Category: Media

Categories
Architecture Media

St. Louis Chapter of the Society of Architectural Historians Unveils Website

by Michael R. Allen

Courtesy of Michelle Kodner, the St. Louis Chapter of the Society of Architectural Historians has a lovely new website. One of the best features of the site is that most chapter newsletters back to Fall 2004 are fully published in PDF format.

Those familiar with the plethora of online content on St. Louis architecture may not be familiar with the chapter’s outstanding newsletter of original research, edited by Esley Hamilton. Read through some of the newsletters and you’ll see why I look forward to seeing the newsletter in the mail every quarter. Chapter membership includes a newsletter subscription and is an astounding $10 a year!

Categories
Central West End DeVille Motor Hotel Historic Preservation Media Mid-Century Modern

San Luis: This Was the Future

by Michael R. Allen

In early March, I received a call from Jeff Vines. He was part of a team that entered a documentary film competition, and they had been fortunate enough to draw “history” for their topic. You know what that meant — a chance to celebrate the DeVille Motor Hotel! Jeff’s team included familiar faces — his brother Randy, filmmaker Carson Minow, editor Jon Swegle and musician Brian Wiegert. Toby Weiss and I were interview subjects for what turned out to be a smart, cool little film. Check it out!

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Historic Preservation Media SLPS

Historic Preservation Should Be Part of St. Louis Public Schools Facilities Plan

by Michael R. Allen

KWMU aired my latest commentary today, on my birthday: Historic Preservation Should Be Part of St. Louis Public Schools Facilities Plan

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Historic Preservation Media SLPS

Historic Schools Given Short Shrift in Facilities Management Planning

by Michael R. Allen

Over at the Post-Dispatch Eddie Roth has posted a blog entry on the short shrift that historic schools are getting in the current St. Louis Public Schools facilities management planning process. Roth quotes at length an e-mail that I sent him outlining what’s wrong with the approach being taken by the district and its consultants, MGT of America.

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Historic Preservation Media

St. Louis’ Market Recovery Starts With Historic Buildings

by Michael R. Allen

My latest commentary for radio station KWMU, “St. Louis’ Market Recovery Starts With Historic Buildings,” aired today. An audio file and extended script are online here.

Categories
Events Media Urban Exploration

"Urban Explorers: Into the Darkness" Screens Thursday

Ever wonder what it’s like to prowl an abandoned asylum in the night? What you’ll find in the darkest corners of Paris’ catacombs? Who is sleeping in an abandoned, moldy “house of the future” on a Florida roadside?

Urban Explorers: Into the Darkness follows people who have sought answers to these questions. One of the best things about the film is that rather than make itself about places that are featured in two hundred photos on Flickr, the director hits at a more elusive aspect of urban exploration: the personalities and motivations of those who self-identify as explorers. The film is more of an inquiry into the handful of explorers profiled, and includes great interviews and some laugh-out-load hijinks.

The film screens at 7pm Thursday, September 11 at the Winifred Moore Auditorium at Webster University, 470 E. Lockwood Avenue in Webster Groves.

Thomas Crone has an interview with directory Melody Gilbert here.

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Cherokee Street Media South St. Louis

Cherokee Street Chronicles

by Michael R. Allen

Lindsey Scott and Jason Deem sent out news that there are two new websites chronicling the vibrant life of Cherokee Street, the city’s most diverse and lively neighborhood commercial district:

Cherokee Street News, a blog.

Cherokee Street Photos, already featuring hundreds of photographs, including historic images.

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Historic Preservation Media

Post-Dispatch Publishes Special Section on Historic Preservation

by Michael R. Allen

Yesterday’s St. Louis Post-Dispatch included a special Entertainment section on historic preservation written by Diane Toroian Keaggy and David Bonetti. The section includes lists of buildings most worth preserving selected by experts like Larry Giles and Kate Shea as well as an article about the “underground” documentation efforts of myself and others. Read it all here.

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Downtown Green Space JNEM Media Parks

Post-Dispatch Editorializes on Arch Grounds

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch today editorializes on the discussion about the Arch grounds in an oddly-named article entitled “Top Shelf.” What’s most interesting is that alongside the Danforth plans the editorial discusses the merit of Rick Bonasch’s plan for remaking Memorial Drive, with nods to Steve Patterson and myself (at least in the online version). Once more, grassroots urbanism trickles up. Usually, the ideas get the nod without their source named.

The best part about the editorial is that while welcoming Danforth’s leadership it also calls for inclusion of different vision: “In short, there’s still time for sharp thinkers and innovative ideas. But they must get into the process. And they should be welcomed.”

We must be doing something right.

Categories
Media Urbanism

Healthy and Active Blogging

by Michael R. Allen

The staff of Trailnet’s Healthy and Active Communities Initiative have been blogging away for the last two years. Not reading their work? You should be. The blog provides fresh and insightful information you don’t get in many urban issues blogs — writings about the history of food prices, developments in biodiesel, the problems with the abundance of corn in our diets and so forth. Just as autocentric urban planning is very unhealthy, so is an economic system that keeps nutritious foods off of the shelves of inner city groceries. Trailnet’s staff keep pointing out how these two problems are related, and how the future of every urban area depends on more than just bricks and mortar.