Place Matters: Metropolitics for the Twenty-First Century

I recently purchased Place Matters: Metropolitics for the Twenty-First Century from the Saint Louis University bookstore as it is a required text for one of my Fall courses in Urban Planning. The book is authored by three Professors; Peter Dreier from Occidental College in LA, John Mollenkopf from City University in New York and our own Todd Swanstrom from St. Louis University. Dr. Swanstrom just happens to be teaching my course which starts on Tuesday.

Yesterday I started thumbing through the book, as I do with any new read, but the first paragraph in the preface section really struck me:

This book grew out of our frustration with the stalemated debate about the condition of cities and our conviction that we can move beyond it. In Place Matters, we argue that because the problems presently facing America’s cities are largely political in origin, their solution also lies in politics. We focus on how public policies and the organization of our political institutions have fostered the growth of economic segregation in metropolitan America, which in turn damages both equal opportunity and economic competitiveness. We favor moving toward forming and delivering urban policy at a broader regional context. Such steps, we believe, are a critical ingredient for transforming all politics of urban policy and broadening the coalition in support of progressive urban policies.

One part is worth repeating;

“…problems presently facing America’s cities are largely political in origin, their solution also lies in politics.”

Interesting. I can certainly agree off hand that many problems I see facing St. Louis are “political in origin.” These include outdated zoning, racial and social segregation, and inadequate mass transit. However, the politicians still claim “the market” or “reality” as reasons for not changing their old ways of doing business. I look forward to reading and discussing concepts from this book and the long list of other reading materials in class this Fall. And as you might expect, I’ll frequently post on the various assignments and topics.

– Steve

Who Is Pat Herod?

Pat Herod is the guy running as a republican against Mike McMillan for License Collector. Stop laughing, I’m being serious. Yes, an unknown republican is seeking to take away McMillan’s place in line. The audacity!

The decision by existing Collector of Revenue Ron Leggett to not run again has allowed the line to move forward a single spot: current License Collector Gregg Daly moves up to Collector of Revenue and Mike McMillan makes a bigger jump from the 19th Ward to License Collector. This slow moving line includes hundreds of people in various positions, mostly as ward committee folks. No cutting in line either, everyone must dutifully wait their turn. These things we call elections are just a minor inconvenience to those who’ve staked out their place in the line.

McMillan was unchallenged in the democratic primary earlier this month but Daly was nominally challenged by a rouge democrat that failed to understand the unwritten non-compete clause in local politics. Both Daly and McMillan face opposition in November which brings me back to Patrick Herod.

After reading Herod’s passionate letter to the editor via South St. Louis City Talk I decided I needed to know more about him. After a quick search on the Missouri Ethics Commission website and I was on the phone with Mr. Herod. We talked for a good 45 minutes.

I learned many things about the man, all of which made me like him more and more. He is not a politician, a very good thing indeed. He is, however, a father, grandfather, retired Air Force officer (Major), and he holds both a Bachelor & Masters of Science from St. Louis University. I also learned this is not his first run for office, although it is his first time having his named printed on the ballot (well, typed on the screen?). Pat Herod was a write-in candidate against Virvus Jones back in the mid 1980s and apparently got more write-in votes in St. Louis history save for one person, one of the Roberts brothers. In short I felt good about democracy after talking to Herod, rather than feeling like I need to take a shower after just 5 minutes of conversation with some of our elected officials.

I’m not making an endorsement in favor of Mr. Herod (not yet anyway). I am, however, endorsing the idea of contested political races. We owe it to our democracy to give this guy our fair consideration for the position of License Collector. To that end, click here to download and read Patrick Herod’s campaign flyer.

My next phone call is to Audrey M. Ruiz-Smith, the Green candidate running for the office of Collector of Revenue.

– Steve

16th Ward Alderwoman Out in Front on Planning & Communication

16th Ward Alderwoman Donna Baringer has posted several items on the 16th Ward News section of the Board of Aldermen website. At this time only Baringer and Young (7th Ward) are posting online news about their respective wards on the site. It is unclear how the other 26 are communicating ward news to constituents, city residents, potential residents, existing businesses and potential businesses.

