Alderman saves Bridgeton homes from wrecking ball

People in Springfield aren't the only ones to move houses in order to save them from demolition.

Bridgeton and north St. Louis are in the midst of a project aimed at saving homes from the wrecking ball.

On Jan. 13, John Matiko and Expert House Movers loaded and successfully delivered the first group of what is expected to be hundreds of houses from Bridgeton to north St. Louis city, according to a news release from the city.

Alderman Gregory J. Carter of the 27th Ward, was on hand for the historic event.

Carter, son of the late Sen. Paula J. Carter, has been working on this project named the Phoenix Project since September 2001. The Bridgeton houses included in the project were slated for demolition as a result of the Lambert Airport expansion. Carter dedicated the project in his mother's memory.

"She would have been proud and happy to see progress and revitalization of our community," he said.

After approval by the city of St. Louis, the Federal Aviation Administration, airport officials and the mayor of Bridge-ton, the tedious process began.

"What we have done and will continue to do is to save and recycle these perfectly livable and sound homes from demolition and the scrap pile, and will make them available as affordable homes for our residents," Carter said, adding, "This project shows that with all parties working together for a common good, there are good things that can be accomplished for the residents of St. Louis."

For more than three years, a number of groups had approached airport officials to gain approval of a pilot program to save the homes by moving them.

"This pilot program is a success be-cause of the cooperative efforts of Rep. Connie Johnson, Mayor Slay and his development director, Barbara Geisman, Comptroller Darlene Green, the St. Louis Police Department, Colonel Griggs and the staff of the Lambert Airport, Mayor Bowers of Bridgeton and the Bridgeton Public Works Department, the Missouri Department of Transpor-tation, St. Louis County, Ameren/UE, Charter Communications, and South-western Bell. Without any of these participants on the project, we would not have been successful," Carter said.

The pilot project is being funded by Community Development Block Grant dollars. Carter added that local banks such as UMB have contacted him.

The lots chosen for the pilot project were among the thousands of vacant lots in north St. Louis.

As has been reported, the city of St. Louis has more than 15,000 vacant lots, many of which are located in the north part of the city. Once the Bridgeton houses were selected, they were matched with the lots on Robin in the 27th Ward.

"Our goal was to decrease the density of the houses in the neighborhood. We are moving five houses onto 11 lots. This will give the new owners a suburban feel in an urban setting," said Carter.

The price of the houses will range from $80,000 to $90,000. Gundaker/ Coldwell Realtor has agreed to act as Realtor for the project. Once the houses have been placed on new foundations with basements, they will be retro-fitted with new appliances and fixtures, flooring and the like. New doors, windows and roofs will be replaced where necessary.

The property around the homes will be landscaped. Alderman Carter wants to ensure that the relocated houses are blended into the existing neighborhoods, and plans are to add new sidewalks, curbs and streetlights where applicable.

Carter said he has heard from a number of people who have stated that they would live in the city and in north St. Louis if they could find affordable housing.

This project will add additional housing stock to the city and taxable revenue to the city coffers. There already have been a number of aldermen who have expressed an interest in having some of the homes from the next phase moved into their neighborhoods. Many have begun the process of getting control of an available lot that would be suitable for the new houses. Because of the size of the houses, which average 1,500 square feet, the houses will not be used for the traditional "fill in." Therefore, the ideal location will be in areas where there are at a minimum of two to three standard city lots, the release stated.