St. Louis’s Shaw Neighborhood: One of the City’s Jewels and a Great Place to Live, Play and Visit

St. Louis’s Shaw Neighborhood: One of the City’s Jewels and a Great Place to Live, Play and Visit
Named for the man who founded the Missouri Botanical Gardens—Henry Shaw—the Shaw neighborhood of St. Louis (which is comprised of two smaller communities called Tower Grove Park and Shaw Gardens) is one of the city’s oldest intact neighborhoods in St. Louis’s historic districts. It’s also one of the communities in the city that is still in the throes of gentrification, thanks to the Shaw Neighborhood Housing Corporation which strives to both improve and promote different properties by working with developers, sponsors, realtors, and others.
The area was purchased from French settlers by Captain William Chambers in 1816, and then was bought by Henry Shaw, who was then only 19 years of age and had just arrived to the St. Louis area. Once there, Shaw built his large country home he named Tower Grover House and began work on his garden, now known as the Missouri Botanical Garden. Shaw is the main reason why there are such a variety of architecture as well as the many different types of residences: Two- and three-story homes are seen next to multifamily dwellings, churches, schools, and small businesses.
Present day Shaw is still seeing a lot of new development, including the progress on new apartments, and ongoing renovations on the neighborhood’s old homes and building. While some still remain boarded up and empty, many associations like the Shaw Neighborhood Improvement Association are trying to get new businesses into the community, since there are so many new young families that have come to the area; many residents feel this is the next phase for the community.
Attractions in Shaw are plentiful and include the Missouri Botanical Garden, the famous Shaw Art, all of the beautiful and historic homes along the Flora Place boulevard, the stunning churches like St. Margaret of Scotland, and the Tower Grove Park. Tower Grove Park is an attraction and special part of the city all on its own; it was originally part of Henry Shaw’s land but he donated it in 1868 to the city of St. Louis and is now around 289 acres. This park has 11 pavilions of different designs, including Victorian, as well as a lovely lily pond, gorgeous plants, the Piper Palm House, which is a bandstand and the site of special events and music, tennis courts, a wading pool, open expanses of grass for picnics or playing sports, softball and soccer fields, and pathways for walkers, joggers, and dog walkers. The park also features almost 400 species of flowering plants, trees, and bushes, plus it’s a wonderful place for birdwatching, especially in spring and fall. There are also lots of statues in the park, such as Christopher Columbus, Alexander von Humboldt, William Shakespeare, and famous musical composers.
The famed Historic Shaw Art Fair has been held in the community for 21 years; it brings together the whole neighborhood with great art from artists from across the country, food, music, and more. It is held in every October, and is an event that residents, artists, and tourists look forward to every year.

