City approves zoning for advanced manufacturing center
Construction is set to start by the end of this year on the Advanced Manufacturing and Innovation Center-St. Louis.
By James Drew – Reporter, St. Louis Business Journal. Sep 25, 2024
The St. Louis Board of Adjustment on Wednesday paved the way for construction to begin on the advanced manufacturing center in north St. Louis.
By a 5-0 vote, the board approved the appeal sought by the nonprofit group, Advanced Manufacturing Innovation Center-STL. The city’s zoning administrator had ruled that the project didn’t comply with the zoning code. The seven-acre site along Finney and Pendeleton avenues is zoned neighborhood commercial and is being provided to AMICSTL by Ranken Technical College.
AMICSTL received approval Wednesday from the Board of Adjustment for commercial uses that exceed 3,500 square feet. The size of the first phase has been estimated at 85,000 square feet for two buildings that will be connected by a terrace bridge across Finney Avenue. The board also approved a use variance for manufacturing and setback variances for where the buildings will be located along Finney and Pendleton avenues.
Supporters of the project say the goal is to make the St. Louis area a driver of research and development efforts to create new products, processes and materials – potentially creating hundreds of new businesses while providing "strong, diverse and equitable growth" for the region.
The Board of Adjustment members voted after hearing from residents in the Vandeventer neighborhood. They stressed that the project fits the North Central Plan adopted by the city’s Planning Commission in 2021 that calls for “technology infrastructure improvements, retrofit spaces for local businesses and small startups.”
Yvonne Carter, a 60-year neighborhood resident, said she usually appears before the Board of Adjustment to try to stop liquor stores, gas stations and auto repair shops.
“I am here to say, for once, I am here to support a project that will give us life and some hope for our community,” she said.
The next step is to complete the construction documents and get permits from the city, said Tracy Henke, AMICSTL’s chief operating officer and deputy executive director. Construction is set to begin by the end of the year, with completion set for the second quarter of 2026.
“We’re pleased that the Board of Adjustment sees AMICSTL as an asset not just to North City, but to the broader region,” Henke said.