History of the Chouteau Greenway Project
Early concepts for Chouteau Greenway predate the formation of Great Rivers Greenway. Plans for Chouteau Lake on the southern edge of Downtown St. Louis began taking shape in 1999, under the visionary leadership of McCormack Baron Salazar (MBS). Subsequently, the Chouteau Lake & Greenway Initiative was founded in the early 2000s and MBS engaged the HOK Planning Group, URS, ABNA, Bryan Cave LLP, Development Strategies, Great Rivers Greenway and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to develop the Chouteau Lake & Greenway Master Plan.
The team’s major green infrastructure Master Plan was conceived to connect parks and public spaces via a system of urban lakes, wetlands and trails through the St. Louis urban core. It was designed to provide recreational access and transportation alternatives for regional residents, stormwater mitigation, brownfield remediation, and to stimulate private development of adjacent land, neighborhoods, and commercial zones. The Chouteau Lake & Greenway Master Plan sought to link the emerging St. Louis regional greenways system with environmental restoration and the economic revitalization of the City’s central corridor.
A coalition of civic leaders in Missouri and Illinois, including elected officials, institutional leaders, philanthropists and others joined to support the creation of a national model for 21st century urban revitalization and environmental impact. Corporate sponsors and institutions including AT&T, Civic Progress Downtown Now, A. G. Edwards, Edward Jones, Nestle‐Purina, Regional Chamber and Growth Association, Washington University, Saint Louis University, Sigma‐Aldrich, the James S. McDonnell Foundation and the William T. Kemper Foundation, made significant financial contributions to underwrite the transformative initiative.
Now, leveraging the vision, research and diligence of that original effort, civic leaders from the region are excited to take that plan to the next level. Stay tuned for updates by signing up for email or text updates.