Soccer stadium proposed in Richmond Heights
Update (2:10 p.m.)
While Gateway Real Estate Partners hopes to build a Major League Soccer stadium in Richmond Heights (see full story below), it’s doing so without the explicit support of the group that’s trying to bring an MLS franchise to St. Louis.
Jeff Cooper, president of St. Louis Soccer United, issued a statement a short time ago about the Richmond Heights stadium proposal, noting that while he’s talked with Gateway’s Ryan Woods, he’s still focusing on two other sites: In Fenton (at the St. Louis Soccer Park) and Collinsville. Here’s Cooper’s statement:
Ryan Woods approached me with his plan some time ago, but none of our discussions have been serious. In the meantime, earlier this year we acquired the St. Louis Soccer Park from Anheuser-Busch and are committed to exploring that site as a potential home for a new, state-of-the-art stadium for professional soccer. Also, we continue to work with Collinsville, which has been a terrific partner to date. The Richmond Heights proposal is not one that has our attention at this time.
Woods, who heads Gateway, said he’d discussed his proposal with Cooper and that Cooper “was considering it among any number of other options.” But the project is still in very preliminary stages.
Our earlier story is below.
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A Richmond Heights-based developer has a new idea for that town’s long-stalled Hadley Township site.
A Major League Soccer stadium.
Gateway Real Estate Partners recently submitted a proposal to Richmond Heights to build a $395 million mixed-use project, centered around a new 18,500-seat stadium, along Hanley Road south of Highway 40. It’d also include housing, hotels, retail, office space and perhaps a movie theater.
It’s on the site known as Hadley Township, where Richmond Heights and Michelson Commercial Realty and Development worked for three years to try and craft a workable project. That effort ended in February, and Richmond Heights officials sought new proposals.
Gateway’s was the only one they received.
Ryan Woods, who heads Gateway, acknowledges that the proposal (available here - warning, large file) is very preliminary. It was cobbled together in a few weeks to meet Richmond Heights’ deadline in late May. But the basic concept is a good one, he said.
“I’ve thought that area of the county would be an ideal spot for a soccer stadium,” he said.
Woods said his proposal has the support of Jeff Cooper, president of St. Louis Soccer United, which has been trying to bring a Major League Soccer franchise to St. Louis and this year launched a Womens Professional Soccer team here. The project would be called United Plaza at The Heights. Cooper has land in Collinsville where he’s proposed a stadium, but there have been suggestions that his bid would benefit from a more centrally-located site.
Aside from a soccer stadium, details of the plan are still very much in flux, Woods said. His group has been analyzing financial numbers, traffic issues and potential uses for a couple of months and Woods said he expects significant changes from the original plan.
“We’re working through a more serious plan to put in front of the city,” he said. “That’s requiring a very serious look at the numbers and the financing that would be achievable and what type of incentives would be required.”
The 57-acre site has already been approved for tax increment financing to help pay for infrastructure, but Richmond Heights officials would have to decide how big a TIF to approve for this project. City Manager Amy Hamilton was taking a wait-and-see approach. The proposal met Richmond Heights’ initial requirement for the site, and the town agreed to give Gateway until October to firm up its plan.
“We’ll see what happens come October,” she said.
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(6 votes, average: 4.83 out of 5)
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This is freaking retarded. I was going to list the reasons why, but they’re so obvious that I’m not even going to bother.
The link to the plan on the Richmond Heights website does not work.
Unbelievable. Within several miles of this location, there are several retail vacancies and a major office tower in Clayton can not get financing because there is not enough demand for office space yet. But every small county municipality needs more revenue so they compete for the same projects at the expense of one another while St.Charles continues to grow and grow in population. The term “Mixed Use” is a joke in this region. Rarely do you see a single development that has managed to contain an equal proportion of sucessful retail, business and residential development. And a stadium?? How about we put it on the east riverfront. Somewhere that truely needs some redevelopment.
This is what you get when St. Louis county has almost 100 little towns fighting each other for tax revenue. In mid-county you’ve got Brentwood, Maplewood, Richmond Heights and Clayton giving away TIF money so private developers can pad their wallets.
The same way the you’ll soon have the 3rd WalMart in West County in 20 years. The original WalMart opened in Des Peres in the 80’s, closed and moved to Town & Country in the 90’s. Pretty soon that will close and move to Manchester.
If this does go through what will happen is the retail stores along Brentwood will close and move into it and leave a ton of vacancies in that area and area business will move into the new digs and leave other properties vacant.
Instead of trying to build one strip mall after another in this area (by the way, just drive down any major road in this area and the vacant store fronts are countless)why don’t we all combine our TIF and other corporate welfare and attract business to move to the metro? Per the RCGA they were courting 15+ companies during the All Star Game who are looking to re-locate or expand their business, so IMHO that money would be better spent bringing in jobs and add to our population base then another empty strip mall and office building. As far as the stadium, soccer does not seem to be able to survive in STL so that will become a white elephant.
Bad idea. Bad, bad idea.
Makes since to me, central location, 40 will be finished soon, fairly easy access to 44, and 170, and a metro link stop. Why put it in Collinsville or St. Chuck? Might as well have easy access for the whole city, plus with Maplewood having the Wal-Mart development, Brentwood with all their retail, and Richmond Heights with the Galleria, you are looking at three municipalities right on top of each other each having a significant revenue source, this space happens to be available and large enough. Whats the problem? I say the least big developments in the far out suburbs the better.
The big concern I have here is traffic, but I’m sure they are working on that. I fear it would be like Riverport (or whatever it’s called these days), where it takes forever to get out because there’s only one way to get the highway.
I don’t buy into the doom/gloom and the sky is falling in of the other posters. I don’t think it will drain from the stores on Brentwood, I do think it would be a selling point to convince a company to relocate there that is currently out of St Louis.
I think this would be good for this region. Soccer is taking a hold nationally (not huge but it’s not laughed at like it once was) and St Louis used to be and still for the most part is at the epicenter of it. This city has had a long tradition of being involved in the sport and I think this would be perfect to acknowledge that
How quickly Jeff Cooper dumps Madison County, Collinsville and Edwardsville. I will give it to you that Men’s major league is a bad idea. An even worse idea is profesional women’s soccer. They had the first game in Edwardsville and then moved to west county. Now he wants to build his stadium in St. Louis County!! Cooper has made hundred of millions of dollars by fleecing corporations right in Madison County with the help of local residents. Why not repay those citizens for their help by at leas putting the stadium in the County. Thanks Mr. Cooper.
I think this would be great. Very centrally located. Should have strong support and bring revenue into the area. Why so much negative response?