St. Louis’ International Award-Winning “Strategy for Renewal”

Two weeks ago this Wednesday St. Louis won a “World Leadership Award” in the category of Urban Renewal for its submission entitled “Strategy for Renewal.” The mayor’s website was full of excitement and the RCGA sent out a glowing press release. I was sceptical as nobody knew what we submitted. On Friday I received a paper copy after submitting a request under Missouri’s Sunshine Law. Here are a few tidbits.

Mayor Francis G. Slay sent a letter accepting the invitation to submit an entry on April 1, 2006. In that letter he writes,

“I am writing to let you know that we do plan on submitting an entry, and we would welcome the favorable publicity that we would receive if we won or even if we were a finalist.”

Our entry was submitted to the organizers on July 10th, 2006. Here is a quote from the opening page:

After losing 500,000 people in 45 years, the City of St. Louis has reversed the trend and become a model for “rebuilding” cities around the world. New residents are returning; businesses are starting to meet the growing market; and we have initiated education reform to make our public schools again, schools of choice.

Education reform? Since when is criticizing the school board education reform?

We have turned the corner. After decades of record population loss, growth is occurring. The U.S. Census Bureau ranked St. Louis 43rd in percentage population growth over the past year. I believe our strategy has become a model for other cities to follow.

While I will agree the massive droves of people fleeing the city has stopped I don’t know that we can say the city is growing. I’d say more like stabilized. Furthermore, I don’t know this is due to any policies enacted by Mayor Slay or simply the fact we hit bottom. And I find it rather amusing this strategy that is supposed to be a model for other cities had to be obtained via Missouri’s Sunshine Law regarding open documents.

The document talks about a number of objectives and strategies, some which have been done, some of which are in process and others that I am not aware of any effort to complete. One area that seems a bit of a stretch is around the city’s Strategic Land Use Plan. From the Strategy for Renewal:

A critical stage in our Great City renewal strategy was to provide a concise roadmap to direct public and private resources to where we needed them most. Until 2005, St. Louis operated under a Master Plan conceived in 1947.

That plan called for wholesale demolition of 35% of the City, coinciding with demographic changes. Conceived before the loss of 500,000 people, the Plan offered no strategy for addressing wholesale urban disinvestment. The Strategic Land Use Plan adopted in 2005 has changed how we think and do business. We have identified those parts of the City where public investment is most needed, to help stimulate private investment that builds on our strengths.

All levels of City government act in a coordinated manner to create nodes of growth. Subsequent efforts then connect “these nodes”, creating corridors of positive change. From a new housing project; a loan to a small business owner to repair a building; grants to remove lead paint from the schools and homes to enhance the welfare of the children; a combination of small incentives helps to stabilize declining neighborhoods.

Gee, last time I checked we still operate under that 1947 plan. Yes, the land use designations have been updated but our archaic zoning is still in place. Earlier this year, when arguing before the city’s “board of adjustment” regarding the McDonald’s drive-thru issue, I suggested the South Grand the area was to have certain character, as described in the land use plan. They told me, in a public hearing, the land use plan does not trump zoning. The mayor can tell people in London all he wants about this land use plan but in reality until we have new zoning it is worthless. The implimentation page for the land use plan admits as much:

Zoning designations are continually problematic in the City, and more often than not new development requires a variance from the existing zoning code. It is anticipated that once this plan is adopted zoning designations will be modified to conform to the plan and “overlay districts” may be developed and adopted that are specific to the character of specific neighborhoods and development areas.

While the mayor and his staffers are flying off to London to accept awards we are still waiting for meaningful action. Why we’d go to all this trouble to enter a competition and then not share the winning entry is beyond me, unless the mayor and his staff didn’t want to be held accountable for their strategy?

But you don’t need to take my word for it, I’ve uploaded the original submitted for judging and the presentation for your review.

• Strategy For Renewal (34-page PDF, 1.4mb)
• Presentation from 12/6/06 (49-page PDF, 2.9mb — I believe the actual PowerPoint would have had some video clips and such, I will likely request the actual PowerPoint as this PDF file seems incomplete. Plus you will need to rotate it to view)

Check them out and share your thoughts below. Even better, ask your alderman what he/she thinks about the objectives, strategies and current progress!

St. Louis Politics: The Triumph of Tradition

My holiday reading has started with UMSL Professor Lana Stein’s 2002 book, St. Louis Politics: The Triumph of Tradition.   I’ve only just started reading the book so this is not a review, more of a teaser.

