Aptitude Development, a company based in Elmwood Park New Jersey, has submitted a rezoning application to the City of St. Louis for a student housing building in Midtown next to the northwest of the City Foundry.

The proposed development would replace the Crescent Electric Building on Forest Park Avenue just east of Vandeventer. The site is south of the "Standard" apartment complex and is just north of the now under construction "Vande East" apartment building at the City Foundry. The 7-story building will include 192 apartment units with 509 beds and 282 parking spaces. No retail space is planned, but the Forest Park Avenue elevation will include lobby and amenity spaces. The proposed building, dubbed "the Marshall" in city documents, will wrap around the Fire Station at the corner of Forest Park and Vandeventer.

In a letter to City Zoning staff, Alderwoman Tina Pihl (17th Ward) wrote to the City that she supports the project and the rezoning of the property from "Type J: Unrestricted" to "Type H: Area Commercial". Presently, Aptitude does not intend to seek a tax incentive for the development. The project falls within the Chapter 353 SLU-Midtown Redevelopment Area and is overseen by the Midtown Redevelopment Corporation.

The Marshall is just one of several projects set to rebuild Midtown into an active, year-round destination. Projects like the City Foundry, Armory District, Steelcote Square, and TopGolf all help with this goal. One large piece of the puzzle, Iron Hill at the northwest corner of Grand and Chouteau, went dark last year after Cullinan Properties dropped the project. However, I am aware that a few other developers have submitted proposals to the Midtown Redevelopment Corporation in the hopes of picking the project up.

The project went before the Planning Commission this month and saw the rezoning request approved unanimously. The architect will be Kitchen and Associates of Collingswood New Jersey. A cost and estimated timeline have not yet been provided.

You can view the rezoning document at this link: PDA-005-22-REZ

Floor plans are located in the gallery below.