In the spring of 2012, the Old North St. Louis Restoration Group hosted a competition for creative proposals to reuse the site of the former Pruitt-Igoe public housing complex. 74 acre site has lain dormant since the final towers were demolished in 1976 except for a school built on approximately 20 acres on the southern end of the site.
The Pruitt-Igoe site and the surrounding neighborhoods are of contrasting typologies. The former site of Pruitt-Igoe sits as an island in a depleted city. Its untamed, urban wild is set in relief to the vacant neighborhoods to the north and west, and the more developed community of moderately low density public housing to the east.
The urban wild of the Pruitt-Igoe site offers an opportunity of incorporating its ecology into the surrounding environment, creating a network to sustainably manage the local environmental resources. The site is a void within the community, re-unification can be accomplished by relaying streets through the site to strengthen its connections. For the benefit of all parties, responsible re-urbanization along major thoroughfares that meets the needs and revalues the existing community.