From the PDF of a print newsletter I can see that Baringer was at Francis Park this past Saturday (the 19th) to show off plans for revisions to the playground and asking for feedback.

In commercial news I can read a summary of the Shrewsbury transit charrette that I attended recently (see post) as well as a Hampton & Chippewa charrette that I was unaware of. A two-page PDF entitled a “16th Ward Retail Profile” is an excellent marketing piece for businesses considering locating in or near the 16th ward. Among the information included is buying power for the area relative to Lindbergh & I-44 and other retail corridors.

I’ve yet to review a new Starbucks with drive-thru recently built in the 16th Ward. My initial drive-by was not overly impressive as it had a drive lane between the public sidewalk and building. Still, I am impressed by Ald. Baringer’s willingness to get involved in planning issues, bringing in the planning staff and clearly communicating this information to the public. Currently Baringer is out front leading other aldermen, many of whom have decades of “experience.”

Baringer, elected in 2003, is still in her first stint as alderwoman. While the ward has not turned into a dense urban oasis during her term it is clear she is making a strong effort to move the 16th in a positive and more pedestrian-friendly direction. From my vantage point, Ald. Baringer is way out in front of all the aldermen on planning and communications.

– Steve

Comprehensive Planning Process for Soulard Neighborhood on Sept 26th

From Ald. Phyllis Young:

Soulard has changed significantly through the 30+ years I’ve lived here. The changes that have occurred have taken place without a thorough planning process, but they generally have been positive for the neighborhood. The efforts of small groups of concerned and committed individuals have paid off, resulting in changes such as the historic code revision. The code revision group spent much time and effort writing a thoughtful and sensitive document that has guided development on a case-by-case basis. The Soulard Housing Corporation made up of neighborhood residents, initiated a plan for the renovation and infill of the 800 block of Allen many years ago when that block was the eyesore of the neighborhood. Their vision is reality today, and their efforts continue. Each group has established a goal and worked to achieve it. All these have made Soulard the neighborhood that it is today.
A much larger planning process is in the works. In 2005 the City of St. Louis Planning Commission adopted the Strategic Land Use Plan for the entire city. This was the first time since 1947 that the city had taken a look at the uses of property, the areas where opportunities were available for redevelopment, those areas that should be preserved, and which areas should be commercial/retail or business/ industrial. You can check out this plan at stlcin.missouri.org/landuse. Of course Soulard was included in the plan.

Now it is time to take the next step and look at a comprehensive planning process focusing on the future of each neighborhood, including Soulard. Through this effort I hope that we can establish our goals for the future of our neighborhood and devise a plan of action to achieve those goals. We’ll also need to prioritize the goals and identify the resources needed to achieve them. We’ll need to look at zoning issues that exist in the neighborhood and address those. Parking is always an issue that must be addressed if there’s a need/desire for more retail. There are urban design issues in our neighborhood such as signage, public art, streetscaping, lighting, and many others I’m sure you’ll add.

The planning process will be led by the City of St. Louis’ Planning Department. Rollin Stanley, a Soulard resident, directs this department and has led many of these efforts throughout the city. He and his staff are gathering data that will be used to help make decisions during our sessions. The initial planning meeting will be Tuesday, September 26th. It will be held at St. Peter and Paul’s hall located at 816 Allen (the entrance is from the parking lot at 8th and Allen). The meeting will start at 6:30 PM so come and participate in planning the guidelines that will be followed in the next phase of our neighborhood’s development.

Soulard represents one of the 12 neighborhoods that is at least partially in the 7th Ward. While I am glad to see Ald. Young working with our city’s talented planning staff I wonder when we will see it spread to other areas. I know many in the downtown section of the 7th ward feel a bit ignored by their alderwoman.

Mark your calendars for Tuesday, September 26th at 6:30pm. I’ll be there after class to check it out.

– Steve

Kevin McGowan Calls Me From the Dog House

This morning I received a phone call from developer Kevin McGowan of McGowan|Walsh. He was calling, as you might guess, in response to the flack over a pet ban in the loft building in which he and other members of his family live (see prior post). For the last week he has been in a PR doghouse.

