My finance view

ST. LOUIS — Sprinkled among the independent storefronts and Mexican eateries along Cherokee Street are empty buildings waiting for young entrepreneurs to live and work.

The street has experienced a revival of sorts in the past year, and went from vacant and decrepit buildings to loft apartments and art galleries.

Will Liebermann started renovating buildings on Cherokee about four years ago, separating them into studios and advertising them as "live-work spaces." He started before that by renovating a few buildings in Dogtown, Gravois Park and Benton Park West but said none of them has been as successful as those on Cherokee Street.

He said that despite — or perhaps because of — the recession, more people are moving to St. Louis, and, more specifically, to Cherokee Street.

Since he opened his business in 2005, Liebermann has filled about 20 live-work units that were previously unoccupied, bringing in about 40 new people to the street. He is working on filling 14 more.

"In a down economy I’ve opened probably two businesses for every one that’s closed, which we’re real proud of," Liebermann said. "I’ve taken buildings that were uninhabited or a fraction of inhabited and put five, six, seven different occupants in."

Some of these occupants are businesses and some of them are residents, but more often they are independent businesses where the owners also happen to live, either in the business space itself or on the floor above it.

Tiffany Minx, the 29-year-old owner of Apop Records, opened her store in 2007. Now, she is moving from a few blocks away to right above the store.

‘UNIQUE FLAVOR’

"If you own your own business you’re pretty protective of it, you want to be close to it," Minx said. "If you live here too, you’re putting your entire life here."

Minx said she likes the growing vibe of Cherokee Street, and that it has an untouched quality.

"This has a really unique flavor of businesses," she said. "There are a lot of self-starters; nothing is polished or formed by some marketing committee."

When Liebermann walks down Cherokee, he says hello to people passing by and picks up scattered trash. He spends his days working out of his office in the neighborhood’s Business Incubator, which houses a host of independent Cherokee Street businesses cheap health insurance. He also spends time checking up on the construction of his 14 ongoing neighborhood projects.

Some of the buildings have been vacant for months, like one at the intersection of California Avenue and Cherokee.

At 4,000 square feet, Liebermann bought the building for $110,000. He has not yet found a tenant; it rents for $1,500 a month. But he still uses it for one-night events such as gallery openings and private parties and isn’t too worried about filling it.

"I’d want it to be an art gallery, anything that would be classy. I’d love for a cool furniture store," he thought aloud. "I don’t have to charge a lot to make a good revenue stream because the cost of the building was fairly low. I’d rather charge a little less than have an empty unit and try to hold out for a lot of money."

Evan Sult and Paige Brubeck moved to St. Louis from Chicago in November and remember opening their live-work space the night of the presidential election.

Once paying $935 a month for a small one-bedroom apartment in Chicago’s Wicker Park, the couple now pay $800 a month for a 2,500-square-foot studio loft where they have their graphic design and screen-printing businesses, as well as their band.

On one side of the room is a drum kit and an electric guitar, and on the other side are art materials and a screen-printing machine. There’s a kitchenette, and couches.

"We’re full-time artists, and that’s something hard to do. We chose coming to St. Louis rather than stay in Chicago and not be able to do it, and we’re trying to convince friends all over the country," Sult said. "This is our fake Manhattan loft. You definitely don’t have to be rich in St. Louis to have a fascinating life."

The tenants praise Liebermann for not only renovating buildings but also for embracing creativity.

"We’re all interested to see who moves in next," Sult said. "I think the attitude Will has taken is part of why, in 2011, it’s going to seem old news that Cherokee has established artists and businesses, because Will has been careful about bringing people that add more than just a monthly rent."

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