Your Home Inspection

You have made your offer and it's been accepted. Now it's time for your Home Inspection. Hiring a qualified Inspector is as easy as going to http://www.ashi.org/ and locating an Inspector.
Once your Inspector arrives he should inspect the roof by actually getting on the roof and walking around looking at the roof material, flashing, gutters, the exterior of the chimney and the cap.
He then will walk around the house looking at the exterior material, be it brick or siding. Also checking the exterior of the foundation. In completing his exterior Inspection he should observe the power cable going into the house any decking supports, gates and fencing
As your Inspector conducts the Home Inspection he will be making notes of his findings. He may from time to time suggest having an item looked at by a qualified technician. Don't quiz him everytime he makes a note wait til the end when he will give you a written report.
Once he enters the home he should check the attic for insulation depth, make sure all ceiling lights/fans operate properly. He'll check each electrical socket for polarity and check for GFI's near water sources.
He'll check all bathrooms and kitchen for functionality and to make sure there are no leaks. He should also make notes of the general condition of the interior.
During the inspection he will review the interior foundation for potential leaks, cracks or damages. Finally he will inspect the furnace, water heater electrical panel and dehumidifier.
A normal inspection should only take a couple of hours. In attendance should be yourself and your Real Estate Agent. Once you have your inspection it's time to ask the inspector questions on anything of concern. Remember he is not a specialist only an inspector and as such should never offer repair services/bids.
The St. Louis Chapter of AMERICAN SOCIETY of HOME INSPECTORS 800-743-ASHI www.stlashi.org CERTIFIED INSPECTORS as of Friday, July 05, 2013 Adams ACI, Charles 314-805-5538 Aadams Inspection Services LLC Armstrong, Steve 636-931-7888 Castle Home Inspections Barclay, Robert 888-246-0242 BrickKicker Inspection Services Bean, John 800-285-3001 BPG/ABA Inspections and Consulting Becker, John 314-307-1856 ABA/BPG Inspections & Consulting Bench, Tim 636-240-7209 JCTB Inspections, Inc. Bentz, P.E., Jerry 800-285-3001 ABA Inspections and Consulting Binsbacher, Jeff 314-249-8371 R. Heyl & Associates Birenbaum, PE, David 314-650-5200 Engineered Inspection & Consulting Services Bonney, Sam 314-570-5135 Cardinal Home Inspection Services Borah, Chad 314-645-7871 Pillar To Post Bossard, Tom 636-477-0800 Heartland Inspection Services Boyd, Michael 314-744-0153 Architective Home Inspection LTD Brewer, Wayne 636-282-8800 Brewer Inspection Services Inc. 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Guffey, Gordon 636-282-8800 Brewer Inspection Services Inc. Hardy, P.E., Kyle 800-285-3001 Buyers Protection Group Henderson, Michael 618-235-4330 Amron Home Inspection Services (IL lic.) Heyl, Thomas 314-918-0600 Bean and Heyl Home Inspections Inc. Heyl, Richard 314-504-8504 R. Heyl & Associates Heyl, Ryan 314-374-2262 R.Heyl & Associates Hoffman, Dave 314-680-1834 Apple Inspections, LLC Hosie, Christopher 314-226-3272 Allen Engineered Inspections Jardine, Henry 636-240-5700 Amerispec Home Inspection Jardine ACI, Matthe 314-308-6489 AmeriSpec Home Inspections Jinkerson, David 636-386-1684 Hickory Home Inspections, LLC Jones, Reginald 314-409-4312 HomeSpector, LLC Kelley, Wesley 636-456-0001 7 Oaks Home Inspection llc. Kelly, Terence 314-580-0430 Apex Home Inspections Klein, Nathanial 314-571-9671 Pillar To Post Knight, Tim 636-978-9111 A.C.E. Home Inspections Krause, George 314-497-1234 Elite Home Inspections, LLC Krausz, Lawrence 314-277-9516 Krausz House Inspections Landolt, David 618-550-2800 Inspector Plus Inc. (IL lic.) Lewis, Jay 314-822-0559 Lewis Building Inspections Loesch, P.E., Gerald 314-249-8370 BPG/ABA Inspections & Consulting Lucke, Chris 314-874-5820 Missouri Property Inspections MacNeill ACI, Paul 314-392-9313 Apple Inspections LLC Mayer, Aaron 314-323-7458 Housewarming Home Inspections McCarty, Manuel 314-741-3300 Home Inspection - USA McNamee, Steve 636-936-8706 Homecheck Inspection Service Michalicek, Rick 314-238-6639 Moore Home Inspection Services Minderman, Nick 636-456-0001 7 Oaks Home Inspection Moore, Emmitt 314-727-6868 Moore Home Inspection Service Morrell, Harry 314-223-7310 Allied Building Inspections L.L.C. Morrissey, Michael 314-583-7654 Inspect-It 1st Nance, P.E., Charles 314-805-5576 CHN Inspections LLC Norman, Don 800-285-3001 BPG/ABA Inspections and Consulting Perry, Mark 618-570-8045 Accredited Home Inspection (IL lic.) Pohlman, Curt 314-276-1592 Pohlman Building Inspections Postol,P.E., Theodor 314-878-2884 Building & Home Inspection Consultants, Inc Rathjen, Fred 636-458-5300 Amerispec Of St. Louis Rathz, Mark 636-896-0123 WIN Home Inspection-St Charles Reese, Donald 314-795-7067 Dependable Home Inspections Reese, Robert 636-978-9111 A.C.E. Home Inspections Reichle, Paul 636-528-1554 Missouri Property Inspections Reuther, Frank 636-394-0869 Gateway Residential Inspectors Inc. Richards, William 314-605-4445 Home Inspections of St. Louis LLC Roark, Gary 636-685-6773 Armstrong Home Inspections LLC. Ronollo, Steve 314-276-4872 Excel Home Inspections Rothweiler, Jack 636-931-7888 Castle Home Inspections Ruttle, Richard 636-677-5868 Homestead Residential Inspection Sagehorn, Damon 314-821-8282 Engineering Evaluations Inc. Saladin, Thomas 800-285-3001 ABA/BPG Inspections and Consulting Sandweg, ACI, Dan 314-277-4982 Inspections Complete, LLC Sebaugh PE, Allen 314-401-9370 Allied Building Inspections LLC Shorette, Steve 636-282-2747 Candid Inspection Services Smith, Laurence 636-561-2844 Regional Home Inspection Co. Smith, Johnnie 800-285-3001 BPG /ABA Inspections & Consulting St. Clair, Robert 314-330-5423 Reliable Home Inspections Inc. Steinman PE, Gerald 314-517-5938 BPG/ABA Sullivan, Kevin 800-285-3001 Buyers Protection Group Vander Schaaf, Denni 314-249-8386 ABA Inspections and Consulting/ BPG Villhard, Wes 314-952-7007 Cornerstone Building Inspections Voss, Louis 636-795-0070 Countywide Professional Home Inspections Warren, Mark 800-285-3001 Buyers Protection Group Weisbrod, Doug 636-208-1966 Pillar To Post Professional Home Inspections Wessling, ACI, John 314-520-1103 Wessling Home Inspection Services LLC Whiteley, Deryck 314-932-5557 HouseMaster Guaranteed Home Inspections Zaloudek, James 314-406-2848 Assisting Homebuyers Inspection Service Note: ALL ASHI Members or others permitted to use the ASHI logo may not be listed on this document