I’ve known Kevin for some time now and we worked together last year on a team looking at the Gateway Mall. It was nice to have the opportunity to talk with him again. He appreciated my prior post on this take as I presented a “rational” perspective as did some of the comments from others.

Kevin wanted to set the record straight:

M|W projects have condo rules similar to most condos downtown or otherwise that allow for pets but place limits no pounds and number of pets. Once the owners take control of the association they are free to change the rules as prescribed in the binding agreement.

His building contains 13 residential units with only four of those being owned by a member of the McGowan family.

The vote to change the rules in the building was “nearly a year ago” and existing pets were grandfathered in. Kevin says he was not present for the vote.

Kevin said he is not an officer in the association now nor was he at the time of the vote.

The issue of late has been that a couple of owners wish to sell and claim the no-pet policy is hurting their ability to sell their lofts. Kevin said the requests to change the policy have been too numerous.

Finally, he says, he was so “exacerbated” by the repeated requests he recently sent off the email trying to put an end to the issue. Again, he is not an officer in the association but just one of the 13 owners.

He and his wife Erin, before having children, had a dog for a good five years. I didn’t ask what they are going to do when their kids want a pet dog.

But I couldn’t have him on the phone and not challenge him. I said it seems like much of the debate is over dogs in common areas as well as dogs barking which can be heard in adjacent units. He agreed. So I asked about having a single cat. I offered that a vote to consider keeping a ban on dogs but allow a single cat might appease the owners trying to sell units. He didn’t seem to have considered that option but was not optimistic they’d consider such a compromise. The other thing, we didn’t discuss, is why not have another vote on the issue of pets in the building? If the majority still feel it is a sound policy it will remain. Obviously an association shouldn’t consider and vote on the same subject every month but at some point if an owner asks to reconsider a policy it should be voted on.

The other thing we discussed was a dog park. It is common knowledge that Kevin was working on trying to get a dog park in Lucas Park for a while. Turns out the city has a policy that prohibits more than 30% of any designated park being separated and used for a dog park. Also, Larry Rice objected to park space being taken away from the homeless. But, he says, he is still working on a dog park because it is good for business. To that end he is looking to set up a non-profit to lease vacant land from the city to use as a dog park where owners could pay a small fee to help cover maintenance. The idea being that non-park land could be used 100% for a dog park. He is firmly convinced a dog park is good in helping attract new residents.

Kevin mentioned one person that, if we had a dog park, would buy a loft downtown: Mayor Francis Slay. He said, “Francis is a big dog lover.” The issue is many dog owners, the Mayor included apparently, want a place where they can take the dog off the lease and let the dog be a….well, a dog. Kevin says Mayor Slay and his wife would move downtown if we had a dog park. You heard it here first, not in Deb Peterson’s column.

A couple of other topics came up in our 45-minute conversation. As I had previously posted, McGowan|Walsh is offering free scooters with the purchase of a loft in the Motor Lofts and Packard Lofts. Kevin says they are now extending this to all McGowan|Walsh projects so it includes the GEW building on Washington at Jefferson and the Ballpark Lofts in Cupples Station adjacent to Busch Stadium. Their first order of nearly 200 scooters are expected to arrive in December and they just placed a second order of almost 300 more scooters. Wow, that is a lot of scooters! Kevin says he really enjoys his scooter. Blue Boat Designs on Washington Avenue was given a scooter from M|W and one of the staff, Jon Carlson, told me the other day he is having a blast riding it to work from home near Tower Grove Park. Kevin was excited about the idea of seeing all these scooters running around downtown.

I just couldn’t let him go without once again bringing up the issue of excessive valet parking downtown. Kevin is an owner in the building where one of the biggest offenders, Lucas Park Grille, is located. His brothers, but not him, are partners in that restaurant. Kevin generally agreed that the valets may be taking too much space and as more and more storefronts become occupied by retailers needing convenient parking for their customers this issue is not going away on its own. He suggested I talk with Ald Lewis Reed on this subject. Good idea as Reed is up for re-election in March so perhaps the matter of valet parking along Washington Avenue can become a campaign issue for him or a challenger.

– Steve