Joe Edwards (St. Louis)

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Joe Edwards

Joe Edwards is a businessman, developer, and civic leader who helped revitalize the Delmar Loop area, which connects St. Louis and University City, Missouri. Dubbed "The Duke of Delmar" by St. Louis Magazine,[1] he opened his first business in The Loop in the 1970s and has since led efforts to transform the Delmar Loop into one of the most vibrant restaurant, shopping, and arts-and-entertainment districts in the country. In 2007, the American Planning Association named The Loop "One of the 10 Great Streets in America.[2]

In 1972, Edwards opened Blueberry Hill restaurant and music club, sparking a decades-long revitalization of the street. Rock legend and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Chuck Berry performed 209 monthly concerts in Blueberry Hill's Duck Room.[3]

Edwards has since renovated numerous historic buildings in The Loop and around St. Louis and encouraged one-of-a-kind specialty shops, restaurants, and cultural institutions to make The Loop their home.[4] His own ventures include saving and restoring the 1924 Tivoli Theatre movie theater (1995), and opening such establishments as The Pageant concert nightclub (2000), Pin-Up Bowl martini lounge and bowling alley (2003), Flamingo Bowl bowling alley and lounge on Washington Avenue in downtown St. Louis (2007), the boutique Moonrise Hotel (2009),[5] the Peacock Diner[6] (2014), Delmar Hall concert club[7] (2016), and Magic Mini Golf[8] (2023).

The Pin-Up Bowl, one of Edwards' two bowling alley lounges
Patio seating at Blueberry Hill
The Moonrise Hotel
The Pageant Music Venue
Chuck Berry's star in the St. Louis Walk of Fame

In 1988, Edwards founded the non-profit St. Louis Walk of Fame to honor great St. Louisans and their contributions to American culture. More than 150 inductees are described in brass stars and informative bronze plaques set into the Loop's sidewalks.[9] In 2013, he published an updated St. Louis Walk of Fame book.[10] The non-profit donates a copy to every St. Louis metro area junior high and high school library.[11]

In 1997, Edwards began leading an effort to bring a fixed-track vintage trolley system to The Loop, with two stops near MetroLink stations and its east end in Forest Park near the history museum. In 2010, the Delmar Loop Trolley project received a $24.9 million grant from the Federal Transit Administration.[12] It opened and began operation in 2018, after much controversy regarding the effect of years-long construction on neighborhood businesses, with concerns rising about the trolley's long-term profitability.[13][14][15] On December 29, 2019, after just over a year of operation, the trolley temporarily paused operations due to low ridership and lack of funds[16] but in 2023 it reopened and runs Thursdays through Sundays during the warmer months.[17]

In 2003, Edwards received the St. Louis Award.[18] Between 2004 and 2006, Edwards received an honorary doctorate of laws from Washington University in St. Louis[19] an honorary doctorate of fine arts from Saint Louis University in 2005,[20] and an honorary doctorate of humanitarian letters from the University of Missouri-St. Louis.[21]

In 2013, Edwards received Washington University's Gerry and Bob Virgil Ethic of Service Award.[22] On September 12, 2013, Edwards received the lifetime achievement award from the Landmarks Association of St. Louis for his work in historic preservation and community revitalization.[23][24]

In 2022, Blueberry Hill turned 50 years old.[25]

In 2023, he opened Magic Mini Golf across from the Pageant and Moonrise Hotel in the Delmar Loop. It has 18 holes of whimsical indoor miniature golf, two full-size shuffleboard courts, and a 5-car Ferris wheel.[26]

His 27-foot tall animated neon sign and marquee for Magic Mini Golf won a juried Signs of the Times international sign award in 2023. Designed by Edwards and his daughter Hope Edwards, the colorful blinking sign features a retro-style man and woman swinging golf clubs. As the figures putt, the golf ball moves across the sign which rises over a custom-designed curved semicircular marquee.[27]

