Downtown St. Louis Is Rising; Black St. Louis Is Being Razed - The Source

Michael Allen, senior lecturer in architecture, landscape architecture and urban design

As Rust Belt cities struggle to rekindle their growth machines, St. Louis thinks it has hit pay dirt.

While many medium-sized cities have latched onto startup tech companies, incubators, and innovation districts to crank out the next big thing, St. Louis has managed to negotiate the expansion in the city of Square, a major tech company based in the Bay Area, and secure a commitment from its founder to personally fund the demolition of vacant houses.

It’s a victory for stubborn market fundamentalism, but the end result may be further uneven development.

Read the full piece in CityLab.

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