St. Louis • Five visions for reshaping the Arch grounds and surrounding riverfront went public Tuesday to rave reviews from the mayor and a generally warm reception from area members of Congress. And they drew crowds of curious Arch lovers.

"I am very happy with what I see," Mayor Francis Slay said during the unveiling of the five plans in the underground museum at the Arch. "Some of the world's most renowned designers have put into images what we all have been thinking about."

Displays of drawings and text that explain the five finalists' work are on display through Sept. 24 at the Arch and in a traveling exhibit.

It will be at the Missouri Botanical Garden through Thursday. It then heads to Southwestern Illinois College in Belleville, the second of nine stops through Sept. 26.

The next big step is on Aug. 26, when representatives of the finalists will promote their ideas before an eight-member jury at the theater beneath the Arch. The jurors will pick the winner on Sept. 24.

The goal is to complete work by Oct. 28, 2015, the 50th anniversary of the topping of the Arch. A similar jury system selected Eero Saarinen's design for the Arch in 1947.

The teams are bidding to reshape the 91-acre riverfront park to make it easier to reach from downtown, provide more activities and tie it to the East St. Louis riverfront. The National Park Service and a private foundation called CityArchRiver2015 are sponsoring the competition.

Designers weren't limited by a budget, and leaders here still have to find money for the project. The park service, which runs the federal monument and grounds, estimated it could cost $305 million but warned it could be much more.

Tom Bradley, superintendent of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial, called Tuesday "an exciting day for the National Park Service. We have this magnificent Arch and beautiful park grounds. We want to invigorate the park and make it more accessible."

finding the money

For decades, St. Louisans have talked about providing easier access for pedestrians across busy Memorial Drive and the Interstate 70 depressed lanes. It produced nothing but talk and a stack of studies until former U.S. Sen. John C. Danforth and Slay announced in 2007 a desire to make the Arch grounds livelier.

Danforth withdrew one year later, but the National Park Service allowed for possibilities in October 2009 by amending its all-important master plan for the grounds. The competition began in January with 49 teams, whittled to the five in April.

Slay said he believed the area will find money from Congress, local boosters and other sources. He said he has held the Arch "in awe" since he watched the topping on TV as a fifth-grader in Miss Knittel's class at Epiphany of Our Lord grade school in south St. Louis.

"I am fully committed to this project," he said. "I am encouraged by the overwhelming support from the philanthropic community to launch this competition. The federal government is fully engaged. I believe we will get the money."

On Friday, U.S. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., are to visit the Arch and view the plans. One year ago, Salazar called improving the downtown connection a "priority of President (Barack) Obama."

Laura Myron, spokeswoman for McCaskill, said the senator supports the concept and already has been talking with federal administrators "on the role of Congress in finding ways to fund this project."

U.S. Rep. William Lacy Clay, D-St. Louis, whose district includes the Arch grounds, said he was pleased that all five plans would "provide easier and safer access to the park" and extend it to the east side of the Mississippi River. Clay said the ideas show "creativity and talent."

As for money, he said, "I will do everything in my power to provide the resources needed to complete the project on time."

U.S. Rep. Jerry Costello, the Belleville Democrat whose district includes East St. Louis, "is glad to see the amount of care being taken to incorporate the east side," said spokesman David Gillies. Costello is eager to review the plans in more detail, Gillies said, but can't yet comment on financing.

Donald G. Stastny, an architect from Portland, Ore., who is managing the competition, said he would begin working with the winner immediately to determine a budget. His goal is to have one by December.

"We could take any one of these five and move it forward to construction," Stastny said.

admiring eyes

The display in the below-ground lobby of the Arch drew a steady gathering of residents, local architects and tourists on Tuesday. Ripley Rasmus, an architect at HOK downtown who had participated in one of the unsuccessful early bids, was impressed by the finalists' efforts.

"They have done wonderful things to accomplish the objective of connecting the city and the Arch grounds," Rasmus said.

Alex Ihnen, a member of City to River, a group that wants to eliminate Interstate 70's passage through downtown, said he was encouraged that several finalists endorsed that idea as a long-term solution. "We'd like to see it done sooner than later, but I'm glad to see some (finalists) want to do it," Ihnen said.

Stastny said finalists were encouraged to assume the depressed lanes will remain, largely because there wouldn't be time to eliminate the interstate and meet the 2015 deadline. All finalists propose some form of "lid" over I-70.

Josi Nieslen, director of the local chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects, said the project offers a special opportunity to people in that profession.

"This is like designing around the Golden Gate Bridge or the Statue of Liberty," Nieslen said. "Right now we have an Arch. Nobody pays much attention to the grounds — unless they have trouble parking."