Kirkwood's planning and zoning commission got its first real look this week at what could replace the city's aging public works building downtown: a sprawling apartment complex with six buildings, a pool, a clubhouse and a fitness center. Des Peres-based Double Eagle Development presented the site plans, proposing more than 100 residential units on the 5.9-acre property that currently houses the city's water, electric and sanitation departments.
The proposal, first reported by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, calls for the site near North Taylor and North Fillmore avenues to become what officials envision as a pedestrian-oriented hub in downtown Kirkwood. The mix would include studio apartments in slightly less than half of the units, along with two- and three-bedroom options, according to the Post-Dispatch's report from reporter Seth Nelson. Planners told the developer it still needs to address landscaping and lighting upgrades before the city signs off, and the Kirkwood Planning and Zoning Commission will formally consider the plan in a later session.
The pitch is the latest step in a process that stretches back years. Kirkwood has been planning to move its public works departments out of the downtown building for a long stretch, and city officials are hoping the eventual sale and redevelopment of the land will bolster municipal finances. That is not an abstract hope: the city agreed back in October 2023 to buy a 9-acre property on South Holmes Avenue, the former A-Mrazek site, for $12.5 million as the new home for those departments, and Kirkwood leaders are counting on project revenue to help offset the cost of building it out.
A Relocation Bill That Keeps Climbing
That relocation has gotten more expensive since the initial purchase. In July, the Kirkwood City Council debated an $8 million retrofit budget for the Holmes Avenue facility, according to the Webster-Kirkwood Times, pushing the city's total estimated commitment for acquisition, site improvements and financing costs to nearly $39 million. That escalating price tag helps explain why city leaders are leaning so heavily on future tax receipts and land-sale revenue from the downtown site to balance the books.
To make way for that kind of dense residential project, Kirkwood had to rewrite its own rulebook. The city introduced a zoning code text amendment in November 2025 creating the R-7 Planned Multifamily Residential District, a category built specifically to process this redevelopment, per city records. Existing zoning simply had no path for a project of this scale on a former utility yard.
How Double Eagle Beat Out Five Rivals
Double Eagle's plan was not the only vision on the table. The Kirkwood Gadfly reported that the company's all-residential proposal was chosen over five competing submissions from developers including Keeley, Ridgehouse, Savoy and Mehlman, some of which pitched a 100-room hotel or retail-heavy mixed-use buildings instead. City officials ultimately prioritized higher housing unit counts and more traditional suburban-style architecture over those hospitality and retail concepts, per the Gadfly's reporting.
The proposal has also shifted in scope since Kirkwood first selected Double Eagle in late 2025. The developer's original submission called for 202 to 203 residential units spread across six four-story buildings with surface parking, a plan later refined in subsequent filings, the Gadfly reported. Hoodline first covered the selection of Double Eagle back in November 2025.
Trails, Traffic And A New Neighbor
The current design still keeps a signature feature from earlier plans: a street running through the middle of the site connecting Taylor and Fillmore avenues. According to city documents, that internal roadway is designed to align with Phase 1 of the Grant's Trail Extension, a $3.72 million federally funded multi-use path project slated to begin construction in 2027, tying the development into the city's broader walkability and trail network.
Location is doing a lot of work for this project's appeal. The public works parcel sits directly next to the $24 million Kirkwood Performing Arts Center, which opened in 2020 as part of a broader push to revitalize downtown Kirkwood's southeast perimeter, the Gadfly has reported. That nearby public investment is part of what has made the aging utility yard attractive to residential developers in the first place.
If completed, the project would add to a downtown Kirkwood apartment market that has already seen major new construction in recent years. Trammell Crow Company finished The James, a five-story, 152-unit luxury apartment building with 7,000 square feet of ground-floor commercial space at 416 N. Kirkwood Road, in February 2024. City communications officials said in late 2025 that the public works site redevelopment would move through extended planning, architectural review and public feedback phases throughout 2026 before any construction timeline is finalized, meaning residents should expect more hearings before shovels hit the ground.
