A high-profile fight is brewing in St. Charles over whether to knock down Building 90 in the American Car Foundry complex, a riverfront warehouse preservation advocates call a downtown “lynchpin.” The roughly 57,000-square-foot building sits along the riverfront and has become ground zero for clashing plans for new housing and retail. With demolition permits in the pipeline and a lawsuit now in play, the battle has drawn in city officials, state lawmakers and neighbors for a very public tug-of-war over the site’s future.
Developers argue that clearing Building 90 is essential to build a mixed-use project featuring apartments, townhomes and restaurants, and they have sued the city to push that plan forward, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. That outlet reports the lawsuit is the latest twist in a months-long standoff over how and when the riverfront property should be redeveloped.
The city’s Landmarks Board received demolition applications on Jan. 26 listing BAX Engineering as the applicant for two ACF-related requests: one to raze Building 90 at 900 Main Street and another to demolish part of Building 91A at 550 Main Street, according to the City of St. Charles. Those applications are scheduled to go before the Planning & Zoning Commission and then the City Council in early March for public hearings. City staff note that maps and full application materials are available for public review in the Community Development office.
Lawmakers and preservationists mobilize
State Representatives Travis Wilson and Colin Wellenkamp have stepped into the fray, sending a joint letter to Mayor Dan Borgmeyer and the City Council urging the city to preserve and adaptively reuse ACF Building 90 instead of tearing it down, according to the Missouri House of Representatives. Their move turns up the political heat on local leaders to fully explore reuse options before they sign off on demolition.
What's at stake
Backers of saving Building 90 point to other successful conversions of nearby ACF facilities, especially the Foundry Art Centre, which turned a former train-car factory into galleries, artist studios and a community event venue, according to the Foundry Art Centre. Preservation supporters argue that Building 90 could provide a similar boost to downtown activity if it is rehabbed rather than reduced to rubble.
Legal implications
The developer’s lawsuit shifts the dispute into the courts, a move that could stall both demolition and redevelopment while judges and city officials sort through permits, historic-preservation rules and administrative appeals, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. That process could stretch out project timelines, which makes the upcoming public hearings particularly high stakes for everyone involved. For now, the combination of the city’s meeting schedule and the court calendar will decide whether Building 90 comes down quickly or remains standing while the legal wrangling continues.
The City Council is expected to introduce a bill and hold a public hearing on March 3, and the Planning & Zoning Commission is set to review related applications on March 9, according to the City of St. Charles public hearings calendar. Residents can track the situation by reviewing filings at City Hall or watching the meetings through the city’s online portal. Observers will be watching court filings, council decisions and public testimony closely as the showdown over Building 90 unfolds.
