



I've been contacted by quite a few people recently wanting to know what's up with Cullinan Properties' Iron Hill (Grand & Chouteau) project. After doing some digging around, I can provide an update based off of publicly available information.





First, the City of St. Louis Planning Commission reviewed a Planned Unit Development (PUD) zoning request at their February 3rd, 2020 meeting. It's the first true step taken in the approval process for this project. I'm not sure what the outcome of the meeting was, but the document pertaining to this meeting gives us a glimpse into what we should expect at this site and when.





Data such as acquisition, hopeful start, phases, and numbers were all given in the document.

Right off the bat, the site plan that was included in the document looks the same as the original site plan from March 2019. Building placement remains the same, streets are the same layout, and block numbers are shown. The block numbers come in handy.





According to the document, Cullinan intends on completing the acquisition of the property from St. Louis University sometime this Summer. They then hope to begin construction on Phase 1 in the late Fall. This will follow what I've been told that construction will start after the new SSM SLU Hospital opens in September.





Phase 1 will consist of the apartment units, the parking garage, roads, infrastructure, and 2 central commercial buildings. On the map, these are shown as Blocks 200, 300, 501 and 502. Phase 2 would be the office building at Grand and Chouteau (Block 400) and that could start before Phase 1 is finished but it depends on if a tenant can be secured. The hotel (Block 600) could be built in either Phase 1 or 2 and is dependent on getting an operator and plans finalized. Block 600 is also large enough to hold two hotels. Later phases would include Blocks 100 (office), 503 and 504. Those will come based on market demand. A full site build out is expected over the course of 5-8 years.





As far as numbers go, the document mentions...

- Up to 600 Apartment Units. $2 Per Square Foot (PSF)

- Up to 200,000SF of Commercial Space

- Up to 300,000SF of Office Space. $30 PSF PY

- Up to 400 Hotel Rooms

- Up to 1800 Parking Spaces

Red represents Phase 1. Orange represents Phase 2. Green represents the hotel. Blue represents future phases based on market demand.

At this point in time, there is no confirmation that any of the buildings have been redesigned, but the document describes the architecture as this...

"Iron Hill's architecture will be contemporary and edgy. All buildings will be complementary of recent building projects in the area such as the new SSM/SLU Hospital. They will contain a mixture of glass, metal panel, masonry, and precast."

If the buildings have been redesigned or tweaked, updated renderings should be expected sometime in the Spring.





The project is designed to link SLU's Main Campus with it's Medical and South Campus along with connecting the Steelcote Square District to the Armory, City Foundry, the Grove and Cortex via the Chouteau Greenway. Iron Hill will be close to the major highways of I-44 and I-64/40 as well as be close to the Grand MetroLink station.

View looking North.

For many, this site has been in a blind spot for many years, so seeing new construction here will be a surprise to many.





At this point in time, Cullinan is reportedly in talks with the City Streets Department and MODOT in regards to traffic lights and traffic flow. They are also supposedly in talks with potential tenants, but no names were mentioned.





The design-build services for Iron Hill are being provided by the LJC (Lamar Johnson Collaborative) and Clayco. No cost figures have been provided at this point in time.





Document: Iron Hill PUD (Planning Commission 2/3/20)

Previous Story: Iron Hill, Mixed Use Development Planned at Grand and Chouteau - 3/13/19