  1. ^ "Joe Edwards Plans A Peacock-Inspired Café For the Delmar Loop". 18 July 2013. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 26 June 2014.
  2. ^ "10 Great Streets in America" Archived 2010-05-24 at the Wayback Machine.
  3. ^ "The Official Site of Chuck Berry". Archived from the original on 2008-03-21. Retrieved 2008-05-03.
  4. ^ "Joe Ely - Blueberry Hill Duck Room - Saint Louis, MO - 05.06.17". Archived from the original on 2010-02-10. Retrieved 2010-02-21.
  5. ^ Burstein, Laurie (April 5, 2013). "Moonrise Hotel's 'New Moon Room' powers up in May". St. Louis Business Journal. Archived from the original on February 28, 2024. Retrieved June 26, 2014.
  6. ^ "Showoff: The Peacock Loop Diner Shakes a Tail Feather". 17 October 2014. Archived from the original on 3 October 2017. Retrieved 3 October 2017.
  7. ^ Arnold, Willis Ryder (30 September 2016). "New venue Delmar Hall opens in The Loop". news.stlpublicradio.org. Archived from the original on 2019-05-02. Retrieved 2019-05-02.
  8. ^ "Magic Mini Golf opens on the Delmar Loop". 25 October 2023. Archived from the original on 15 August 2023. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
  9. ^ "St. Louisans who should be on the Walk of Fame". 20 June 2014. Archived from the original on 20 August 2014. Retrieved 26 June 2014.
  10. ^ "St. Louis Beacon | STLPR". Archived from the original on 2013-07-20. Retrieved 2014-06-26.
  11. ^ "St. Louis Walk of Fame - Foreward". www.stlouiswalkoffame.org. Archived from the original on 2014-06-20. Retrieved 2014-06-26.
  12. ^ "Get in the Loop - St. Louis Business Journal". Archived from the original on 2012-10-25. Retrieved 2010-07-30.
  13. ^ Friswold, Paul. "Won't You Please Ride the Loop Trolley?". Riverfront Times. Archived from the original on 2019-07-13. Retrieved 2019-07-13.
  14. ^ Fenske, Sarah. "Phoenix Rising, the Coolest Shop in the Loop for 26 Years, Is Closing". Riverfront Times. Archived from the original on 2019-07-13. Retrieved 2019-07-13.
  15. ^ "Good Works Furniture Store Closing, Says It's the "First Casualty" of the Delmar Loop Trolley". Riverfront Times. Archived from the original on 2019-07-13. Retrieved 2019-07-13.
  16. ^ Rice, Rachel (30 December 2019). "Loop Trolley breaks down during last ride ever". stltoday.com. Archived from the original on 2020-01-02. Retrieved 2020-01-02.
  17. ^ "Beep! Beep! St. Louis Loop Trolley is back in operation". 27 April 2023. Archived from the original on 9 May 2023. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
  18. ^ "Visionary behind Citygarden wins St. Louis Award | ksdk.com | St. Louis, MO". Archived from the original on 2011-06-17. Retrieved 2010-06-15.
  19. ^ "Honorary degrees will go to 6 at Commencement - The Source - Washington University in St. Louis". 8 February 2005. Archived from the original on 5 June 2010. Retrieved 21 February 2010.
  20. ^ Geiser, Laura, ed. (2005). "Commencement" (PDF). Universitas Saint Louis University. 31 (2). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2010-06-10. Retrieved 2010-06-15.
  21. ^ "Commencement: Honorary Degrees". Archived from the original on 2008-03-30.
  22. ^ "Gerry and Bob Virgil Ethic of Service Award: Past Honorees". [permanent dead link‍]
  23. ^ "Landmarks Lifetime Achievement Award For Joe Edwards". Webster-Kirkwood Times, Inc. 24 September 2013. Archived from the original on 2019-05-06. Retrieved 2019-05-06.
  24. ^ "Landmark Association Gives Joe Edwards Lifetime Achievement Award". 19 September 2013. Archived from the original on 28 February 2024. Retrieved 1 May 2014.
  25. ^ Holleman, Joe (2022-09-09). "Delmar Loop landmark Blueberry Hill celebrates 50th anniversary". STLtoday.com. Archived from the original on 2023-11-21. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  26. ^ Neman, Daniel (2023-10-19). "Joe Edwards' long-awaited Magic Mini Golf opens Friday in the Delmar Loop". STLtoday.com. Archived from the original on 2023-11-21. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  27. ^ Kissling, Mark (2023-09-01). "Best Outside Design/Shop Fabrication, Illuminated". Signs of the Times. Archived from the original on 2023-11-21. Retrieved 2023-11-21.