Committee advances PUD for 78 townhomes at 5701 Wilson Avenue

A St. Louis Board of Aldermen housing committee on Jan. 27 gave a due-pass recommendation to board bill 1‑29, authorizing a planned-unit development (PUD) sketch plan for 78 single-family attached townhomes at 5701 Wilson Avenue. Alderman Devotee introduced the bill and asked the committee for favorable consideration.

James Pfister of the Planning and Urban Design Agency described the PUD as an overlay zoning tool that provides flexibility the city’s existing code lacks. “This particular planned unit development does is propose the building of 78 single family attached townhomes in groups of 3 and 4,” Pfister said, adding the parcel is the former Hubert Wheeler State School and was cleared after the campus closed in 1995. Pfister told the committee the Planning Commission approved the sketch plan on Nov. 12 and attached three conditions that must appear in the development plan returned for final approval: construction of a continuous sidewalk along Wilson Avenue, a plan ensuring accessibility from units to on‑site amenities and the public right‑of‑way, and screening or landscaping between the site and nearby residences.

Developer McBride Homes’ representative, Jay Kyleerman, said the company has worked on the project since 2023 and coordinated remediation with the state. “We worked with the state and DNR to really work through the site challenges, the soil conditions, the environmental,” Kyleerman said, describing demolition of an asbestos‑containing structure and steps to make the land suitable for residential use. Pfister added that engineers will need to pour deep piers to reach buildable soil because of past uses on the site.

Neighborhood leaders told the committee they had been engaged during the design process. Jennifer Giannino, president of the Hill Neighborhood Association, said McBride presented to the association twice and made revisions after receiving feedback, and that the group supports the project. Committee members asked about parking, orientation of buildings and whether site plan amendments would return to the Planning Commission; Pfister said major amendments require a Planning Commission review and the developer has already incorporated several negotiated changes, including placing one building to face Wilson Avenue rather than the internal parking field.

Vice Chair Sonnier moved and Alderman Browning seconded the motion that the committee recommend a due-pass for board bill 1‑29. The clerk recorded four aye votes and the motion carried.

Next steps: if the Board of Aldermen approves the ordinance, the PUD will return to the Planning Commission for final development plan approval before the developer can apply for building permits.