In 1950, the city commissioned the firm of Leinweber, Yamasaki & Hellmuth to design Pruitt-Igoe, a new development named after Wendell O. Pruitt, an African-American pilot from St. Louis who fought in World War II, and William L. Igoe, a former U.S. congressman.[12] Initially, the city planned two divisions: the Captain W. O. Pruitt Homes for black residents, and the William Apartments. L. Igoe for whites.[13] The area was bordered by Cass Avenue to the north, North Jefferson Avenue to the west, Carr Street to the south, and North 20th Street to the east. Prior to the construction of the complex, the land was known as the De Soto-Carr neighborhood, a ghetto of the black community of extreme poverty.[7]​.

The project was designed by architect Minoru Yamasaki, who would later design the World Trade Center "World Trade Center (1973-2001)") in New York. This was Yamasaki's first major job, carried out under the supervision and restrictions imposed by the Federal Public Housing Authority (PHA). The initial proposal consisted of a mix of high-rise, mid-rise and low-rise buildings. It was accepted by the St. Louis authorities, but it exceeded the federal budget limits imposed by the PHA. The agency intervened and imposed a uniform eleven-story building.[10]​[13]​ Shortages of materials caused by the Korean War and tensions in Congress tightened PHA controls.[10]​.

In 1951, Architectural Forum praised Yamasaki's original proposal and called it "the best high-rise apartment" of the year. Total density was set at a moderate level of 50 units per acre (higher than in the inner-city slums),[10] and yet, in accordance with the planning principles of Le Corbusier and the International Congress of Modern Architecture, the buildings were arranged on eleven floors in an attempt to allocate gardens. and the ground floor for common areas.[14]​ Architectural Forum called the design "vertical neighborhoods for poor people."[9]​ Each row of buildings was supposed to be flanked by "a river of trees",[14]​ according to the development of an idea by Harland Bartholomew.[13]​ However, the parks and recreation areas were not adequate; installation.

With its completion in 1955, Pruitt-Igoe consisted of 33 buildings of eleven stories each on an area of ​​23 hectares located in the north of St. Louis. The complex housed 2,870 apartments, making it one of the largest in the United States.[11]​ The apartments were extremely small, with limited kitchen accessories.[11]​ The skip-stop elevators only stopped on the first, fourth, seventh, and tenth floors, forcing residents to use the stairs in an attempt to decongest elevator use. The ground floors were equipped with large corridors, laundries, common rooms and garbage chutes.[14]​ However, stairwells and corridors attracted thieves.[11]​ The ventilation system was poor and there was no air conditioning.[11]​.

Despite initial cuts by the federal government, the final cost of Pruitt-Igoe rose to $36 million, 60% above the national average for public housing at the time.[11] Conservatives attributed the cost overruns to inflated labor wages influenced by unions that also resulted in the installation of an expensive heating system;[11] these cost overruns led to a series of arbitrary cuts in other key parts of the housing projects. buildings.[13]​.

However, Pruitt-Igoe initially had good reviews, as it was seen as a breakthrough in urban renewal.[9]​ Despite the poor quality of the buildings, material suppliers made reference to Pruitt-Igoe in their advertisements, taking advantage of the national exposure of the urban project.[9]​.

A decision in 1956 by the Missouri court eliminated racial segregation in that state and the new building complex became inhabited, for the most part, by black tenants. However, the white citizens decided not to be part of the new and inclusive neighborhood.[15]​.

