Michelle Hutchings-Medina For 5th Ward Alderman

This post is about the 5th ward but first I want to mention that at 7pm tonight (1/29/2012) a mayoral candidate forum will be held at the Central Library (info). All four candidates were invited, three democrats and one green. Hope to see you there.

As a 5th ward resident I recently received a mailer, a “Good Neighbor Guide”,  listing phone numbers for various city departments. Inside was a message from  Ald. Tammika Hubbard, part caught my attention:

Sounds pretty good — but it’s a complete fabrication. Hubbard didn’t “spearhead” these at all, this taxpayer-funded mailer is meant to trick my fellow 5th ward voters into thinking she accomplished that which was done while predecessor April Ford-Griffin was in office.

Here are the facts, in chronological order:

• February 17, 2011: Application is made to rebuild McDonald’s at 1119 N. Tucker (permit info found here)
• July 12, 2011: Application for new National Sales Co. HQ made, permit issu
• July 14, 2011: Building permit issued for new McDonald’s
• August 16, 2011: Application made to demolish old McDonald’s
• August 24, 2011: Demolition permit for old McDonald’s issue
• September 1, 2011: Demolition of old McDonald’s completed, permit closed.
• September 16, 2011: Ald. April Ford-Griffin announces resignation from the Board of Aldermen, appointment to serve as director of the city’s Civil Rights agency (source)
• September 30, 2011: April Ford-Griffin’s last day on the Board of Aldermen (source)
• November 22, 2011: McDonald’s building permit completed
• December 1, 2011: McDonald’s on Tucker reopens (source)
• December 13, 2011: 5th ward candidate forum held at Vashon High School, Hubbard is the only one of the three candidates on the ballot to NOT show (source)
• December 20, 2011: Special election held to replace April Ford-Griffin, turnout was 10.4% (results)
• January 6, 2012: Tammika Hubbard sworn into office
• January 26, 2012:  National Sales Co. announces it’ll start moving employees into new headquarters next month, February 2012 (source).

The McDonald’s reopened nearly three weeks before the special election was held! National Sales Co.’s headquarters was nearly finished by the time Hubbard was sworn into office. This kind of politics really annoys me. Sorry Tammika, we’re smart enough to know better.

Hubbard’s major accomplishment in her year in office was a bill adding The Bottle District to Paul McKee’s NorthSide Regeneration, not surprising considering:

Hubbard is the daughter of Rodney Hubbard Sr., a longtime north St. Louis politico and executive director of the Carr Square Tenant Corp., the nonprofit that runs the Carr Square housing development.

And the tenant group owns a 2.5 percent stake of NorthSide Regeneration LLC, the McKee-led holding company that is proposing the project — much of which is in Hubbard’s 5th Ward — and has sought nearly $400 million in city incentives to help do it. (stltoday.com)

Unlike in the special election, we have an exciting & qualified candidate on the March 5th ballot for the 5th ward: Michelle Hutchings-Medina. I first met Michelle last year at 5th ward event, I was immediately impressed. I’ve since gotten to know her better and can say I’m not casting my vote against Hubbard, I’m voting FOR Michelle. She has presence.  She has ideas. She listens to various viewpoints. She is trustworthy. Michelle Hutchings-Medina is a leader.

The entire city should work to elect Michelle Hutchings-Medina to the Board of Aldermen, it needs more people like her working for a better city, not in the interest of just her family. Voter registration deadline is February 6th and absentee voting is open now.

— Steve Patterson