Plan Aims to Cultivate Growth, Density in Plant Science District
Date Posted: November 28, 2016
Posted In: Projects,
From St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Economic development officials are hoping to replicate the success of the Cortex technology district in the suburbs.
Monsanto’s headquarters and the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center already serve as anchors of the Creve Coeur hub of agriculture technology, while BRDG Park and the Helix Center offer space for startups and companies that want to be near the research performed there.
But the amenities and density that often help attract a highly educated workforce are somewhat lacking in a suburb developed when planners thought of little more than accommodating cars.
Now, area leaders are planning trails and connections to food and entertainment, attributes many believe are necessary to continue attracting the top-notch scientific talent that drives biotech investment.
“The folks who come here from places like the [San Francisco] Bay Area, like Boston or Austin, Texas, when we ask them what would make it more attractive, they say things like walkability, connectivity, density,” said Sam Fiorello, chief operating officer of the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center and president of the adjacent lab and office space building known as BRDG Park. “We have some of the top scientists in the world. We want to make sure they stay here and their roots get deep.”
Aided by a $500,000 grant from the U.S. Commerce Department, the St. Louis Economic Development Partnership has been working for a year to develop a plan encompassing what’s loosely referred to as the plant science district around Olive and Lindbergh boulevards. They’ll soon unfurl a branding campaign for the district, but the Partnership will also be looking to fund concrete construction projects.
Within the next couple of years, the draft plan calls for rebuilding the Olive and Lindbergh intersection. By removing the clover leaf interchange, it will open up additional land for development. Also included are plans to connect Old Olive Street at Lindbergh. The street doesn’t cross the major road, limiting access to the shops and restaurants to the west of the plant science district.