Delmar Loop fun facts

1. President Barack Obama tried Pi Pizza when he was in St. Louis in 2008. He liked it so much he called the chef to thank him personally and then flew three of the Pi Pizza chefs out to the White House in 2009 to cook for him.

2. A plaza made up of the sidewalk ripped off of the street to make way for the Centennial Greenway surrounds the new Chuck Berry statue, which is located across the street from Blueberry Hill and was installed this summer.

3. Pollstar ranked the Pageant the fifth-best concert venue in the world in 2011 and fourth-best in 2010. The ranking is based on tickets sold. The top 10 are: 1. Terminal 5, New York City, 268,973, 2. 9:30 Club, Washington, DC, 256,881, 3. House of Blues, Boston, 245,812, 4. Ancienne Belgique, Brussels, Belgium, 241,921, 5. The Pageant, St. Louis, 181,451, 6. First Avenue, Minneapolis, 174,639, 7. Ogden Theatre, Denver, 169,258, 8. Best Buy Theater, New York City, 165,002, 9. Metropolis, Montreal, Canada, 147,092, 10. Club Nokia, Los Angeles, 144,842

4. The Moonrise Hotel has the world’s largest man-made moon on its roof. It also was the first hotel in St. Louis to install solar panels – it has 60 feet of them. The panels store enough energy to power the moon and the top floor. It was also one of the first places in St. Louis to install a charging station for electrical cars.

5. The Delmar Loop is located in an area that used to be an amusement park, the Delmar Garden Amusement Park, which opened at the end of the 19th century. The Delmar streetcar “looped” through the corner of the park, giving the area its name. People could go to theatrical and musical productions as well as enjoy fine dining. The park also had at least three roller coasters.

Wei-Yin Ko | Student Life

“The Delmar Loop is a destination in St. Louis that is unlike any other area in that our street has the most international types of cuisine than any other place in St. Louis,” Jessica Bueler, the president of the Loop Special Business District, said. “It’s really an area that is all about embracing individuality and diversity.”

The Delmar Loop was founded in 1891 and started to thrive in the 1930s. When suburban shopping malls hit the nation in the 1950s, the Loop entered a decline.

Some residents of University City, however, refused to give up. Joe Edwards, the ponytailed owner of iconic places like Blueberry Hill, the Pageant and the Moonrise, believed in the area. He built Blueberry Hill in 1972 and in 1980 started to organize the local business owners. They created a special taxing district, the profits of which would go toward rejuvenating the Loop with amenities like more lighting and large flower pots. Developers were incentivized to work on the Loop in 1984, when it was listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

Edwards started the St. Louis Walk of Fame in 1988. Chuck Berry, the rock and roll star responsible for hits like “Johnny B. Goode” and “Roll Over Beethoven,” received the first star.

“The Walk of Fame is a nice thing for St. Louisians, especially younger children. They can aspire to be good role models,” Edwards said.

The Walk now has 127 stars, indicating famous people from St. Louis. Some stars connected to Washington University include William Danforth and Howard Nemerov.

The Walk of Fame isn’t Edwards’ sole contribution to the Loop. He also helped establish the Planet Walk, a to-scale model of the solar system. This walk accurately indicates the distance between all the planets and provides informational postings about where each of the planets would be located, along with facts like how much you would weigh on that planet and which Roman god it is named after.

Edwards’ efforts paid off, and the Delmar Loop was named one of the 10 Great Streets in America in 2007.

Edwards’ next project is to bring back a vintage trolley as an homage to the trolley that made a loop along Delmar from the 1930s through the1960s. The trolley would run from University City Hall to the History Museum in Skinker–DeBaliviere.

2. The west half of the Loop is in University City and the east is in St. Louis. Everything on the University City side closes at 1 a.m., so if you’re not ready to go home from Cicero’s or Blueberry Hill you can go a couple blocks west to The Pin-Up Bowl or Eclipse Restaurant at the Moonrise Hotel.

3. Cicero’s doesn’t card at the door, so if you’re planning a big get together and don’t want to leave underage friends out, that’s the place to go.

4. Bear Bucks can be used at Blueberry Hill, not just for food but also for drinks.

5. Don’t forget about midnight showings of old classics at the Tivoli Theatre.

6. Forget Schnucks, you can buy tubs of hummus, baba ganoush and tabouleh at Al-Tarboush Deli.

Genevieve Hay | Student Life

On Monday, several electronic devices were stolen from the Zeta Beta Tau house on Forsyth.