Dr. Stein was a guest speaker this Fall in one of my graduate classes at SLU and realized this would be a great way for me to get caught up on all those people and events that not being a native I would not know.  Dr. Stein, by the way, is not a native either — she moved to St. Louis in 1987.

From the book’s preface:

The roots of today’s system began in 1876 with the city’s divorce from its county and in its 1914 charter. Unlike a number of other cities, St. Louis failed to centralize either its government or its political function. It has practiced factional, ward-based machine politics for better than a century, and its political culture reflects the individual ward system and a distrust of any concentration of power. Although there have been bursts of leadership, the city has continued with a complacency and a lack of confidence. Changes to the system have not altered the fundamental modus operandi.

Ouch, that doesn’t sound too promising does it?  The book promises to enlighten the reader on our political history not from the city’s founding but from 1876 when we split from the county.   Here is one more teaser from the introduction:

Many newcomers to St. Louis look askance at the city’s political life, which may seem somewhat archaic to them.  St. Louis politics clearly hearken back to an earlier era in American history.  The city’s elections are partisan, a large number of offices need filling, and twenty-eight ward organizations serve as the focal point of campaigning, the source of endorsements, and the base of the city’s patronage employment.  Jobs still are provided in exchange for political support.  Power is fragmented, and ward-based factionalism remains a hallmark of the system.

Keep this archaic factionalism in mind this election cycle as candidates promise to change St. Louis for the better and as the 6th Ward organization attempts to locate their by-laws.

Battle for Control of Cherokee Street

At 1pm this afternoon the Cherokee Street Business Association will hold elections for its board of directors and officers. Unlike most business assocations, where things just continue with little controversy, this meeting may well be as heated as they come. This meeting may be a glimpse of how the upcoming 20th Ward election will go.

You see, Ald. Craig Schmid is pretty much of the same ‘keep out things’ mode of thinking of Wallace and her supporters. In the past, I think this has served a valid purpose. But times change and we must learn and adapt along the way. Among the groups on Cherokee are professionals, business owners catering to Mexican clientele, restaurants and bakeries, various artists and art groups, and a somewhat “radical” left-wing element. Wallace seems to have issues with all of them.

Galen Gondolfi, a candidate for Schmid’s 20th ward seat, is among those seeking change on Cherokee. Jason Deem, a young business man whom I have met and consulted on a rehab project, is seeking to be the new President of the association. Deem has assembled a diverse group of people from the street, all running as a slate. You can view their flyer in: English or Spanish.

Will a win for Deem and his slate mean trouble for Schmid in the larger ward? Maybe, maybe not. But, a Deem win will mark a shift on the street that Gondolfi will certainly tout on the campaign countdown to March 6th. Craig Schmid is not among the favorites of St. Louis’ political establishments but I have to think they’d rather keep him over a more progressive Gondolfi. Ken Ortmann, whose ward includes part of Cherokee, is not up for re-election until March 2009.

At issue is more than just who controls the gavel at meetings. Cherokee is a special taxing district so those who control the board, along with the aldermen, control the use of monies collected from taxes. How this money is used, or not used, will be important in the coming years.

More information on the growing rift on Cherokee from the RFT archives:

• Not on Our Street, June 8 2005
• Ruckus on Cherokee Street, June 14, 2006

The meeting will be held at 1pm on the 2nd floor of the Juvenile Court Building across from the Casa Loma Ballroom, at Iowa and Cherokee (map).  The group, under Wallace’s leadership does have a website, www.cherokeestation.com, which currently has only an announcement about a Cindo de Mayo this past May.

Proposed TIF to be Backed by City’s General Revenues

Remember the first TIF project in the City of St. Louis? The failed St. Louis Marketplace on Manchester Road! Well, it was the only such project in the city to be backed by the city’s general revenue. That is, if it did not generate the necessary revenue to pay off the bonds the city would be stuck with the bill. Well, last year, this year and possibly next year that is over a million dollars annually. The city may well be on the hook until the TIF ends in 2011.

Enter John Steffen of Pyramid Construction. In a board bill before St. Louis Estimate & Apportionment Board (E&A) related to 600 Washington (aka St. Louis Centre) the city would be obligating their general “City Revenues” should revenues from the project prove insufficient to cover the annual debt payments for the $14,500,000 TIF. The maturity date is 23 years from approval, a long time to commit general revenue.

