Chesterfield Ready for Continued Development

St. Louis Post Dispatch, Friday, September 3, 2010

"Westerfield" geared for the end of the recession

Go "Westerfield" is the theme for some developers who are interested in the last frontier of land to be developed in far west St. Louis County.The latest application is by Spirit Valley LLC which has bought another almost 28 acres to increase its Spirit Valley Business Park to 80 acres in the far reaches of Olive Street Road in Gumbo Flats.

"Build your business in Westerfield" is Dan Hayes' slogan since he and his partners in Spirit Valley Development LLC acquired land three years ago in far west Chesterfield Valley to build their business park. They weren't alone in their enthusiasm to develop the farming area at the west end of the valley.

But then came the recession. Now, however, Hayes says he expects the development just north of Spirit of St. Louis Airport will take off in the next 12 to 18 months.

The city of Chesterfield recently approved development plans for the second phase of the project, called Spirit Valley Business Park II, which will add more than 27 acres to the existing 52. That clears the way to build roads and prepare lots in the expansion area.

Aimee Nassif, director of planning and development services for the city of Chesterfield, said Spirit Valley was the furthest along of several developments in west Chesterfield.

Spirit Valley so far has attracted three light industrial users, with facilities ranging from about 20,000 to 35,000 square feet. The three businesses are Paragon Certified Restoration, Chesterfield Fence and Deck and Vermeer Equipment Midwest. Hayes said that before the recession, lot sales were moving at a good clip in "Westerfield." Hayes is a developer, real estate agent and a principal with NAI Desco, a commercial real estate firm.

His partners in Spirit Valley -- John Sheahan Jr., Peter Sheahan and Andy Port -- are also principals in NAI Desco along with the Schnuck family. NAI Desco's president is Mark Schnuck, who also heads up The Desco Group, which develops and manages commercial real estate.

Hayes acknowledges that some potential tenants of Spirit Valley remain wary of the future of the economy. "They are like deer in the proverbial headlights, waiting to see what will happen to the economy and the elections in November," Hayes said.

After the election, he said, there should be more clarity about the country's business environment. But Hayes said he had noticed that lending is picking up and that "development is starting to be considered."

Nassif agreed that west Chesterfield is poised for growth. "It's an up and coming area that has had a lot of infrastructure and roads development that would be attractive to new businesses," she said.

"It's the largest area of Chesterfield yet to be developed." The largest development on the table is Chesterfield Blue Valley -- a 131-acre planned commercial project. It is north of Spirit Valley, across Olive Street Road.

Its neighbor to the west is Rombach Farm, which is known to many St. Louis families as the place to go in the fall for pumpkins. Today the pumpkins are growing, the green-leafed soybeans are flourishing and the corn is being harvested.

Farmers Chip Rombach and Marcia Rombach closely watch the development proposals. They farm about 350 acres for themselves and neighboring property owners, including undeveloped land at Spirit Valley and property owned by Scott Properties to the west.

"It's going, it's closing in," Chip Rombach said last week after hopping off a flatbed truck that was piled high with corn. "With the economy now," he said, development is "pretty much at a standstill." But he says it is inevitable. The Rombachs sold 27 acres to Spirit Valley for the second phase of the business park.

Spirit Valley bought the initial 52 acres for the first phase from the Albrecht family, another longstanding farming family in the valley. Hayes said phase two will add seven more lots to the initial 16.

Spirit Valley Development intends to leave untouched two acres in what would be the center of the business park. The land is owned by an elderly Russian couple who sell blackberries and honey and grow vineyards. Hayes said neither he and his partners nor the city wanted to use eminent domain to force them out and will build around them. "They're good people living out the American Dream," he said.

Other projects under way in "Westerfield" are:

- Spirit of St. Louis Corporate Center, 32 acres on the site of the now-razed county adult corrections center on the north side of Chesterfield Airport Road. Duke Realty and Gundaker Commercial Group plan office and retail there.

- Wings Corporate Estates, a light-industrial project by D.F. Adams and Associates with 21 lots. Some businesses are operating there, while other lots are for sale. The 37-acre area is on Eatherton Road west of the airport.

The largest landowner by far in "Westerfield" is Spirit of St. Louis Airport, which holds 1,250 acres for mostly airport-related uses. Much of the undeveloped land is for runway protection zones. John Bales, director of aviation, said about 125 acres remain for new development.

by Margaret Gillerman