On Monday, a laptop was stolen from the ZBT (Zeta Beta Tau) house, located on the 7000 block of Forsyth, and on Tuesday several electronic items were stolen from an apartment on the 7200 block of Forsyth, according to Ransom.

Typically, fewer crimes occur on Forsyth than north of campus, where many students live.

“This is very unusual [to have crimes on Forsyth],” Ransom said.

University City police have added patrols to the area, he said.

The crimes caught some students off-guard.

“I was definitely surprised because I feel like nothing happens [on Forsyth]. But talking to [other students on Forsyth], they sometimes leave their doors unlocked,” junior Marilyn Piccirillo said. “I don’t feel less safe though, because I’ve seen so many more police.”

Washington University police issued a crime alert about the Monday incident.

Ransom says that the ZBT house was unlocked and most members were on campus when the crime occurred. One remaining brother told police he saw the suspect wandering around and asked what he was doing. The suspect replied he was looking for someone.

Once he left, members discovered he had taken a laptop. The incident occurred at around 7:45 p.m.

The witness reported that the suspect left in a white pickup truck occupied by a heavyset white female.

The police are searching for the female and the suspect: a 30 to 40 year old bald black male, 5’9 to 5’10 in height weighing 160-170 pounds. The suspect wore a dark coat and pants.

On Tuesday, a different victim returned to his or her apartment and reported stolen electronics at 6:54 p.m. Ransom says the suspect forced his or her way through a locked back door.

Ransom encouraged students to always lock their doors and call the police if they see suspicious people.

“In general, Forsyth is seen as a safer place to live. It just shows that wherever you are you have to be attentive,” junior Corey Cantor said.

On Monday, a laptop was stolen from the ZBT (Zeta Beta Tau) house, located on the 7000 block of Forsyth, and on Tuesday several electronics were stolen from an apartment on the 7200 block of Forsyth, according to Ransom.

Fewer crimes typically occur on Forsyth than north of campus, where many students live.

“This is very unusual [to have crimes on Forsyth],” Ransom said.

University City police have added patrols to the area, he said.

Washington University police issued a crime alert about the Monday incident.

Ransom says that the ZBT house was unlocked and most members were on campus when the crime occurred. One remaining told police he saw the suspect wandering around and asked what he was doing. The suspect replied he was looking for someone.

Once he left the brothers discovered he had taken a laptop. The incident occurred at around 7:45 p.m.

The witness reported that the suspect left in a white pickup truck occupied by a heavyset white female.

The police are searching for the female and the suspect: a 30 to 40 year old bald black male, 5’9 to 5’10 in height weighing 160-170 pounds. The suspect wore a dark coat and pants.

On Tuesday, a different victim returned to his or her apartment and reported stolen electronics at 6:54 p.m. Ransom says the suspect forced his or her way through a locked back door. A crime alert was sent to students Wednesday afternoon.

Ransom encouraged students to always lock their doors and call the police if they see suspicious people.

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A graduate student spilled three chemicals that produced a tear gas-like substance in one of the building’s labs Monday night. The issue was taken care of and the building was usable in time for classes Tuesday morning.

The student needed to have his eyes flushed and was driven to the hospital by WUPD as a precaution, but was otherwise fine.

Students taking the test said that there were only a few minutes left in the exam when the alarms went off. The Teaching Assistant (TA) proctoring the exam spoke to other people in the building and found out about the spill, Bruce Backus, assistant vice chancellor of environmental health and safety said. Members of his office were called to the scene and were still investigating the incident Wednesday night.

Even as the alarms went off, students continued taking the exam. Clayton Fire Chief Mark Thorp said that a fireman had to instruct the test takers to leave the building even after the alarms had sounded.

“The fire alarm went off when there were about 12 minutes of the test left…then the police came and said to get out of the building, and that was with seven minutes left,” sophomore Michael Harding said.

Students say the TA gave them the option of staying in the building to complete the exam, or leaving due to the alarm.

“The alarm went off and it was really obnoxious, and clearly not conducive to focusing,” sophomore Miles Black said. “Everyone thought it was going to shut off really soon, [and] the TA said we could leave now or we could stay around to finish [the test].”

But some felt like the TA made them choose between their grades and their safety.

“[The TA] was basically saying that if we were really concerned about the fire alarms we should turn in the tests, but if we were really concerned about [organic chemistry] we should stay and finish,” Harding said.

Some students had already completed the exam, and left the room.

“My understanding is he gave students option of handing in exams or, if needed, to arrange to get a room to give students a few more minutes,” Backus said.

