Gravois Park Neighborhood Files Appeal in McDonald’s Drive-Thru
Gravois Park, the neighborhood to be impacted by a relocated McDonald’s on south Grand, has filed an appeal with the City of St. Louis over zoning approval of the drive-thru. Residents indicate this is against the wishes of the neighborhood and does not conform to the development plan for the area. At this point a hearing date has not been set.
The Gravois Park Neighborhood Association is meeting tonight at 6pm at St. Matthew United Church of Christ, 2613 Potomac St. at Jefferson Avenue. The McDonald’s will be discussed but it is only a part of the agenda.
Meanwhile residents in Florida’s backyard of Tower Grove Heights are talking about organizing to support Gravois Park in opposing the McDonald”s relocation. Sounds to me like the only one out of step is Ald. Florida herself. Makes you wonder what she has to gain by supporting something nobody wants?
– Steve
I am not supportive of this relocation, just asking:
What IS the big deal? Why DON’T people want this? I mean, there is a McD’s across the road right now anyway, yes?
Just very, very curious.
Thanks.
[REPLY – Fair question. The list of reasons are numerous and vary from person to person. The current McD’s is poorly managed with lots of health & safety issues. The area went through a redevelopment process 10 years ago when the Sears site was developed (well, started anyway). The McD’s does not fit with what was envisioned for the area on the East side of Grand. Just imagine that you had bought a house in an area based on a redevelopment plan and then after the developer drops the ball decides he is going to swap land for something nobody likes in the first place. I’m on the extreme end — if it were up to me we’d have no such fast food places surrounded by parking with drive-thru lanes. And the ones we would build would be much more urban — that is up to the street and the drive-thru concealed. It has been done in cities where they actually care about things like walkable neighborhoods and urban design. – SLP]
Lily,
Read Aldmerman Craig Schmid’s testimony in the section below, “Urbanists Need to Stand Up To Ald. Florida on Future of Grand.” You can click on the link to read it.
To me, that is the best explanation of all the things wrong with this plan. I certainly can’t think of anything he missed.
I especially like his idea of picturing a McDonalds Drive-Thru at Grand and Arsenal.
Good to hear Steve. I may try to make the meeting tonight.
Has anyone seen the redevelopment plans for the Gravois/S. Grand/Meramec area that Alderman Schmid mentions in his letter?
Why an appeal? Was the McD’s plan already approved?
Last word was that Ald. F. was selling the deal to Dutchtown’s commercial development committee.
It will be interesting to see how many alderman close ranks with Ald. F. on this one.
Also interesting is the CC to Barb Geisman in Alderwoman Florida’s letter to the Dutchtow South Community Corporation. Florida may be the messenger for larger interests — mayoral favorite Pyramid, angling to get lucrative tax credits and bail out Keystone Place!
I am gonna start cc’ing all my letters to Barb Geisman from now on. Apparently that’s how you get things done in this town — veiled threats.
>>I am gonna start cc’ing all my letters to Barb Geisman from now on.
This idea is so funny, that it must be done.
Its so sad that the $$$$$ that McDonalds corporation donates to politicians seems so more important than the wishes of a community. The politics and red tape that the City of St Louis engulfs itself is a major reason so many small businesses have left the city for the county. Any alderman supporting a disease ridden fast food restaurant over the stability of the neighborhood should be ousted from office. This McDonalds has had such a poor record of taking care of its own property it deserves to be demolished long before it deserves any type of help from MY tax dollars. And to all the alderman who are reading this..it is MY money you are spending you know. NOT YOURS. If any alderman want to “contribute” to the billion dollar McDonalds corporation, they should us their own checkbook…not the city coffers. So tired of the corrupt politics of this city. This is why we are the laughing stock of the country.
I don’t think McDonald’s is the real player here.
The big bucks come from a source closer to home, unless you think it comes from Egypt: The Pyramid Companies.
Pyramid is behind all of this, and the McDonald’s franchise is the hot-button diversion.