Nobody should be shocked that readers overwhelmingly selected Sen. Claire McCaskill over Rep. Todd Akin last week. Readers of this blog are largely from the City of St. Louis, the opposite of voters in Missouri.
Akin (left), McCaskill (right)
Q: Which candidate do you want to be elected the next US Senator from Missouri?
Sen. Claire McCaskill (D) 143 [71.86%]
Rep. Todd Akin (R) 35 [17.59%]
Neutral/unsure/no opinion 21 [10.55%]
Without a doubt McCaskill will carry St. Louis. In the 2006 general election McCaskill received 95.56% of the vote in St. Louis, Republican challenger Jim Talent received just 3.6%. (two minor party candidates made up the difference)
The 2006 statewide numbers were very different. McCaskill received 49.6% of the vote to Talent’s 47.3% (see results).
Akin would be bad for urban cities. Akin voted against HB2847 (Employment, Infrastructure, and Transportation Appropriations) in December 2009, for example. Other nays include reauthorization of Amtrak. See Akin’s votes on transportation bills here.
Please join me in supporting Sen, Claire McCaskill on November 6th.
ABOVE: In February 2012 access to the St. Louis Bread Co. at 6607 Chippewa from the public sidewalk required going up steps.
I contacted and company and met with District Manager Chris Harre onsite on my birthday, February 28th. On May 1st a building permit application was filed with the city to build an accessible ramp at an estimated cost of $5,000.
When I visited the site late last month workers were still finishing up final details.
ABOVE: A switchback ramp was fitted into an area previously plantedABOVE: The view of the ramp from the westABOVE: View from the top of the ramp. The triangular wedge between the upper & lower sections of the ramp will contain plants.ABOVE: The new ramp is highly visible, says all pedestrians welcome here.
I appreciate that Panera acted quickly once I pointed out the accessibility problem, if only other companies would do the same. Special thanks to District Manager Chris Harre.
“I would argue that the rise of living alone represents the greatest social change of the last 60 years that we have failed to name or identify,” said NYU sociologist Eric Klinenberg. “This is a transformation that has touched all of us, whether we live alone or it’s just someone in our family or friendship circle who does.”
Klinenberg has spent years tracking the seismic spike in “solo dwelling.” He says today there are about 32.7 million Americans living alone. Clearly, if you live alone, you’re NOT alone.
“It’s an incredible number, and it’s a massive increase over where we were in 1950 when it was just four million Americans,” Klinenberg said.
One is no longer the loneliest number. Roughly four out of ten households are single-person homes, in cities like Seattle (42 percent), San Francisco (39.7 percent), Denver (40.4 percent), and Cleveland (39.9 percent). (CBS News — Live alone? You’re not alone)
I’ve lived alone for 21 of the last 24+ years. I have zero desire to live with a significant other or ever have a roommate again. I know others who feel the same way but I know just as many who enjoy living with others.
In 2000, 1-in-4 households consisted of one person living alone, a significant increase over the 7.7 percent in 1940. This type of household increased each decade over the 60-year period from 1940 to 2000 (see graph).
In recent decades, renters have been much more likely than owners to live alone. However this was not the case back in 1940, when one-person occupancy rates for owners and renters were not much different. The one-person occupancy rate for renters climbed rapidly from 1940 (8 percent) to 1980 (36 percent). The greatest disparities between renters and owners occurred between 1960 and 1980, when renters were more than twice as likely as owners to live alone. There was a small drop in the rate of renters living alone between 1980 and 1990, but it rebounded with an increase in 2000. (US Census)
ABOVE: 1-person households 1940-2000 in Missouri (blue) and US (green). Data source: US Census, click chart to view.
But the CBS News story at the top that said; “And then there’s Manhattan, an urban island where almost HALF of all households are made up of just one person – where millions of people seek safe harbor tonight in an empty apartment.” I’m not going to resolve the conflict now. Instead, the poll this week asks the size of your household (upper right sidebar). Meanwhile I’ll keep looking for answers, I’ll share what I find when I post the poll results on Wednesday September 12th.
I’m excited to have movie theater opening downtown. MX Movies is opening on Washington Ave between 6th-7th as part of the Mercantile Exchange, in the former St. Louis Centre building.
ABOVE: MX Movies will have 3 screens, will open by Thanksgiving
St. Louis Cinemas will open a 3-screen, luxury movie theater at 6th and Washington in autumn of 2012. The MX Movies experience will be unlike anything else in St. Louis. In the heart of downtown’s newest entertaining, dining, retail, and residential district, the 3-screen move theater will feature crystal clear digital project, love seats in the theater, high-quality in-theater food service, and a lobby restaurant and bar.
More than just a movie theater, the MX Movies experience includes:
3 screens with crystal clear digital projection
High-quality in-theater food service
Love seats in the theaters
Lobby restaurant/bar
Our Grand Opening will be announced later in the summer, so check back often.
ABOVE: Interior construction of MX Movies is well underway.
St. Louis Cinemas also operates theaters at the Moolah, Chase Park Plaza and Galleria. I’ve been to all of these but I usually go to the Chase. I look foreword to another option. In-theater food service? Perfect!
AARP Livibility Index
The Livability Index scores neighborhoods and communities across the U.S. for the services and amenities that impact your life the most
Built St. Louis
historic architecture of St. Louis, Missouri – mourning the losses, celebrating the survivors.
Geo St. Louis
a guide to geospatial data about the City of St. Louis
