From Arch to Zoo: St. Louis, this is why we love you, and Amazon should too!

Have you ever watched your favorite movie a second or third time and noticed new and exciting characters or script details? I sure have and this excitement is what I experience every time I visit a new and/or refurbished neighborhood in the St. Louis metropolitan area. As cities across these United States raced to lure Amazon's second headquarters, I proudly declare that St. Louis was the perfect, but underrated, contender that would be a great resource for Amazon and its 50,000 employees. Unfortunately, we did not make the top 20 list.  As Apple (a tech giant) pledges a $350 billion investment into US economy over the next five years, St Louis is certainly ready to get a piece of that Apple pie with some Ted Drew's ice cream on top.

The best way to predict the future is to create it. - Abraham Lincoln

We couldn't predict what was going to happen, but we were ready for both outcomes! "Learn, and go forth to share!” This was my Ladue High School's mission statement. I emigrated from Europe in 1992 and my local St. Louis friends would ask me, while smiling with a hint of grin "Out of all the places in the world, why did you come to St. Louis?" I replied, "Where should I have ‘docked my boat’ instead?" They said: "Cool places like New York or Houston," I asked “What's so great about New York?” and the said, “Broadway!” I asked them “When was the last time you went to see a Broadway show?” They said “Never!” Fortunately, this article will shed some positive light on our city of surprises. (Image by Greg Shmulevich)

As a St. Louis mortgage broker in the Show-Me State, let me show you a few numbers related to our gateway city:

• Forest Park is the #1 City Park in the US.
• The St. Louis Zoo is the #1 Free Attraction in the US.
• Ted Drews is rated the #1 Ice cream/frozen custard in the world by the SoolNua marketing agency.
• Our Missouri Botanical Gardens is one of the best Botanical Gardens in the US and features Seiwa-en, the largest Japanese garden in North America.
• The St. Louis Arch is the tallest (630 feet) monument in the US (75 feet taller than the Washington Monument) and its grounds are currently undergoing a $380 million makeover.
• Barnes-Jewish Hospital is ranked #12 amongst America's best hospitals.
• Home of one of the country's fastest-growing startup scenes.
• The US Congress has officially declared St. Louis as the chess capital of the nation.
• St. Louis is a global plant science leader featuring 750+ plant science PhDs, more than anywhere else in the world. Visit the Danforth Center.
• Home to Enterprise Rent-A-Car - the largest rental car company in the United States
• St. Louis is a home to 17 Fortune 1000 companies and some of the largest private firms in the U.S
• St. Louisans started the CIA

Here's what the great city of St. Louis has to offer and what I think Amazon failed to adequately consider:

St. Louis - based companies making a significant impact on this country and the rest of world.

Boeing Defense, Space & Security is strategically headquartered in St. Louis. So is one of the most controversial and innovative companies that helps feed the world - Monsanto. As well as Anheuser-Busch, a company that employs more than 30,000 people.

Emerson Electric - "Making America warm again" is headquartered in Ferguson. It is a Fortune 500 multinational corporation that provides engineering services, manufactures products and employs over 100,000 people.

Infrastructure and logistics

The region is centered in the middle of the U.S., at the cross-section of international air, rail, interstate and major rivers. Missouri recently proposed “innovation corridor” or electric-powered tube train, that would connect St. Louis and Kansas City in approximately 25 minutes (Normally it takes 4 hours).

St Louis, a gateway to innovation.

The Cortex district is mid-America's premiere innovation hub for tech, bioscience research and start-ups. This area alone has:

• Created innovative incubators essential to the support of entrepreneurial growth: T-REX and Cortex are just two examples
• Provided a $5 million "Spirit of St. Louis Fund" to increase the chances for survival of startups and help avoid the "Valley of Death" (When startups run out of cash at early stages.
• Houses Biostl , an organization that fosters collaborative efforts and builds regional infrastructure to achieve St. Louis’ potential in biosciences, assisting partner businesses that are advancing aspects of the overall regional strategy.
•  Launched ArchGrants as a resource designed to help build new businesses by providing $50,000 equity-free grants and pro bono support services to entrepreneurs who locate their early-stage businesses in downtown St. Louis. 
• Founded Missouri technology corporation and EDC business and community partners that to promote entrepreneurship and foster the growth of new and emerging high-tech companies of the American Heartland!
• Created and sponsored Venture Cafe where anyone can connect with experts individually or attend exciting panels on a full range of innovation topics every Thursday. Venture Cafe has added a second event the third Tuesday of each month at 39 North. Venture Cafe at 39 North will aim to unite innovators, plant scientists and entrepreneurs. It is open to the public.

