Facing the Carter Caruretor across Grand Avenue is the home of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, Powell Symphony Hall.

Designed by Rapp & Rapp, Powell opened in 1925 as a movie house, the St. Louis Theater. The symphony purchased it in the 1960s, a striking exception to the trend of residents, businesses, and organizations then fleeing the neighborhood.

The two-year renovation was finished in 1968, restoring the elaborate and ornate interior as well as installing offices for the orchestra in the space above the stage. The exterior remains superbly intact and includes details such as the fine brick patterns shown here.

Powell Hall and the Carter building mark the northern boundary of the theater district, if not of Midtown as a whole. Beyond here the streetscape rapidly degrades into a mix of surviving historic buildings and low-grade modern additions.
Image courtesy of Kevin Kieffer.