Olivette, Missouri, United States

🇺🇸 Olivette is an inner-ring suburb of St. Louis, located in St. Louis County, Missouri, United States.

History Olivette was settled in the mid-19th century as a small farming community along an old Indian trail originally called the Bonhomme Road (now known as Old Bonhomme, which meets and essentially turns into Olive Boulevard). Olive Road is a ridge road and at one time served as a de facto boundary for housing segregation in outer St. Louis.

The first brick schoolhouse in St. Louis County was built in the 1850s at the corner of Price and Old Bonhomme in Olivette. Logos High School is built on the former grounds of the schoolhouse.

In the 1920s, St. Louis decided to build a water reservoir in Olivette since it was one of the highest points in St. Louis County. The reservoir was built at Brock's Pond, a local recreational spot, and finished in 1926. Stacy Park was formed around the reservoir and is now the largest park in Olivette.

Olivette was incorporated in 1930 by combining the communities of Central, Tower Hill, Olive, and Stratmann. Prior to merging, the area was known as Central due to its centralized location along the Central Plank Road (again, now called Olive Boulevard). In fact, Price Road and Olive Boulevard intersect at the exact midpoint between the Port of St. Louis on the Mississippi River and Howell's Landing on the Missouri River. Central was a high traffic stop for wagons to restock on their journey between the two stops.

Olivette is one of the few communities in St. Louis County that maintains their own municipal fire department and police department.

Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 2.78 square miles (7.20 km²), all land.

Key roads through Olivette include Missouri Route 340 (Olive Boulevard), Price Road, Dielman Road, Old Bonhomme Road and Interstate 170.

Olivette's neighbors include Overland and unincorporated St. Louis County to the north, Creve Coeur to the west, Ladue to the south, and University City to the east. The Monsanto Corporation used to be located partially in Olivette until it was acquired by Bayer in 2018.

Demographics The 2020 United States census counted 8,504 people, 3,114 households, and 2,213 families in Olivette. The population density was 3,070.0 per square mile (1,184.4/km²). There were 3,323 housing units at an average density of 1,199.6 per square mile (462.8/km²). The racial makeup was 52.38% (4,454) white, 22.45% (1,909) black or African-American, 0.36% (31) Native American, 16.69% (1,419) Asian, 0.0% (0) Pacific Islander, 0.95% (81) from other races, and 7.17% (610) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race was 2.4% (191) of the population.

Of the 3,114 households, 39.5% had children under the age of 18; 50.4% were married couples living together; 33.6% had a female householder with no husband present. Of all households, 23.1% were comprised of individuals and 8.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.5 and the average family size was 3.0.

25.6% of the population was under the age of 18, 4.4% from 18 to 24, 23.3% from 25 to 44, 23.3% from 45 to 64, and 15.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39.8 years. For every 100 females, the population had 90.4 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older, there were 75.7 males.

The 2016-2020 5-year American Community Survey estimates show that the median household income was $90,123 (with a margin of error of +/- $8,282) and the median family income was $104,349 (+/- $14,773). Males had a median income of $59,375 (+/- $14,071) versus $36,895 (+/- $9,563) for females. The median income for those above 16 years old was $43,909 (+/- $15,117). Approximately, 1.7% of families and 3.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.2% of those under the age of 18 and 3.2% of those ages 65 or over.

Education The public Ladue School District serves all of Olivette. Old Bonhomme Elementary School is located within the city limits. Ladue High School serves high school students in Olivette. Private schools located within the city include Logos High School, Epstein Hebrew Academy, and Immanuel Lutheran School (Olivette).

Parks and Recreation Stacy Park is a 35 acre park located on the border of Olivette and Creve Coeur. The park has several walking paths, several multi-use fields, basketball court, pavilion, playground, a prairie garden, several outdoor BBQs and a public restroom.