Story information from NextSTL. To see the main source, click HERE.
The OPUS Group has proposed another student housing focused apartment building on the Delmar Loop. This time, one is proposed at 6190 Delmar, which is the southeast corner of the Delmar and Skinker intersection.
The planned building, which is planned to stand 14-stories and be similar in height to the Everly, will consist of 130 apartment units, which will be made up of a mix of studio, 2 bedroom, and 4 bedroom units. In total, there will be 335 bedrooms in this building and typically in student housing apartment buildings, each bedroom is rented out to an individual student rather than the entire apartment. The building will also include 3410sf of retail space at the corner off the structure, 68 parking spaces accessed from Delmar, which should be changed, and a mixture of amenities for residents (like an amenity deck in the heart of the "U" shape, a rooftop pool, fitness center, sky lounge, and study room).
Like many other OPUS projects, the design work is done in house (OPUS AE), same with construction. This particular proposal brings an end to an eventful saga of multiple proposals and ideas for this site, which was previously home to a Church's Chicken. Perhaps the wildest idea was for a Ferris wheel and biergarten. The idea that came after that was for a 3-story retail and apartment building, then a Chase Bank branch, and then a 6-story mixed-use building with a hotel. The OPUS project is by far the largest project proposed on this site and, if built, will great alter this intersection of the Loop, which already received a boost in recent years from the "Link in the Loop". The gallery below shows the previous plans for the site.
As eluded to earlier, this high-rise is OPUS' second proposed development on the Loop with the other being just a few blocks west in University City at 6630 Delmar. That project, revealed last January, consists of 476 bedrooms in an 8-story building. It is unclear what the status of that project is at this point in time as it has not been before the University City Plan Commission since February.
This proposed development still has to go through the Skinker-Debaliviere neighborhood approval process and then through the appropriate city boards for approval. It is unclear if OPUS will seek incentives for this project. According to NextSTL, the plans call for the building to be ready for occupancy in time for the 2024-2025 school year.
OPUS has recently become more active in the St. Louis market after a several year hiatus. Their first two projects of this new wave of investments were Citizen Park (Central West End) and Ceylon (Clayton). Since then, they've proposed a series of new buildings and warehouses throughout St. Louis City and County with the most recent apartment proposals being at 1014 Spruce, 6630 Delmar, Olivette, and now 6190 Delmar.
For a neighborhood like the Delmar Loop, and really any neighborhood in the city, having buildings of varying height and design styles keeps things exciting and tells a story about how neighborhoods develop and developed overtime. In the East Loop, which is where this project is proposed, the stretch of Delmar between Rosedale and Skinker is a perfect example of how buildings of different height create a nice variation in the streetscape. Take a stroll down this section of the Loop if you get a chance and look at what I mean. It's really something special to see.
Additional renderings and some floor plans are in the gallery below.