Students moved to Louderman after waiting outside as the emergency crew inspected the building.

“Everyone went out for a good 20 minutes, and then we moved over to Louderman and took the last 10 minutes of the test. It was just really irregular,” Harding said.

Backus said that all chemistry TAs and faculty are taught standard safety procedures each year by the office of environmental health and safety. His office is now checking in with TAs to make sure they do know how to react in emergency situations.

“Everybody should know that if there’s a fire alarm people have to evacuate the building,” organic chemistry professor John-Stephen Taylor said.

The building was evacuated when the Clayton hazardous materials response team arrived at 8:44 p.m. The team, consisting of seven fire trucks and an ambulance, left the scene at 10:37 p.m. Meanwhile, police officers rerouted all traffic around the building.

The incident occurred after a graduate student mixed 30mL of lithium, dibromo-o-xylene and tetrahydrofuran in a 50mL flask on a bench top instead of under a fume hood. The top came off the flask and vapor came out, irritating the student’s eyes, Backus said. According to Backus, other people nearby pulled the fire alarm and recommended the building be evacuated and ventilation systems turned off.

“My staffer there went in and the only concern we had after vapors had been dissipated was the trace amount of lithium might be present, since that’s a reactive metal,” Backus said. “We just covered areas of the flask with oil, which smothered it, sealed up lab, [and] cleaned up [the] next day.”

With additional reporting by Michael Tabb.

The Panhellenic Council has been searching for a new sorority all year to reduce pledge class sizes, make the sorority experience more intimate, and ensure that more prospective new members can be accepted into a sorority. 373 women are slated to go through recruitment in January, meaning that each pledge class will be around 50 members.

The committee announced Tuesday that it had chosen Kappa Delta over Kappa Alpha Theta and Alpha Delta Pi. Kappa Delta will be on campus in 2013.

“[Kappa Delta] really understood that we’re a very academically focused school [and] in no way will let it take away from academics,” sophomore Reyshma Cragg, the committee delegate from Delta Gamma, said. “They were very laid back, which was like what the Wash. U. vibe is.”

Kappa Delta urges all its members to “live G.R.E.A.T.” The acronym stands for “Growth through lifetime learning, Responsibility for our own integrity and ethical actions, Engagement in social and civic interests, Altruistic service to others, Truth and loyalty to each other” according to its national website.

The committee chose the sorority not only because it recognized that Washington University does not have a traditional Greek community, but also because of its philanthropy called the Confidence Coalition, which promotes self-confidence in women and girls.

“The national office puts a lot of money aside to bring speakers on campus and promote strong self confidence with their women and Greek programming as a whole, so we felt that would fit in well with our campus and all the other programming that we have to create a positive self image,” Cragg said.

Kappa Delta applied to be a Washington University chapter the last two times the University added a sorority in 2009, when it chose Alpha Omicron Pi and in 2000 when it chose Chi Omega.

Editor’s note: This article original said that the decision had been made Sunday, but it was actually made on Tuesday.

One student had to have his eyes flushed and was driven to the hospital by the police, but was otherwise fine, Washington University spokesman Steve Givens said.

University police cars and four fire trucks from Richmond Heights and Clayton were on the scene at 10:15 p.m. They had been called in at around 8:45 p.m.

The alarms went off while students in LabSci were taking an organic chemistry test.

“The fire alarm went off when there were about 12 minutes of the test left…then the police came and said to get out of the building, and that was with 7 minutes left,” sophomore Michael Harding said. “[The TA] was basically saying that if we were really concerned about the fire alarms we should turn in the tests, but if we were really concerned about orgo we should stay and finish.”

“Everyone went out for a good 20 minutes, and then we moved over to Louderman and took the last 10 minutes of the test. It was just really irregular.”

The Millbrook Garage is still accessible to pedestrians and vehicles.

WUPD officers stationed outside of Laboratory Sciences declined further comment.

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With additional reporting by Michael Tabb.

Genevieve Hay | Student Life

Williams Pharmacy, the family-owned pharmacy located just across from the North Side, closed its doors on Tuesday after the Williams family sold it to Walgreens. Signs in front of the stocked shelves inform customers that prescriptions will be transferred to Walgreens.

The pharmacy, located on the corner of Big Bend Ave. and Forest Park Parkway, had been serving Washington University students for 59 years. But the Williams family, who owned a chain of four pharmacies in St. Louis, sold three of them, including Williams, to Walgreens.

