I love springtime in St. Louis and the way the trees and plants all around shake off winter and deepen into wonderful, green vibrance. For a Metro East establishment, the business of greenery has proven robust both with locals and those from further flung destinations. Get the whole story below.
We also have a look at how the airport is doing headed into the summer travel season and how Spire and Ameren did in the first quarter of this year. Plus, developers are eyeing the former St. Alexius hospital site, farmers are squeezed by fertilizer prices, and more people are holding multiple jobs.
Have feedback about this newsletter or story ideas for future editions? Do you know of any networking events we can share? Please don’t hesitate to drop me a line.
KNOW SOMEONE WHO'D ENJOY THIS EMAIL? DIRECT THEM HERE TO SIGN UP.
Hostas on the Bluff, a display garden and farm in Fairview Heights, Illinois, is growing. After 10 years in business, thanks to growing customer demand, they’ve expanded their space to include a former school building that’s nearly 100 years old, added a new greenhouse, and are drawing visitors from far outside the St. Louis area.
“It’s interesting to see how far it’s come,” says Brian Kniffin, who co-owns the business with his wife Erica Kniffin. “I feel like we’ve done it the right way.”
The Kniffins established Hostas on the Bluff in 2016 as part of a home garden project focused on hostas, easy to maintain shade-loving perennials. They now grow, and sell, more than 800 varieties. The display garden on the bluff shows what different types look like once planted. “People can go right into the garden, take pictures, and kind of imagine it in their garden space,” says Brian.
Go Deeper: Hostas on the Bluff sees thousands of visitors each season and sells anywhere from 5,000 to 10,000 hostas per season, according to Brian. They ship nationwide, too. The couple’s goal was always to create a destination where people from out of state could travel to shop for plants. Brian says they regularly see customers from Chicago, Louisville, Nashville, and other cities.
What’s Next: To meet growing customer demand, the Kniffins moved their sales space to outside the former Bluff View Elementary School grounds. Brian purchased the former school from East St. Louis School District 189 more than 15 years ago to help clean up the neighborhood.
Over the past two years, staff have repaired the building’s brick work, installed a new roof, and worked on core structural issues. “The building is ready to take on a new life,” says Brian. His goal is now to open a garden center or coffee shop next year in the former schoolhouse.
Late last year, the city council granted the Kniffins’ request to rezone the school and other nearby parcels from single-family residential to conservation—allowing for the operation of an agricultural business and maintenance of a natural landscape. The possibility of adding a wine garden was also included in the application, but Brian says no decisions have been made.
At this point, he and Erica have a lot on their plate; in addition to their garden business, he works in data and finance, and she’s a teacher. —Kathleen Lees
Former St. Alexius Hospital campus listed for sale as developers eye healthcare redevelopment (St. Louis Business Journal): Two developers, one local and one from beyond the region, are considering health care-oriented projects for the shuttered site. About half the property is set to be sold at the land tax sale next week, though the current ownership group says it will pay off the overdue property taxes before then.
Fertilizer costs are squeezing farmers nationwide (Investigate Midwest): Farmers enter the planting season under intense financial pressure, as fertilizer costs are so high that about 70 percent report they cannot afford all that they need this year.
Rising prices have workers turning to multiple jobs (Marketplace): About one out of every 20 workers has more than one job in this economy. That metric could grow as people feel the weight of price increases amid slower wage growth.
St. Louis restaurant openings, closings, and coming soons (SLM): There were only a handful of closings in April and many more openings, notes SLM dining editor George Mahe in his monthly roundup.
BRANDED CONTENT
How romance is the through-line of Opera Theatre of Saint Louis' 2026 Festival Season
The Pirates of Penzance, The Light in the Piazza, A Streetcar Named Desire, and Romeo & Juliet each offer a different lens on relationships, shaped by tone, setting, and character dynamics. Find out more.
Lambert heads into the summer with strong passenger momentum. Photography by Eric Schmid
Parking at St. Louis Lambert International Airport is about to get slightly more expensive. During Wednesday’s Airport Commission meeting, commissioners approved parking rate increases that take effect July 1, including raising the daily maximum at the Terminal 1 garage from $28 to $31, and at Terminal 2 from $29 to $33. Lot E, located next to Terminal 2, will also become a reservation-only lot with a new $10 reservation fee. Airport officials said the increases are tied to rising operational costs, garage maintenance work, and investments in upgraded shuttle service. “[LAZ Parking] did a lot of competitive research for us to help us understand where other airport [rates] were,” Lambert director Rhonda Hamm-Niebruegge said during the meeting. “We clearly were not charging the same amount as some of our competitors. But with the changes that we’re seeing with the upgrades and the reserved lot, which has been a huge ask by the consumer base for a long time, we felt it was really time to put this increase in place.” The rate hikes come as Lambert rides a wave of momentum heading into the summer travel season. Hamm-Niebruegge said British Airways’ new nonstop service to London Heathrow has been operating nearly full in both directions since launching last month, with BA officials telling her that bookings are “far ahead of their expectations.” Delta has also resumed seasonal service to Montreal and New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport, while Alaska Airlines begins new nonstop service to Portland on May 13. Meanwhile, Lambert’s long-discussed terminal renovation project has reached the 30 percent design phase. Hamm-Niebruegge says the hope is to advance to the 60 percent phase later this year, when a guaranteed project price is expected to emerge. Travelers will also soon see a new grab-and-go market replacing the Kids Works shop near Terminal 2’s Gate E24. —Mike Miller
⚡🔥 AMEREN AND SPIRE HINT AT INVESTMENTS AND RATE INCREASES
Spire Inc. and Ameren Corporation have both been in the news of late, albeit for different reasons, and the two utility companies that serve most St. Louis residents also happened to have their second-quarter earnings calls yesterday. Ameren executives shared that the company has secured 850 megawatts of construction agreements for data centers in Illinois and another 3.4 gigawatts in Missouri. Already in the Show Me State, the electric utility has seen 2.2 gigawatts converted into energy service agreements with more “very close to signing,” said chairman, president and CEO Martin J. Lyons. The company is also eyeing adding another 5 gigawatts of new energy capacity by the end of the decade. Both companies foreshadowed further rate increases, with Ameren expecting to file an electric rate review in the middle of this year, while Spire secured a $16.5 million surcharge increase that went into effect in March and is preparing for a “future test-year rate case” later this year. Rate increases in Missouri and Alabama helped the company see a roughly 20 percent increase in adjusted earnings year over year in the first quarter. Ameren’s net income grew 23 percent in the same time period. Investors may have been expecting rosier news, however, as both Ameren and Spire were down by the end of the trading day, shedding 1.84 percent and 4.01 percent, respectively. —Eric Schmid
Across their roles, Guarantee Electrical’s teams enjoy exclusive and exciting opportunities to pilot the latest technology and techniques, or innovate their own solutions. Be an innovator.
SPOTLIGHT
What’s a risk you took in business that didn’t pan out—but taught you something valuable?
“In our early years, like many new companies, we wanted to take on as much work as possible. We stretched ourselves thin, chasing clients across the country. It didn’t take long to realize that this approach wasn’t sustainable. That experience taught us the importance of focus, building relationships and delivering quality work in select areas before expanding further. Since shifting our strategy, we’ve seen far greater success and stability.”
.jpg?upscale=true&width=1120&upscale=true&name=DaveSinclairLincoln_APR-28%20(1).jpg)
