Lux Living Pushes Into the Suburbs While Controversy Knocks
Date Posted: August 3, 2022
Posted In: Discussion, Projects,
From CityScene STL: Lux Living, the developer who pursued a project at the Optimist site in the Central West End and the row of vacant buildings on Kingshighway at Oakland,, and has proposed a revised project at the Engineers Site on Lindell, is now pushing into the St. Louis suburbs.
Two new projects, one that would replace a strip mall at 8800 Watson Road and the other that would replace the Motel 6 at the Dorsett Road and 270 exit in Maryland Heights, were proposed recently and both seem to be advancing in some form.
For example, the Crestwood project, which includes 276 apartment units, recently granted preliminary approval by the Crestwood Board of Aldermen and seems to be on track for final approval at the planning and zoning commission. However, specifics about incentives are unclear but the Lindbergh School District opposed incentives to build the now canceled Crestwood City Center. If Lux were to seek incentives on their Crestwood project, I expect the request to be met with fierce opposition. The Crestwood project seemed to have flown under the radar and is likely what led to the project being advanced without much opposition.
In Maryland Heights, the project at the Motel 6 site, a 7-story, 260-unit development, is set to be reviewed for the first time at the Maryland Heights Planning and Zoning Commission meeting on August 9th. Planning staff says that the project complies with the comprehensive plan and current zoning but is not compliant with the required parking minimum. Staff has no clear recommendation on what direction to take the project at this time. Recommendations are either approve of the conceptual plan, approve with conditions, or deny the conceptual plan.
This project obtained support from the Deputy Chief of Police of Maryland Heights, Jamison White, who stated
“To be honest, the proposal of a high-end multi-story apartment building to replace the Motel 6 brings some excitement to the police department. We have seen the Motel 6 degrade considerably over the last fifteen years to the point of it not only being an eyesore to the community, but also the type of business that attracts a certain type of criminal element”.