It was standing room only at a packed meeting for residents of the Ridgewood neighborhood in Crestwood on Nov. 17. The town hall — which was hosted by Ward 1 aldermen Jesse Morrison and Jim Zavist — accrued the presence of over 60 property owners in the historic neighborhood as they discussed how to preserve their homes’ mid-century architecture.
Worries have arisen among Ridgewood residents that, over time, new owners may move into the neighborhood and demolish the existing classic homes or renovate them beyond recognition. One attendee said he did not want to see huge, costly “McMansions” spring up in place of the smaller 1950s-style homes. While Crestwood city planner Danny Jendusa does not think this is currently a concern, Morrison and Zavist initiated the meeting to get ahead of the curve.
During the town hall, information was disseminated about a local nonprofit’s efforts to add Ridgewood to the National Register of Historic Places, and residents raised and answered questions about the potential of Crestwood imposing zoning ordinances on what can and cannot be done to these homes.
“We’re hoping to elevate what our neighborhood already has to offer,” Morrison said. He and Zavist are both homeowners in the Ridgewood neighborhood.
The Ridgewood subdivision is a cluster of 268 homes north of Grant’s Trail and buttressed by Grant Road to the east. The homes were designed by local architect Ralph Fournier, and Burton Duenke built them in 1951-1953. What is now described as “mid-century modern” architecture, Fournier says, was a “California” style at the time. When they were built, they were described as “contemporary, yet ahead of their time.”
The average Ridgewood home is 1,300 square feet on an 8,700 square foot lot. Other common features of these homes include large windows, exposed chimneys and a gradual roof pitch. In almost 75 years of the neighborhood’s existence, not a single home has been demolished.
The Nov. 17 town hall acted as a preliminary meeting so that Morrison and Zavist could identify whether residents are interested in preservation in the first place. Morrison says this could be the first of many meetings over a long period of time.
Across the board, gathered residents seemed interested in maintaining the architectural integrity of the subdivision; demolition and huge developments were concerns that were raised repeatedly.
One ongoing effort to protect the neighborhood’s homes and reputation is being undertaken by ModernSTL, a nonprofit organization that “seeks to protect and celebrate modern architecture and design in the St. Louis region,” according to its website. Neil Chace, an architect and founding member of ModernSTL and Ridgewood resident, spoke at the Nov. 17 town hall.
ModernSTL has submitted a nomination for Ridgewood to be added to the National Register of Historic Places, an official list of buildings, areas and objects that are worthy of preservation due to their historical significance.
“It hasn’t gone through yet, but we went through an initial evaluation and received positive remarks,” Chace said. “We did that to preserve the character of the neighborhood and to promote preservation. We thought it would be a good way to make sure the authenticity of the homes remains.”
This nomination is not expected to cost Ridgewood residents anything — the money to put the neighborhood on the register is coming from ModernSTL’s preservation fund. At least some of this money has come from ticketed home tours that the nonprofit has hosted in Ridgewood, when homeowners have opened their doors to the community.
ModernSTL’s hope for the use of the preservation fund was to put the money that these neighbors raised through tours back into the Ridgewood community, creating a cycle for the betterment of the subdivision.
Chace believes, if Ridgewood were added to the register, it would give the neighborhood a stronger sense of identity and potentially uphold the homes’ architectural integrity. At the meeting, he said that it would not affect what homeowners could do with their homes — though, if they renovated the home with original, state-approved materials, they could receive a historic tax credit.
To nail down this nomination, Chace said there would need to be a volunteer effort where neighbors survey each house, filling out a two-page document from the state.
“A grassroots effort, if it was done in a couple weekends, could be knocked out by willing neighbors,” Chace said.
From Chace’s explanation, it seems an addition to the National Register of Historic Places could solidify the neighborhood’s good character, but it would be protection in name only; it would not necessarily prevent major changes from being made to the homes. Morrison referred to it as being like a coffee table book: “By getting the ‘coffee table book,’ with the pictures and memories, we have a chance of elevating the status of the neighborhood, but that’s really all that’s going to happen.”
This is why the town hall turned its attention to a “two-pronged approach,” which would pair the historic register nomination with municipal ordinances. The city of Crestwood could create zoning ordinances that would limit what could be done to Ridgewood homes: protections that homeowners would have to follow if they sought to renovate.
This suggestion proved more controversial, with some residents heavily in favor and a few heavily against.
“Right now, the issue is that there are no rules,” Morrison said about the Ridgewood homes.
People threw out ideas for design characteristics they wanted to keep, if a zoning ordinance were to be drafted that would require homeowners to maintain certain characteristics in the homes. Among them were the exposed chimney, large windows, eaves, beams and roof pitch. Again, neighbors expressed an overarching concern about larger homes being built in the subdivision.
If any zoning legislation were to be drafted, it could hypothetically prevent these design characteristics from being tampered with — keeping the uniformity and historical, architectural integrity of the neighborhood intact. If drafted, it would go before the Crestwood Board of Aldermen for approval. That process would likely take months.
One resident, Rick Green, who has lived in Crestwood for his entire life, expressed concerns about putting restrictions on what property owners can and cannot do to their homes.
“There are other ways they can (preserve the neighborhood) without putting massive restrictions,” Green said.
Green argued that municipal ordinances would force residents to consult extensively with the city code during renovations, causing extra difficulty when homeowners decide to modernize. He resisted the idea of municipal oversight on Ridgewood property. He used the phrase, “Modernization isn’t optional. It’s necessary,” to describe how the neighborhood will need to change, and he urged his neighbors to be careful what they wish for.
His stance curried distaste among residents, the most vocal of whom seemed highly in favor of ordinances that would preserve Ridgewood architecture. Green’s time at the stand devolved into some complaints and heckling from neighbors as Jendusa tried to limit the amount of time he spent speaking, which exceeded eight minutes.
“I do want to point out that Jim (Zavist) and myself are Ridgewood residents,” Morrison said. “Anything that could possibly be imagined as negative interference by regulation is also something that we would have to abide by.”
There will likely be another meeting among Ridgewood neighbors in 2026 so these discussions can continue, regarding both the historic nomination and the potential of zoning ordinances. Morrison said that a survey will be sent out to homeowners in the days to come, asking for feedback on what was discussed in the meeting.
“We have a really cool neighborhood, and we would love to see it go another 75 years,” Morrison said. “We want to not only honor the 75 years they’ve been up, but there’s a reason why they’re still standing to this day in such ubiquity. I’d love to see some energy go into it that’s shaped and formed by the people that live there.”