Disqus - Latest Comments for LisaS47

Re: Olive Street’s “Last House” Gets New Life as JEMA HQ

LisaS — Wed, 05 Sep 2018 14:36:20 -0000

As a point of fact, the City's Cultural Resources Office has nothing to do with approval of State Historic Tax Credits. That's the job of the State Historic Preservation Office.

Looks like an interesting project ~ can't wait to see it in person.

Re: TIF Plans in St. Louis Are 'Redlining and Block-Busting,' Show-Me Institute Says

LisaS — Tue, 09 May 2017 15:03:56 -0000

No, the city bought it from Pete Rothschild, as anyone who knew it was owned by the City and went to the second page of google search results would know. C'mon, kids, practice your journalism skills. Don't just accept what the Show-Me Institute claims. They have no monopoly on facts, and it's the job of journalists to check.

"He's regularly blamed for letting the fabulous old Argyle Apartments at Euclid Avenue and Lindell Boulevard disintegrate, then selling them off at a handsome profit so the city could replace them with a garage. But he says he bought into that deal only three years before the sale and that the apartments were already a shambles."

http://www.riverfronttimes....

Re: An Architect’s tool bag

LisaS — Fri, 29 Nov 2013 19:05:54 -0000

we just got from the Husband's parents today a scale with his great-grandfather's name engraved on it, and his tape measure (name hand-lettered, still, although the printing on the tape is long faded) - these are the timeless tools of our trade!

Re: An Architect’s tool bag

LisaS — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 15:09:55 -0000

Hmmmm. I have no Measure Master Calculator (nor even an app), and I've always viewed Dots as an extravagant packaging ploy for a simple product, but otherwise, yes, pretty similar .... . except .... I can't live without Post-it notes (big lined, tiny unlined, and medium sized) and (ahem) reading glasses. And the 1000 black ponytail rubber bands that are always there except when I actually need one.

Re: Contest: Go camping with Mumford & Sons

LisaS — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 14:07:26 -0000

As I studied the flames dancing against the logs, a small jumping motion at the edge of the orange-lit circle on the ground caught my eye, followed by the clamor of Tarzan, chain leash in tow, leaping and gulping noisily.

(a true story) 47thoughts at gmail.com

Re: Architects and their signatures

LisaS — Sat, 28 Apr 2012 21:16:22 -0000

my signature says it ... I am destined to be a starchitect. one of the fortunate things about this profession is that we are still "young" architects into our 60s ....

Re: Poll: Should zoning laws allow kids to sell cookies, lemonade, etc in front of their homes?

LisaS — Sun, 21 Aug 2011 12:14:37 -0000

Technically I think GSUSA would classify that as an unauthorized cookie booth, so the Hazelwood case I think is odd. But my kids do a lemonade stand from time to time, on their initiative, and all my husband & i do is help prepare the lemonade (my son insists on top-quality product that requires boiling) and carrying stuff. Adults - parents, governments, etc - are way too involved in everything these days.

Re: What are you carrying?

LisaS — Tue, 29 Mar 2011 21:55:46 -0000

If one box is all you have, bravo. I have a dresser drawer--a large dresser drawer--full of sketchbooks alone, not to mention any of that other stuff. And if the boxes & boxes of stuff we inherited from the (architect) Husband's (architect) grandfathers is any indication, we are & always have been ... Sentimental. That's a nice way to say it.

Re: Is It Time for Corporate Chartered Schools in the City of St. Louis?

LisaS — Tue, 29 Mar 2011 12:06:40 -0000

Many interesting and valid points here, especially about the changing needs of public education in the post-industrial age. but a quick clarification: so far as "Freeing up monies of the St. Louis Public School System, to allocate at their other needs"--based on what the Superintendent said in a meeting at our school last night and what I have heard/read previously, charter schools receive their funding from the SLPS ... as a per-student amount taken off the top of the district's budget. Since charter schools have none of the legacy costs of the SLPS (teacher pensions, maintenance of empty bldgs, etc.) that gives them a financial headstart while further complicating the budget picture for the district and its students.

On the flip side, since SLPS is seeking to open charters, seeking corporate sponsorship and involvement might provide a framework for programming and funding those institutions. Definitely worth exploring, and it sounds like the administration is very interested in developing those sorts of innovative partnerships.

Re: St. Elizabeth Academy’s Historic Structures Should Be Preserved

LisaS — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 12:07:59 -0000

you should also make sure fellow alumni are aware of what's going on. as the most likely donors to any campaign, alums have a lot of power in this situation.

Re: Sometimes there’s benefits

LisaS — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 11:27:15 -0000

you should totally sell that cube thing on ebay. i sold our old absolutely unbelievably ugly chandelier for enough to buy a really cool modern fixture.

oh, and yeah, i'd like $75 to spend on cool stuff ...