The E&A, consisting of Mayor Slay, President Shrewsbury, and Comptroller Green will meet at 2pm Wednesday in the Mayor’s office. The meeting is open to the public. I spoke with the Comptroller’s Public Information John Farrell about this issue, he indicated the Comptroller’s office has some concerns. Here is a list of their concerns distributed at last weeks HUDZ committee (Housing, Urban Development and Zoning) where board bills 313 & 314 were passed out of committee:

The redevelopment agreement and these two board bills are fundamentally flawed.

• The TIF borrowing uses the full faith and credit of the city.
• The building is overpriced at $26 million.
• Board Bill implies the city obligation is $14.5 million, but the term sheet indicates we are obligated for $28 million.
• The office building is not class A space. It must compete in a very crowded market.
• There are 85 TIF’s City-wide only one uses the general fund backing.
• Per the Term Sheet, it appears the city will agree to increase borrowing up to $28 million.
• The moral obligation backing is a pledge of the general fund.
• Using the general fund of the city for TIF bonds is against the city’s financial policy that is based on Best Practices.
• The general fund will be called on to pay $1.2 million per year for the new TIF debt.
• The only other general fund backed TIF is the Market Place TIF to which the general fund paid $1 million this year and last year.
• Using general fund backing sets a bad precedent and is very difficult to reverse.
• A $14 million debt will be added to the city’s balance sheet
• We have huge unmet costs facing the city in the near future. Some are:
• $73 million for past pension costs plus double what we currently pay annually into the foreseeable future.
• $30 million convention center improvements
• $10 to 15 million renovation of 1520 Market Street

I am by no means an expert on TIF financing but I know this much: if the project does not perform well over the life of the TIF bonds I don’t want the city to have to step in and make up the difference. If the project cannot stand on its own after substantial public assistance and the developer is unwilling to make up the difference should it come up short then maybe, just maybe, this is not the right project. Both bills were sponsored by Alderman Phyllis Young (D-7th Ward).
Mayor Slay’s office is in support of the TIF and apparently President Shrewsbury’s office is also leaning in favor as well. As indicated, the Comptroller’s office is not so keen on this TIF but it only take a 2 out of 3 vote to be approved. What do you think? Is the new project worth risking general funds to cover the debt for the next 23 years?

Forty Percent of Seats Contested in March Primary

In the first two weeks of filing for St. Louis’ Spring municipal elections a full 40% of the seats are already contested.

Contested Races (6):

• President of the Board of Aldermen
• Wards: 6, 12, 18, 20 and 26.

Unchallenged Incumbents (9) in Wards:

• 2 (Flowers),
• 4 (Shelton),
• 8 (Conway),
• 10 (Vollmer),
• 14 (Gregali),
• 16 (Baringer),
• 22 (Boyd),
• 24 (Waterhouse),
• 28 (Krewson)

Still, the idea of nine officials, over 30% of the full 28-member Board of Aldermen, not having any opposition is disheartening. But, it is not too late to rectify the situation! Filing is open for these seats until 5pm on January 5, 2007. Remember, if nobody runs against these nine and an issue comes up in the next four years the commentary will be, “You should have run against them back in 2007.” Don’t even think about trying to recall one of these nine if in the next four years they get way out of line relative to the ward’s wishes. Without an opponent in this election it will be harder to mount an effective recall. Contested elections is what hopefully keeps our system in check.

I’m not making any judgements here about these nine, although I have my views on each. I truly believe each and everyone of them needs to face an opponent to know they must continue working for the people. Voter apathy is also a problem in our city and that is hard to combat when voters see only a single candidate running for an office. Voters need to be given a choice of candidates to become engaged in the process and to feel like they can made a difference. This city’s reluctance to field candidates for office contributes to voter apathy.

One of the reasons we don’t see any many contested races as we should is people frequently say things like, “Our alderman is a nice guy” or “The alderman took care of my problem.” I have no doubts many if not all are “nice” and probably take care of people’s requests for tree trimming, new dumpster or to have a stop sign added or removed. Running against them (or voting for a challenger) is not saying they are a bad person or they have not been doing an OK job. It simply means that someone else might actually be a better person for the job. Machine politics tactics wants you to believe that challenging an incumbent is some personal affront to them but it is simply saying, “Hey, I think I could do a better job than our current alderman.” The race then becomes the point where all the candidates can make their case why they are indeed the best person to serve the citizens of that ward.

If you live in one of the nine wards where the incumbent is likely to just walk back into office for another four years without even breaking a sweat, I ask that you seriously consider running for office. It is a big step that, even if you do not win, you will feel good about your civic participation. You can raise issues that need to be raised both for your ward and for the city. We don’t get too many chances to make a difference and this is one of them.