VALLEY PARK, Mo. — For many longtime St. Louisans, Valley Park is still thought of as a quiet river town along Interstate 44, not necessarily the place you’d expect to see massive apartment developments rise up. But across the region, suburbs are searching for ways to sustain growth, attract new residents and bring new life into aging communities through large-scale housing developments.
Developer Tom Kaiman says location is exactly why his company chose Valley Park for its latest project.
“This is at a primary intersection of St. Louis. It’s Highway 44 and 141,” said Kaiman, founder of MIA Rose Holdings.
The St. Louis native’s company, Mia Rose Holdings LLC, now has eight active developments across the region, including projects in Wildwood, St. Peters and Valley Park.
A costly site to build, even in a growth corridor
Kaiman says the Valley Park site presented unique challenges.
“This site alone is over $6 million more in infrastructure and site work than a typical flat development would be — just because of the terrain and what was here before,” he said.
Mia Rose’s $60 million mixed-use development 44 East was approved last year, following the success of 44 West just down the hill.
“We’ve got 44 West, you know, just down from us. That’s 204 units. It’s full constantly. What we learned is we had a 30% two-bedrooms, 70% one-bedrooms. The two-bedrooms filled up the fastest,” Kaiman said.
He says that demand is proof the region needs more housing options.
“We’ve been 98, 99% occupied since the day that we opened. So there was a huge demand for this product. And because of that demand, it made sense for us to try to repeat it,” Kaiman said.
St. Louis lags peers in new housing construction
New census data shows St. Louis is dramatically underbuilding housing compared to peer regions.
The St. Louis region issued just 5,834 housing permits last year, ranking 58th nationally despite being the country’s 23rd largest metro area.
By comparison, Kansas City had 9,727 permits in 2025, and growth metros like Houston and Dallas led the country with about 65,000 each.
Economists and demographers say housing permits are a leading indicator of future growth.
Kaiman says one challenge for developers across St. Louis County is that different municipalities have different rules for building, which can add costs to projects.
He says the fix is for politicians to embrace affordable and attainable housing.
“You can’t say, ‘Hey, well, that’s got to be all stone and brick and it’s got to be elevated this and do…’ You know, those things don’t all tie together. You have to understand if you’re trying to deliver affordable housing, don’t make developers add buildings that have showers that are not ever going to be used. Not a good policy, not good politics,” Kaiman said.
He says it’s an example of how local rules can impact the cost of new housing, even after a project is approved.
Even as leaders talk about population growth, apartment developments often face fierce resistance. Pushback to major housing developments has been seen in Wentzville.
Housing developments are also underway in St. Louis City. Conversations are underway for another McBride development on The Hill, the area’s historic Italian district.
Madison turns to single-family development to attract growth
In Madison, Illinois, leaders are trying a different approach: affordable single-family homes aimed at working families.
“The state of Illinois has down payment assistance programs where people can get even up to $15,000 down payment assistance to help them with purchasing these affordable homes here,” said Jennifer Andrews of Anchorstone Development Group.
Developers say the homes will cost less than comparable properties in nearby communities.
“These exact same homes just up the road in O’Fallon, Illinois, and in Shiloh, Illinois would be $315,000 to $320,000. You can get you a beautiful home in beautiful, quiet Madison, Illinois for, guess what, $265,000. You can’t lose,” said Devrick Miller of Anchorstone Development Group.
Mayor John Hamm says he’s already seeing interest from people across the river in St. Louis.
“We’re like any other city. It’s got a rough night, but it’s coming along,” Hamm said.
He says new construction could signal a turning point for the community.
“This will reset the market for the new ones coming in,” Hamm said.
Longtime resident Doris Harrell Williams says the changes are welcome.
“We are going to blossom like never before,” Williams said.
Developers say regional policy must adapt to support growth
Back in Valley Park, Kaiman says the region needs to get out of its own way to support growth and development.
“A lot of people are like, oh, we don’t want traffic. We don’t want traffic. Well, guess what retail wants? It all wants traffic. It needs people. It needs density. It needs activation,” Kaiman said.
“Anything that typically says stagnant dies,” he said.
The first two buildings at 44 East will open in August. The entire development is scheduled to be finished in spring 2027. There is a waiting list.
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