Re: How to name your design firm

LisaS — Wed, 22 Dec 2010 14:58:52 -0000

now see, if you were going to be Really Trendy and avoid the spelling issue altogether (since the Borson I think about most is after all Boursin) you would have made it

atelier B design laB

funny capitalization and all.

Re: What to get an Architect for Christmas

LisaS — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 17:46:33 -0000

i'm so picky about moleskine notebook that even my architect husband can't get it right. but he can get the right moleskine pocket calendar for me, because it's the only red one.

Re: It’s Christmas: Want a new Brizo faucet for free?

LisaS — Mon, 06 Dec 2010 14:29:43 -0000

I do LIKE! and I need a new cool modern faucet.

Re: An Architect’s House: A Lesson in Patience

LisaS — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 17:46:50 -0000

it looks like the sort of house that my two-architect family would fall all over--great bones. but our pickiness never overlaps, which is probably why we still live in our first home.

Re: Parks and recreation in St. Louis

LisaS — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 15:30:44 -0000

Forest Park does have a playground--actually, 2 playgrounds until BJC builds their new building. The biggest, nicest one is an accessible (as in, wheelchair accessible) playground built by the Visitor's Center by the Variety Club, not far from the DeBaliviere/Forest Park Metrolink stop. Many parents dislike the design of this playground because of the water feature (OMG, Jr. might get WET!!), the large curving concrete wall that supports the ramp and the trees along the western edge obscured their ability to watch their children continuously, but I don't have a problem allowing mine to be out of sight for 10-15 seconds and haven't since they were 3 or 4.

There is also Turtle Park and a small play area outside the Science Center.

I've found that as the years go by, my children are less and less amused by playgrounds, particularly if there aren't other kids there. Now, the playground serves more as a hub for meeting friends and extending play into the adjacent areas of the park. Oh, and giving me a shady place to sit, read my book, and drink coffee.

Re: State Senator pushing legislation for open enrollment in Missouri’s public schools

LisaS — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 12:23:58 -0000

I'm a parent too, and I get accused all the time of submitting my children to "social experiments" because I don't send them to either ~90% white suburban public schools or private schools. I view it the other way: we are more racially and economically segregated in this country now than we ever have been. Academically, I've examined the statistics for the school districts people have suggested I move to, and the ones I can afford (Fox, North County, most places in Jeff County) have no better performance than the average SLPS magnet school--and the SLPS magnets, with the exception of Kennard, Stix, and Wilkinson, are woefully underenrolled, especially for non-Black students.

My children attend a racially & economically balanced school with high academic achievement, and I live in the only neighborhood in the St. Louis area that offers the walkable, urbane lifestyle I want to have. I beleive by virtue of this choice, my children will have a better understanding of the realities of the world than they would if I lived in a typical suburb. Actually, I can see it already in the comparison with their exurban cousins, who expect fashionable clothing and expensive toys (laptops! DSIs!) almost as their birthright before they're even teens. My kids know better. They know by comparison they're very fortunate in having what they do.

Also, our school has a number of West County families who participate in the deseg agreement, mostly because their religious views are in such a minority in their neighborhood schools that they feel more comfortable in our more diverse environment.

Re: Diverse populations celebrate diverse holidays

LisaS — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 10:41:15 -0000

Even if 75% of Americans identify as Christian, alienating 25% of the population is not wise marketing, at the very least. While my family celebrates Christmas--and it's quite a challenge to focus on the religious aspects of the season amidst the consumerist orgy--because our friends include Buddhists, Muslims, Jews, & Native Americans, I'm painfully aware of how ostracized from the society at large they feel this time of year. I prefer the more inclusive "Happy Holidays" for their sake--and to help separate the secular celebration from the religious.

And yes, Ryley, the AFA needs to get a real problem.

Re: Before you get twisted about pap smears and mammograms…

LisaS — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:13:49 -0000

Exactly. Lord forbid that Science might help us figure out reasonable approaches to the way it touches most of our lives. Thank God there's another WOMAN who can see this point.

Re: Access to the Coronado

LisaS — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 12:01:13 -0000

Chuy's will often have more vegetarian choices for specials, but the cheese enchiladas are absolutely my faves in town.

and that curb is a definite oops. somebody should have caught that.

Re: Sticky Situations

LisaS — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 12:03:29 -0000

oh yeah. totally joining this party.

Re: Dreaming It All Up Again

LisaS — Mon, 18 May 2009 16:03:34 -0000

you know, i've been through all that too. it would be nice to make a little money blogging, if only to validate the time i steal to do it, but in the end, that's not what it's about for me--and apparently not for you, either.

can't wait to read what you're excited to write about!