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ST. LOUIS-Metropolitan Development recently demolished a former dry cleaners at 14th Street and Washington and is selling into its planned 22-story Skyhouse condominium tower at the site, now at 25% closed. The company, which started sales in May, will start building the $67-million new tower once it reaches 40%, a company spokeswoman tells GlobeSt.com.

The tower will have 166 one-, two- and three-bedroom condos, with 13,000 sf of retail at the street level. "There's no tenant yet, they're looking at like a Trader Joe's or a Straub's," the spokeswoman says. "The area is really in need of retail, most of the commercial base has left and gone out to the Clayton area or other suburbs." The building will also have three levels of heated parking, she says.

The company hopes to have completion of the project in 2009. The property will be the recipient of $11.5 million in TIF funds, and company officials hope to save even more money by incorporating green building practices. "We're pursuing LEED certification, that's our minimum threshold," the spokeswoman says. "It's going to depend on the decisions made. We know we're using amenities such as Energy Star appliances and hardwood floors, but we're also looking at other areas, like maybe even geothermal heating and cooling, or solar panels to heat the pool."