The pharmacy sold prescriptions and over-the-counter drugs as well as toiletries, snacks and wine. Its closing came as a surprise to customers, who have been coming to the location all week with the expectation that the pharmacy would be open.

Walgreens will not be opening another drugstore in the facility. The next nearest drugstore for students is the Walgreens south of campus near Schnucks.

“I liked Williams because it was a small neighborhood pharmacy and it was easier to go there and pick something up than go to Walgreens,” senior Phil Paradise said.

Students living north or just west of campus will now have to go farther to Walgreens, Target, Schnucks or to SHS to meet their medical needs.

The prescriptions from Williams Pharmacy have been put into the Walgreens database, and now the Walgreens automated phone message says, “Walgreens would like to welcome William’s Pharmacy customers.”

“We’ll make this a seamless transition for those customers,” Walgreens spokesperson Robert Elfinger said. “We thought [buying and closing these stores] was a good opportunity to serve more patients in the St. Louis market.”

Elfinger would not disclose how much Walgreens paid for the pharmacies. A Williams spokesperson could not be reached on Sunday.

Student Health Services sometimes referred students to Williams if they needed something after hours or had a prescription for an antibiotic or pain pill that SHS couldn’t fill until the next day, SHS pharmacist Shannon Gergen said.

“Now we’ll end up having to suggest Walgreens,” Gergen said.

Students will also have to go elsewhere for over-the-counter drugs, which Gergen says SHS carries but only gives out by prescription. He says this is because of the University’s policy of avoiding products with sales tax as much as possible.

“It was convenient and when you’re sick, you don’t want to trek all the way to Walgreens to get your meds, especially if you live in the Village,” junior Sophia Fox-Dichter said. “It had everything you need and the people were friendly.”

The Williams pharmacies were run by two brothers, Brett and Rick Williams. Their father, Maurice, started the franchise.

Williams also sold the Clarkson Square Pharmacy in Chesterfield and Prescription Plus at 5 Maryland Plaza in the Central West End. Their Ladue location remains open and is run by the family.

“My family and I have been committed to serving this community my entire life,” Rick Williams said in a press release on the Williams Pharmacy website. “I’m proud to own and operate Ladue Pharmacy and I’m excited about the future of our business.”

Matt Lanter | Student Life

Cicero’s is a reataurant and bar on the Delmar Loop. An art student was robbed at gunpoint at the parking lot behind Cicero’s at 6:30 Thursday evening.

She was not injured, a police report released by the Washington University Police Department said.

The victim reported being approached by two suspects at around 6:30 p.m. One displayed a handgun and demanded her property. She gave the suspects her wallet, and they fled.

The robbery took place only blocks from the Lewis Center, which is a part of the Sam Fox School that houses graduate studios. In an email sent out to all art students, the school advised students to stay cautious.

“Please be vigilant in coming and going to and from the Lewis Center in pairs and take caution in moving from one side of the facility to the other after dark. Although we have been without incident on the Lewis Center grounds, this recent robbery’s proximity to our facility is a concern. Please exercise care and always have a cell phone at hand with peers names and numbers on speed dial,” the email said.

WUPD Chief of Police Don Strom suggested that students be aware that it gets dark early in winter and that they walk in groups whenever possible.

Police are looking for suspects described as a white male, approximately 17 to 19 years of age and 5’11”, and a black male with a thin mustache, approximately 17 to 19 years of age.

University City Police Captain Michael Ransom encourages students to call the police immediately after any crime is committed. He said that this victim conducted other business before contacting the police.

“If [the victim] called earlier, there’s a chance [the suspects] could have been caught,” Ransom said.

The victim was not injured.

The victim reported being approached by two suspects at 6:30 p.m. One displayed a handgun and demanded her property. She gave the suspects her wallet and they fled.

The robbery took place close to the Lewis Center, which is a part of the Sam Fox School. In an email sent out to all art students, the school offered advice:

“Please be vigilant in coming and going to and from the Lewis Center in pairs and take caution in moving from one side of the facility to the other after dark. Although we have been without incident on the Lewis Center grounds, this recent robbery’s proximity to our facility is a concern. Please exercise care and always have a cell phone at hand with peers names and numbers on speed dial,” the email said.

Police are looking for suspects described as a white male approximately 17-19 years of age and 5’11 and a black male with a thin mustache approximately 17-19 years of age.

University City Police Captain Michael Ransom encourages any victims to call the police immediately after any crime. He said that this victim conducted other business before contacting the police.

“If [the victim] called earlier, there’s a chance [the suspects] could have been caught,” Ransom said.

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