The buildings remained uninhabited for years, although various sources differ regarding the levels of depopulation: according to Newman, occupancy never exceeded 60%;[14]​ while Ramroth assured that unemployment was one third in 1965.[3]​ Despite this, all authors agree that at the end of the 1960s Pruitt-Igoe was in an advanced state of abandonment and deterioration, turning the neighborhood into a hotspot. of decay, insecurity and crime. Its architect lamented this situation: "I never thought people were so destructive."[16] In 1971, Pruitt-Igoe housed only six hundred residents in seventeen buildings; the other sixteen were boarded up.[17] Meanwhile, the adjacent Carr Village, a slum of St. Louis and of similar demographic composition, remained fully occupied and untroubled throughout the construction, occupation, and decline of Pruitt-Igoe.[18]

Despite the decline of public areas and gang violence, Pruitt-Igoe maintained relative well-being during his worst years. The tenants themselves worked and cleaned the common areas and it was often a success. But when the corridors were shared by twenty families and the stairs by hundreds, public spaces therefore fell into disrepair.[18]​ When the number of residents per public space increased a certain level, no one identified with those "no man's lands"—places where it was "impossible to feel... distinguish a neighbor from an intruder."[18]​.

The residents of Pruitt-Igoe created a neighborhood association, giving rise to joint ventures. An example of these was the creation of artisanal rooms. These rooms allowed the women of Pruitt-Igoe to meet, socialize, and create decorative items, quilts, and statues to later sell.

In 1968 the Federal Housing Authority began encouraging Pruitt-Igoe's remaining residents to leave the neighborhood.[19]​.

In December 1971, state and federal authorities agreed to demolish two of Pruitt-Igoe's buildings. They hoped that a progressive reduction of the population in the buildings could improve conditions. At that time, Pruitt-Igoe had already consumed $57 million, an investment that could not be abandoned.[3] Different possibilities were considered to try to rehabilitate Pruitt-Igoe, including conversion into lower buildings, reducing them to four floors in a "horizontal" reorganization of the design.[3][21]​.

After months of preparation, the first building was demolished by controlled blasting at 3:00 p.m. on March 16, 1972.[3]​ The second building was demolished on April 22, 1972.[3]​ After several blasts carried out on July 15 of that same year, the first stage of the demolition was completed.[3]​ The federal government ruled out any rehabilitation plan and Pruitt-Igoe He agonized for three more years. The site was finally cleared in 1976. Today, the space in which the urban complex was located is partially used by the Gateway Middle School and Gateway Elementary School, as well as the Pruitt Military Academy; all are within the St. Louis public school district. The rest of the land was planted with trees. The former DeSoto-Carr neighborhood surrounding Pruitt-Igoe was also torn down and replaced with lower-rise single-family homes.

The reasons Pruitt-Igoe failed are complex. It has usually been presented as a purely architectural failure.[22] Other critics blamed it on social factors such as the economic decline of San Luis, the march of whites to the outskirts of the city, and politicized local opposition to government housing plans. The truth is that the case of Pruitt-Igoe is shown as an example to study in architecture, sociology and politics: "an absurdity in the environment and in the behavior of literature",[23]​ to the point that the history surrounding Pruitt-Igoe is full of misunderstandings and misconceptions.[23]​.

Pruitt-Igoe is frequently presented as an innovative project that did not work in practice, but did work in terms of awards for its design.[24]​[25]​ However, it never won any professional award other than a recognition for "best of the year" by a specialized magazine such as the one mentioned above (Architectural Forum).[23]​ For example, a previous design carried out in St. Louis by the same architects, Cochran Gardens, did receive two awards.[23]​ Katherine G. Bristol asserts that this willful error by critics was part of a general move to blame the failures of public housing on the International Style, seemingly insensitive to real-world society and the revaluation of modern architecture of the 1970s.[23]​.

Charles Jencks, one of the critics who referred to the non-existent awards granted by the AIA,[25]​ used Pruitt-Igoe as an example of dangerous modern intentions that run contrary to real-world social development.[25]​ This idea ignores the fact that the location, population density, cost limitations and even the number of stories in buildings were imposed by state and federal authorities.[26]​.

• - Scampia.

• - Nonoalco Tlatelolco Urban Complex.

• - Chuck Palahniuk, "Confessions in Stone" in Stranger than Fiction. (New York: Doubleday, 2004).

• - Wikimedia Commons hosts a multimedia category on Pruitt-Igoe.

• - Pruitt-Igoe photographs in the Western Historical Manuscript Collection at the University of Missouri-St. Louis.

