Work Work Work!

I spent 2 nights last week working late into the night. Actually late into the morning. Our storefront is taking shape though. Some photos of inside progress would be in order. So far, aside from making an effort to clean up every day, we have had the tin ceilings painted in a cool bronze tone and are having the floors re-done presently. The electrical services were switched out too.

Our goal will be to start moving in by mid week.

It looks like getting the facade changed over, despite being pretty necessary, will take a while if we want to take advantage of the facade grants available.

Closing will occur on our house on Monday morning. I'm sort of in disbelief.

When my architect and I did a walk through and measurement of the place, it started to feel more real than it has.

We'll be up to our ears in contractors and bills for the next few months (or more) but the thought of city living is really starting to get exciting for us.

The Neighbors

The past week I've had a chance to embrace some of my new neighbors and to let some of my current neighbors know we are moving.

We shouldn't be totally "in" the neighborhood for both our home and business until June or so, but during construction we practically live there anyway.

I met Joe and Carmella next door to the office. It was great. Joe knew the modern history of our storefront for at least the past 50 years. One of the previous owners has been coming in and introducing himself to all of our contractors. I haven't met him yet.

Today I had the chance to meet a neighbor on our house, but I was late for my meeting with our architect on Utah and with the guy from St. Louis Development Corporation on Humphrey. Just like me to set up 2 appointments for the same time and be late for both. The bottom line is that I said "hi" and rushed by. Not the first introduction I hope for.

Hopefully there's room for redemption.

I get lots of opportunities to "test drive" areas when my clients move into them. Particularly downtown, it seems like the community is so much more "tight knit" than suburbia.

Being in it for myself, its different. It seems like people so far in the city really want to know you. In suburbia, people are cordial, but you only need to know so much when a half a city block seperates your houses.

More will be revealed.

When I spent the evening with my 2 boys last monday night, we decided to have a picnic dinner. The little guys love that kind of stuff. So I gave them the option of what park to go to and snuck in "do you want to go to the park that's by our new house?" So that's what we did.

Unfortunately it back-fired a bit.

The playground on the far east side of Tower Grove Park wasn't really all that cool in my oldest son's eyes. My 2 year old wasn't able to do much either. The park itself is spectacular, but getting the boys to appreciate it isn't that simple. If I had more time before it got totally dark, I would have tried to find the other playground pictured above. It's apparently more their speed.

To me it was sort of an attempt to explore the city with them.

Like a typical suburbanite, I've really never done a whole lot with my family in the city (they did LOVE the Hartford Coffee Company). My wife and I come in and work here. We dine and entertain ourselves here, but when it comes to our kids, they pretty much stay in the county.

More explorations will obviously be forthcoming.

Any parents out there with the scoop on playgrounds would be most appreciated.

Cool Coincidences

I was talking to a friend the other day. "Have you ever heard of the Capistano Condominiums?" He asked. Of course, they are a block away from our soon to be residence. "Are you going to be my neighbor?" I asked. We spoke for a while about how coincidental it would be if we both moved to the neigbhorhood at the same time. The Capistrano is a project that is really typifying the market of late. Given the resort like features of this property, the current pricing is very affordable. In some cases pricing has been reduced by $175,000 on just one unit. With that pricing and all that the area offers, it would be shocking if they didn't get scooped up soon.

What's the Point?

I'm not the best blogger in the world. I have had a blog about one of my greatest passions ever, the downtown St. Louis rennaisance. The blog LoftsintheLou.com was started to discuss the some of the things a realtor trying to work in an emerging neighborhood would experience. A blog is a fantastic way to share the many thoughts ideas and experiences.

On Friday, my wife / business partner and I closed on a storefront in Tower Grove South neighborhood in St. Louis. It's a great little property close to the park and I'm excited about turning it around a bit and investing in a fantastic growing vibrant community.

In 2 weeks from tomorrow, my wife and I will be closing on a beautiful home in the Tower Grove Heights neighborhood on the gorgeous street Utah Place. It's a bit of a project too, but I couldn't be more thrilled. It's 6 blocks from our soon-to-be office.

This blog is about a several turning points in life. It's about two very big projects. It's about a change for our business, our home, our lifestyle, and the lives of my wife and kids too. Much like I was when I started LoftsintheLou.com, I am full of excitement and anticipation for the work ahead of me. I am concerned about some of the challenges and am excited to become a part of a new community.

Thanks for visiting Finding Tower Grove and I hope to hear from you!