Regina Dennis-Nana has lived in the Hyde Park neighborhood for years, watching as the area around the new National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency facility has struggled with vacant lots and aging homes. She hopes the city’s latest development plan will bring homeowners back to the area, restore historic houses and fill long-empty lots.
“Well, so far that hasn’t happened yet,” Dennis-Nana said somberly.
She describes Hyde Park and surrounding neighborhoods as “deserts on all levels” — places where residents must leave the area to shop, enjoy entertainment or even get a glass of wine. For her, the plan represents an opportunity to finally access amenities that residents in neighborhoods such as Tower Grove or Lafayette Park often take for granted…