The Botanical Heights neighborhood felt alive on Friday April 25th as 600 people came to celebrate the opening of our Tower Grove Mews project, along with the many new businesses and residents moving into the neighborhood!

There was delicious wood fired pizza provided by Union Loafers, great live music from talented St. Louisans, and enough Urban Chestnut beer to keep the party going into the wee hours. The UIC staff along with our co-hosts Slam Agency, Union Loafers, and Union Studio,  had an amazing time welcoming our friends and neighbors into our new office, and we cannot thank everyone who attended or helped out enough!

(Photo taken by Slam Agency, follow them @weareslam)

In case you missed it, here is a brief update of all the great new developments happening in the neighborhood, and what you can look forward to seeing this summer:

Union Loafers- If you tried any of the delicious bread or pizzas last Friday, you can thank Ted Wilson and the rest of the Union Loafers team. This bread bakery and café is coming very soon to the corner of Tower Grove and McRee (the former UIC office space.) Focusing on quality artisan bread, they will also be serving sandwiches, pizzas, and local beer. Joining Elaia & Olio and Chouquette, this intersection is soon becoming the culinary capitol of the city!

Slam Agency- This extremely energetic full-service digital creative agency is a great addition to Botanical Heights! Having recently moved into one of the commercial spaces along Tower Grove Avenue, they already feel right at home in the neighborhood and are ready to bring more of their creative genius to St. Louis.

Union Studio- Also residing in the commercial space along Tower Grove is this beautiful artist studio and children’s clothing retail space. Owner Mary Beth is not only selling her beautiful handmaid children’s clothing, she will also be offering art classes for both children and adults. It would be impossible not to be inspired walking into her whimsical space, so be sure to check it out soon!

Old Standard: If you have been to Elaia & Olio, or Salume Beddu, or any of Ben Poremba’s wildly popular St. Louis restaurants… you know that anything Ben touches will be beautiful, and delicious. This is absolutely true of his next restaurant: a fried chicken and whiskey bar, coming soon to the stable building of Tower Grove Mews.  If fried chicken didn’t spark your interest enough, Ben will also be serving house-made sodas, a wide array of American whiskey, and classic southern sides. You know where you will find the UIC staff on Fridays after 5!

GadellNet- This quickly growing full-service IT firm is moving into the former Lunar Tool Building on Vandeventer Avenue. We are excited to have such a prominent and forward-thinking business move into the neighborhood! This is a great stepping-stone to the further revitalization of the valuable Vandeventer corridor.

Along with the many new home constructions and renovations happening in Botanical Heights, these commercial additions are a critical part of the overall neighborhood development we are working towards. Be sure to visit our current businesses and keep your eyes out for the new ones coming soon!