If you think "Everything is bigger in Texas" think again. Everything is colossal and fun in St. Louis and here's the proof:

St. Louis features the World's Largest Chess Piece and a Guinness World Record holder. This statue was created by The Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis and stands 14 feet, 6 inches tall and is 6 feet wide at the base.(Image by Greg Shmulevich)

Has the World's Largest Amoco sign, located on the corner of Skinker and Clayton Blvd. It stands as the reminder of American industry and as proof that the little guy sometimes wins (BP acquired Amoco).

Big Foot - the original monster truck was invented in St. Louis in 1975 and is one of 100 most influential vehicles in history. (This vehicle features four 120" wheels, four-wheel-drive, and four-wheel-steering.) Bob Chandler - the truck inventor - obtained permission from a local farmer to place two dilapidated cars in his field, so that he could videotape himself crushing the cars with Bigfoot as a joke. Big Foot left its monstrous mark starting there. The moral of the story "be safe and have fun". Monster trucks were a huge asset, literally, when Hurricane Harvey hit Texas and fleet of fearless volunteers helped rescue neighbors and even National Guard that was caught in flood-ravaged city. (Image by Greg Shmulevich)

One of the largest playgrounds in the world is right in our own St. Louis' backyard - The City Museum Playground. It is home to the World's largest pencil and an airplane located on the top of a building - 50 feet in the air. (Image by Greg Shmulevich)

Laumeier Park is one of the first and largest dedicated sculpture parks in the country. This internationally recognized park contains over 60 massive outdoor sculptures. If you'd like to be a part of something bigger than yourself, Laumeier will show you "The way" - a 65 feet tall sculpture constructed by 18 restored oil tanks.

St. Louis, put your best food forward:

Fun Foods that were invented in St. Louis 

Ice cream cones were invented at the St. Louis World's Fair in 1904. It was created because an Ice cream vendor ran out of dishes and spoons due to a large demand and Ernest A. Hamwi, a Syrian concessionaire, who was selling waffle pastry nearby, quickly came up with the solution. He rolled up the waffle pastry in a shape of a cone and offered it to the ice cream vendor.

The gooey butter cake was accidentally created during the Great Depression in the 1930s by a German-style bakery located on the St. Louis South Side. The baker was making a regular coffee cake and accidentally reversed the proportions of flour to butter. Since it happened during the Depression, the baker refused to let it go to waste and made the best of it. The good thing about hard times and challenges is that this is the time when innovations and a new way of thinking really happen.

Some of the other St. Louis's foods inventions: Toasted Ravioli, Peanut Butter, Provel cheese, and Cotton candy - originally called fairy floss (ironically invented by a dentist and introduced at St. Louis World's Fair in 1904 and was a huge success).

Famous celebrities from St. Louis

Three lovely ladies from The Office (comedy series): Ellie Kemper, Jenna Fischer, and Phyllis Smith (playing Erin, Pam, and Phyllis) are Hollywood stars from St. Louis.

America's beloved bad boys: Jon Hamm as Don Draper in AMC' television series - Mad Men and John Goodman as Walter Sobchak in The Big Lebowski ("This is not Nam. This is bowling. There are rules.” )

Nelly - a nationally known rapper - now performing to sold-out audiences with the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra at Powell Hall.

Chuck Berry - the man who invented rock’n’roll?! (Image by Greg Shmulevich, check out the guy in the background, looks like he's walking on air)

Maya Angelou - An American Poet and civil right activist

I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel. - Maya Angelou.

Parks and Recreation

Did you know that St. Louis glows in the dark? I went around the city to prove it:

Forest Park (Image by Greg Shmulevich)

Creve Coeur Park (Image by Greg Shmulevich)

Missouri Botanical Garden (Image by Greg Shmulevich)

Bottomline - let's make St. Louis a top story.

Although Amazon did not pick St. Louis for its second headquarters, I still strongly believe that St. Louis hosts a series of success stories. I realize that this city does have some issues just like the rest of the country, but I'm grateful for the opportunity to spill some positive light and share my thoughts with a click of the LinkedIn "Publish" button.

St. Louis - perseverance in disguise, for every fall we get up twice! - Greg Shmulevich

Please help me put St. Louis on the map by liking and sharing this article. Let's make St. Louis famous for the right and bright reasons.

What do you like about St. Louis?