In 1999, a nonprofit group called Downtown Now developed a master plan for downtown St. Louis. The plan, which was approved by the Board of Aldermen, called for a sculpture garden on the two blocks of the Gateway Mall between Eighth and Tenth Streets.
Over the next several years, downtown St. Louis experienced a dramatic revival. Lofts and apartments were created in old warehouses and industrial buildings, dozens of new businesses opened, and the population roughly doubled. By 2006, the City saw a need to develop public, recreational space before it was too late. Fortunately the space existed - on the Gateway Mall. The City decided to get busy.
The City approached Gateway Foundation with a request to fund a Mall Master Plan. Gateway Foundation provided $450,000 for a plan encompassing the entire Mall, from Broadway to 21st Street. Excited by the plan, the City asked Gateway Foundation to fund the design and construction of the sculpture garden.
An agreement was reached in September 2006, and in June 2007, Gateway Foundation made a proposal to the Board of Aldermen to develop those two blocks into a public sculpture garden, in a partnership with the City. An ordinance approving the proposal won passage, and later, the St. Louis Preservation Board and the Board of Public Service also gave their approvals. Just two years after entering into the agreement with the Board of Aldermen, Citygarden is a reality.
The City of St. Louis believes that Citygarden will set the bar for enhancing the rest of the Gateway Mall. It also believes that Citygarden will not only fulfill its purpose of providing open, recreational space for downtown office workers and residents, but also catalyze the development of more commercial and residential space along the perimeter of the Gateway Mall and elsewhere downtown.
