Tegethoff Development's mixed use Expo at Forest Park, which began construction in the fall of 2020. (rendering via Tegethoff Development and architect Trivers).
ST. LOUIS — Developer Jeff Tegethoff officiallybroke ground Tuesday on a long-anticipated $90 million, 285-unit apartment complex in the Skinker-DeBaliviere neighborhood.
Known as Expo at Forest Park, site work along DeBaliviere Avenue, including the demolition of a former strip center, has been ongoing. That’s despite litigation between the Expo developer and LuxLiving, which is developing its own $29 million, 150-unit apartment building across DeBaliviere Avenue.
Lux principals Victor Alston and Sid Chakraverty have said Expo did not include enough parking. Expo attorneys have denied that, and city leaders have noted that the developer is purchasing some land from MetroLink operator to encourage more transit use at the nearby MetroLink station.
In early August, the Commercial DeBaliviere Place Association sued to block the Expo shortly after Tegethoff closed on the real estate.
A judge denied Lux’s request for a temporary restraining order, and Expo countersued, accusing Lux of conspiring to delay its project. That lawsuit is ongoing.
Tegethoff’s Expo development, which the city last year endorsed with a $14 million tax increment financing incentive package, now appears full speed ahead. Tegethoff was scheduled to appear Tuesday for a groundbreaking with two aldermen, Shameen Clark Hubbard and Heather Navarro, Mayor Lyda Krewson, and Bi-State CEO Taulby Roach. Brinkmann Constructors is the general contractor and Trivers is the architect on the project.
The project, pitched at the site of a truck dealership on Seventh Street, would be Lux Living's largest to date.Â
Tegethoff Development's mixed use Expo at Forest Park, which began construction in the fall of 2020. (rendering via Tegethoff Development and architect Trivers).
