About Saint Louis' Tower Grove South

I have a new listing in St Louis. 3153 Portis Ave, St Louis, MO 63116. 4 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, 3131 square feet of living space. Listed at $304,900. This is a pretty amazing home, just steps from beautiful Tower Grove Park.

http://www.3159PortisAve.com

Public Open House - Sunday, March 14, 1-3 pm

Agent Open House - Tuesday, March 16, 11 am - 1 pm.

Enjoy gracious City living just steps from beautiful Tower Grove Park. If you love to entertain, this large updated home was meant for you. The impressive front facade is just the beginning. From there, enter the large foyer with grand staircase, from which the formal living & dining areas flow. A large wet bar area is adjacent, as is a full bath. The kitchen is gorgeous (custom cabinetry, center island, ceramic tile countertops) & the breakfast room is open & bright. A rear staircase leads to the 2nd floor. There's even a first floor bedroom with double closets & attached sitting room with built-in bookshelves & ample natural lighting.

The second floor features an office/den, two more good-sized bedrooms, 2nd floor laundry, full hall bath & a wonderful master suite. The master bath is just amazing - large as most bedrooms - with a separate shower, jetted garden tub & double bowl vanity. There's even a covered deck off this suite.

The updates to this home are numerous: new 2 car garage ('05); tear off & installation of a 30 year rubber membrane roof ('08); R-40 insulation added to attic space ('08); new windows in Master suite & vinyl fence installed ('07); rockwork and landscaping in front of home & irrigation system ('07); Rear brick patio & walkway ('09); 5 additional new windows to be installed prior to closing. Taxes are also abated for at least 2 more years. Close to shopping & restaurants - walk to everything in the thriving Morganford Business District - hospitals, universities, and Downtown.

The seller is also providing a HSA Home Warranty ($439) for the buyer at closing.

Tax abated through 2012.

City living at its finest! You must see this home!

Additional Features of 3153 Portis Avenue:

First Floor:

Beautiful enclosed front porch with ceramic tile floor

Upgraded flooring and lighting

Original millwork

Custom window treatments

Fireplace (electric log) with mantel in living room

Pocket door

Gorgeous chandelier in dining room area

Private side entrance to first floor bedroom

Wet bar area with space for seating is great for entertaining

Ceiling fans in first floor bedroom and breakfast room

Breakfast room is surrounded by windows - light and bright

Moveable center island in kitchen

Kitchen appliances stay with home (range/oven, built-in microwave, dishwasher, disposal, refrigerator)

Second Floor:

Closet and office with ceiling fan at top of stairway

Front bedroom features another fireplace (electric log)

Ceiling fans in all bedrooms

Second bedroom features 2 closets

Hall bath features claw foot tub, pedestal sink ceramic tile flooring

Double doors leading to Master Bath - ceramic tile floor and tub surround, linen cabinet - loads of natural light

Laundry /storage room on this floor is so convenient - no more lugging laundry to the basement

Rear staircase leads down to the breakfast room and the rear entrance

More features of 3153 Portis Avenue:

Zoned central heat and air

Sump pump in basement

Another finished laundry/utility room in basement

Walk-out basement

Updated plumbing and electrical

Alarm system

Fenced yard with white vinyl fencing - never have to paint the fence

Landscaped front and rear yards

Irrigation system with different zones

New 2-car garage (2005) provides security and convenience

And so much more!

Interior Pics to follow and will be on property website!

http://www.timtanzhomes.com

This Holiday Season I had some interesting experiences about sustainable neighborhoods.

First Off, I finished the book, "Tower Grove", by local historian Mark Abbott. Since I live in Tower Grove and have my business there too, it was at the top of my limited reading list. I love studying history and also love all the books with pictures of how things appeared throughout history. (Incidentally, Tower Grove is looking pretty good right now, but that's besides the point.) The book was a nice short read.

I also noticed that a sustainable neighborhood lecture was being held in March by the Friends of Tower Grove Park organization and featuring Mark Abbott as the presenter.

Lastly, I drove through my old suburban neighborhood and spoke to our old neighbor briefly about the condition of the neighborhood. Things seemed nice when we bought our first home, but had slowly started deteriorating. The number of vacant homes and rental property were increasing. Property conditions were on the decline. This neighborhood was built in the early 1960's and has been appreciating in value, is in a very good school district with very good highway access and access to community services.

It makes me wonder about sustainability. That topic seems to come up when discussing urban neighborhoods, but not in suburban areas. In looking at history, homes were often times individually built very well. Looking at the building practices between 1960 and 1990, most of the suburbs were built in St Louis and St Charles county. Time will tell how well the homes hold up and how well neighborhoods hold together. I'm curious to know what will happen when these suburban communities face the same challenges as the older neighborhoods in the city and inner-ring suburbs. Most suburban homes built between 1960-1990 don't have features that inspire people to restore homes such as custom wood-work, 10' ceilings, built in pantry's, etc. There is an aspect of "interchangeability" that are associated with newer homes, it will be interesting to see how things change.

Some believe that due to environmental and energy reasons, that cities will continue to make a comeback.

Whatever the case is, I'm looking forward to the seminar. As a realtor and as a 'housing enthusiast', I believe that sustainability of a neighborhood is mostly due to the care of the home owners in the area followed by the design of an area and its homes. Some obsolescence can come from design (lack of inside plumbing, lack of off street parking, etc. but much of that can be overcome. As I look around the St Louis metropolitan area, I am convinced that much of our areas development has taken place because of the abundance of land and the belief that we can continue to move away from our problems into the next new community. While that has always been the case, now that the borders of the St Louis area continue to push outward, there seems to be a change in many peoples perspective towards choosing neighborhood sustainability over neighborhood replacement.