In 1950, the city commissioned the firm of Leinweber, Yamasaki & Hellmuth to design Pruitt-Igoe, a new development named after Wendell O. Pruitt, an African-American pilot from St. Louis who fought in World War II, and William L. Igoe, a former U.S. congressman.[12] Initially, the city planned two divisions: the Captain W. O. Pruitt Homes for black residents, and the William Apartments. L. Igoe for whites.[13] The area was bordered by Cass Avenue to the north, North Jefferson Avenue to the west, Carr Street to the south, and North 20th Street to the east. Prior to the construction of the complex, the land was known as the De Soto-Carr neighborhood, a ghetto of the black community of extreme poverty.[7]​.

The project was designed by architect Minoru Yamasaki, who would later design the World Trade Center "World Trade Center (1973-2001)") in New York. This was Yamasaki's first major job, carried out under the supervision and restrictions imposed by the Federal Public Housing Authority (PHA). The initial proposal consisted of a mix of high-rise, mid-rise and low-rise buildings. It was accepted by the St. Louis authorities, but it exceeded the federal budget limits imposed by the PHA. The agency intervened and imposed a uniform eleven-story building.[10]​[13]​ Shortages of materials caused by the Korean War and tensions in Congress tightened PHA controls.[10]​.

In 1951, Architectural Forum praised Yamasaki's original proposal and called it "the best high-rise apartment" of the year. Total density was set at a moderate level of 50 units per acre (higher than in the inner-city slums),[10] and yet, in accordance with the planning principles of Le Corbusier and the International Congress of Modern Architecture, the buildings were arranged on eleven floors in an attempt to allocate gardens. and the ground floor for common areas.[14]​ Architectural Forum called the design "vertical neighborhoods for poor people."[9]​ Each row of buildings was supposed to be flanked by "a river of trees",[14]​ according to the development of an idea by Harland Bartholomew.[13]​ However, the parks and recreation areas were not adequate; installation.

With its completion in 1955, Pruitt-Igoe consisted of 33 buildings of eleven stories each on an area of ​​23 hectares located in the north of St. Louis. The complex housed 2,870 apartments, making it one of the largest in the United States.[11]​ The apartments were extremely small, with limited kitchen accessories.[11]​ The skip-stop elevators only stopped on the first, fourth, seventh, and tenth floors, forcing residents to use the stairs in an attempt to decongest elevator use. The ground floors were equipped with large corridors, laundries, common rooms and garbage chutes.[14]​ However, stairwells and corridors attracted thieves.[11]​ The ventilation system was poor and there was no air conditioning.[11]​.

Despite initial cuts by the federal government, the final cost of Pruitt-Igoe rose to $36 million, 60% above the national average for public housing at the time.[11] Conservatives attributed the cost overruns to inflated labor wages influenced by unions that also resulted in the installation of an expensive heating system;[11] these cost overruns led to a series of arbitrary cuts in other key parts of the housing projects. buildings.[13]​.

However, Pruitt-Igoe initially had good reviews, as it was seen as a breakthrough in urban renewal.[9]​ Despite the poor quality of the buildings, material suppliers made reference to Pruitt-Igoe in their advertisements, taking advantage of the national exposure of the urban project.[9]​.

A decision in 1956 by the Missouri court eliminated racial segregation in that state and the new building complex became inhabited, for the most part, by black tenants. However, the white citizens decided not to be part of the new and inclusive neighborhood.[15]​.

