred in recent years. The focus of both local and municipal efforts has been to maintain and improve existing circumstances. There is no general feeling or perceived need to "think big." Indeed, the lack of both developable land and urgent severe problems works against bold initiatives. Something with regional implications, however, is headed toward Lindenwood Park's fringe where it meets St. Louis County on Lansdowne Avenue west of the River Des Peres. This locale is planned to be the southernmost Shrewsbury terminus for the new MetroLink light-rail line linking the Clayton business district to the existing East St. Louis/Downtown St. Louis/Airport line. It may be possible to do something more ambitious than providing "park and ride" service at this site. Otherwise, for the foreseeable future, only incremental changes are likely to occur elsewhere in Lindenwood Park. |
Lindenwood Park evolved into a predominantly single-family home residential community with more than two-thirds of its housing stock comprising such structures. Duplexes, four-family flats, and larger apartment structures are scattered throughout much of the area with noteworthy concentrations situated along Watson, Jamieson, and Lindenwood Court.