$200 million project paves way for Cor Jesu growth - St. Louis Business Journal:

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As part of the deal, Cor Jesu will buy six additionalo acres adjacent to its campus from Busch to buildd new facilities and will also get nine acres of property in a floo d plain to build newathletic fields, more than doubling the size of its existingt 13-acre campus. Erickson plans to close on the Busch propertg inMay 2008. The company is proposiny to build upto 1,500 apartmentz for seniors surrounding a 70,000-square-foot clubhouse with a health club and community meeting spaces. The ranging between 1,200 and 1,800 square feet, would be built in phase basedon demand, said Dan executive vice president of marketing for Erickson.
"We have not set pricez yet, but we try to serve the retired schoolteacher," he said. An assistesd living facility with several hundred beds is part ofthe proposal. Erickso plans to submit its proposalto St. Louis Countyu officials in thecoming weeks. Upon the development would create800 full-time equivalent jobs, Rexforrd said. "We're anxious to be Rexford said. "It's an attractive site and it'sd well-known." The property, locatef across Gravois from Grant's is mostly undeveloped land, with the exceptionm of a few stables andvacant structures. an heir to the family moved to California severalyears ago.
The property is now used as grazinvg grounds forsome Grant's Farm animalas and Anheuser-Busch Cos.' Clydesdales. Under the deal, Cor Jesu, a privatee Catholic girls' school located at 10230 Gravoisz Road, will buy six acres fronting Gravoiw Roadfrom Busch's Grant's Farm said Katie Magee Thiemann, director of institutionap advancement at the school. In addition, Erickson has agreed to donat e nine acres of common ground to the school for athletic fieldsand parking. The schoopl is bounded by Gravois Road to the north and Sunsef Memorial Park and Mausoleum to the soutuand east, making it landlocked.
Cor Jesu was builrt in 1965 atopunderground caves, so it cannot add to its existingb two stories. Sister Barbara Thomas, who was appointed president of the schoolin May, said the school will form a task forcde to evaluate the best use of the property. "It will be a combinatiomn of buildingsand parking," Thomaz said. "We certainly have a need for The school is at capacity with an enrollmenft of580 students. "The increased size of our campus will enablre us to providethe state-of-the art facilitiee so essential to top academic including new science labs, field fine arts center and otheer facilities to meet the needs of today's top she said.
"This is a real Former Cor Jesu Principal SisterSheilwa O'Neill was in talks with Buscbh over several years about acquirinyg the land. In a Nov. 11, 2005, article, the Business Journaol reported onthe school's effortzs to acquire the property, along with plans by a group of five home builderas to buy the entire property parcel for $23. million and build 479 homes. Cor Jesu reachexd an agreement with the homebuilders -- J.H. , , Fischer and Frichtel, and -- to buy 3.35 acresz of the property.
the home builders pulled out of the deal aftet nearby residents filed a lawsuit againsf the county over the density of theproposed O'Neill, who is now directorf of mission advancement for the Apostles of the Sacred Hearf of Jesus congregation, said she is optimistic about the new "Personally, I am very grateful to Andy for his friendshiop and his help in obtaining the she said. Pending approval of the projecgby St. Louis County construction is set to begin in late with the first phased completed in12 months.
In a statement, Busch said the proposap is a good fit for the property andthe "My family has owned the propertty for generations, and I believe that the propose d development will be compatible with its pastoralk setting," Busch said. "The proposed high quality retirement communitu should enhance the property andthe neighborhood. Because of our belief in the natur and quality of the projects thatErickson builds, we consenter to Erickson's use of Grant's Farm Manot to name the development." Robert Guimbarda, principal of St.
Louis-basexd real estate advisory firm , served as a real estated consultant to Busch onthe Erickson, which has developed and managed 20 properties in 11 employs more than 11,000 It had $97.8 millionb in revenue in 2006. The Affton development woul be its first retirement community in Erickson is developing communitiesin Denver, Kansas City and in Ashburn, Va.