The buildings remained uninhabited for years, although various sources differ regarding the levels of depopulation: according to Newman, occupancy never exceeded 60%;[14]​ while Ramroth assured that unemployment was one third in 1965.[3]​ Despite this, all authors agree that at the end of the 1960s Pruitt-Igoe was in an advanced state of abandonment and deterioration, turning the neighborhood into a hotspot. of decay, insecurity and crime. Its architect lamented this situation: "I never thought people were so destructive."[16] In 1971, Pruitt-Igoe housed only six hundred residents in seventeen buildings; the other sixteen were boarded up.[17] Meanwhile, the adjacent Carr Village, a slum of St. Louis and of similar demographic composition, remained fully occupied and untroubled throughout the construction, occupation, and decline of Pruitt-Igoe.[18]

Despite the decline of public areas and gang violence, Pruitt-Igoe maintained relative well-being during his worst years. The tenants themselves worked and cleaned the common areas and it was often a success. But when the corridors were shared by twenty families and the stairs by hundreds, public spaces therefore fell into disrepair.[18]​ When the number of residents per public space increased a certain level, no one identified with those "no man's lands"—places where it was "impossible to feel... distinguish a neighbor from an intruder."[18]​.

The residents of Pruitt-Igoe created a neighborhood association, giving rise to joint ventures. An example of these was the creation of artisanal rooms. These rooms allowed the women of Pruitt-Igoe to meet, socialize, and create decorative items, quilts, and statues to later sell.

In 1968 the Federal Housing Authority began encouraging Pruitt-Igoe's remaining residents to leave the neighborhood.[19]​.

In December 1971, state and federal authorities agreed to demolish two of Pruitt-Igoe's buildings. They hoped that a progressive reduction of the population in the buildings could improve conditions. At that time, Pruitt-Igoe had already consumed $57 million, an investment that could not be abandoned.[3] Different possibilities were considered to try to rehabilitate Pruitt-Igoe, including conversion into lower buildings, reducing them to four floors in a "horizontal" reorganization of the design.[3][21]​.

After months of preparation, the first building was demolished by controlled blasting at 3:00 p.m. on March 16, 1972.[3]​ The second building was demolished on April 22, 1972.[3]​ After several blasts carried out on July 15 of that same year, the first stage of the demolition was completed.[3]​ The federal government ruled out any rehabilitation plan and Pruitt-Igoe He agonized for three more years. The site was finally cleared in 1976. Today, the space in which the urban complex was located is partially used by the Gateway Middle School and Gateway Elementary School, as well as the Pruitt Military Academy; all are within the St. Louis public school district. The rest of the land was planted with trees. The former DeSoto-Carr neighborhood surrounding Pruitt-Igoe was also torn down and replaced with lower-rise single-family homes.

The reasons Pruitt-Igoe failed are complex. It has usually been presented as a purely architectural failure.[22] Other critics blamed it on social factors such as the economic decline of San Luis, the march of whites to the outskirts of the city, and politicized local opposition to government housing plans. The truth is that the case of Pruitt-Igoe is shown as an example to study in architecture, sociology and politics: "an absurdity in the environment and in the behavior of literature",[23]​ to the point that the history surrounding Pruitt-Igoe is full of misunderstandings and misconceptions.[23]​.

Pruitt-Igoe is frequently presented as an innovative project that did not work in practice, but did work in terms of awards for its design.[24]​[25]​ However, it never won any professional award other than a recognition for "best of the year" by a specialized magazine such as the one mentioned above (Architectural Forum).[23]​ For example, a previous design carried out in St. Louis by the same architects, Cochran Gardens, did receive two awards.[23]​ Katherine G. Bristol asserts that this willful error by critics was part of a general move to blame the failures of public housing on the International Style, seemingly insensitive to real-world society and the revaluation of modern architecture of the 1970s.[23]​.

Charles Jencks, one of the critics who referred to the non-existent awards granted by the AIA,[25]​ used Pruitt-Igoe as an example of dangerous modern intentions that run contrary to real-world social development.[25]​ This idea ignores the fact that the location, population density, cost limitations and even the number of stories in buildings were imposed by state and federal authorities.[26]​.

• - Scampia.

• - Nonoalco Tlatelolco Urban Complex.

• - Chuck Palahniuk, "Confessions in Stone" in Stranger than Fiction. (New York: Doubleday, 2004).

• - Wikimedia Commons hosts a multimedia category on Pruitt-Igoe.

• - Pruitt-Igoe photographs in the Western Historical Manuscript Collection at the University of Missouri-St. Louis.