Blog

The Shaw Neighborhood Improvement Association (SNIA) is seeking responses from Shaw residents for a ten day period prior to their April 18th Board of Directors meeting on a potential development in the neighborhood. Background on this matter as follows: On Jul. 28, 2015, the Community Development Administration (CDA), in conjunction with Alderman Steve Conway, sent out a request for proposals (RFP) concerning the property at 3901-05 Shaw (the former Salamah’s Market, Shaw and 39th), with responses due Jan. 30,… Read More

In keeping with Shaw Neighborhood Improvement Association’s (SNIA) mission to “improve and maintain the quality of life of all Shaw residents,” we offer the Shaw Helping Hands Grant program to assist those who share that vision and are taking an active part in making it a reality. Helping Hands grants are made possible by proceeds from the Historic Shaw Art Fair. Specifically, SNIA invites proposals requesting up to $2,000 to benefit the quality of life… Read More

Curious about your home’s past residents? St. Louis Public Library has several great, and FREE, resources for researching your home’s past; all you need is a library card. One helpful resource is HeritageQuest. HeritageQuest gives you access to census records (up to 1940). For those of you who live in multi-family homes, census records can be more informative than searching for building owners (e.g., 80% of the individuals living on my block in 1940 rented). Read More

When Bike Works moved its operation from Shenandoah & Thurman in Shaw to the Soulard neighborhood, Lynn Terry was happy to repurpose the site. In the space that once overflowed with bicycles, there now resides a chic pet boutique, The Wagamama, and the studio utilized by Lynn Terry Photography. Wagamama, which translates to “spoiled rotten child” in Japanese, is set to be a one-stop shop for pet owners. Where there were once… Read More

Shaw Historical Business Map Are you curious about what businesses used to be in buildings throughout the neighborhood? Cara Jensen, Shaw resident and owner of Sherlock Homes, has started compiling this information in a Google map. To date she has added businesses that were present in 1956, their status in 2015, and is now starting to add in information from a directory printed in 1915. The map… Read More

This November Youth Committee hosted a video game workshop on Shaw Boulevard for the Youth Advisory Council. The company that joined us was Pixel Press, a local start-up company that is finding much national success. The kids got to partake and learn about the brand new game Bloxels. Bloxels uses the combination of hands-on toys with video games. Robin Rath, of Pixel Press, showed us how to build video characters and screens on a board… Read More

Written by: Justine Collum Last week, I attended another Shaw Community Conversation. The topic was—as the title of this post indicates—Shaw’s Past, Present, and Future. These Conversations are always complicated for me because I have a complicated… Read More

Written by: Becky Reinhart While monitoring the sign-in table at the Shaw Community Center recently, a couple of the young men coming in to play basketball thanked me for letting them use the space; I was caught off guard, because I really don’t deserve any of the thanks! I would like to pass along all of the gratitude to those neighbors who have donated their money or time, whether in small or large… Read More

  Authored by: Chip Meyer, co-organizer of Shaw Conversations The most recent Shaw Conversation (Monday, July 20) at the Shaw Community Center in Mullanphy School welcomed several new voices. The kick-off topic, “My Shaw is…,” encouraged folks to share during the open-mic portion of the conversation. These testimonies sparked discussion of how people experience different aspects of Shaw, experience them differently, and value different aspects of the neighborhood and its community. Some attendees reflected… Read More

The Shaw Neighborhood Improvement Association (SNIA) is happy to announce the following recipients of the 2015 Helping Hands Grants. City Garden Montessori for ColorBrave series (Primary Contact: Christie Huck) Mental Health America of Eastern Missouri for two seminars for adults and children on emotional intelligence (Primary Contact: Mark Utterback) Saint Louis University Micah Program for their annual Shaw Halloween Party (Primary Contact: Debra Wilson) Cornerstone Center for Early Learning for… Read More