Many readers pleased with Judge Dierker’s ruling on the NorthSide TIF

Last week there were 314 votes in the weekly poll.
Q: How do you feel about Judge Dierker tossing out the $390m TIF for Paul McKee’s $8.1b NorthSide project?

1. Great, now voters need to toss out the Aldermen that voted in favor of the TIF 113 35.99%
2. Bad, the area needs redevelopment 56 17.83%
3. Mixed feelings 53 16.88%
4. Good, too much public subsidy 49 15.61%
5. Horrible, TIF is a good way for the public to partner in such a project 32 10.19%
6. Other answer… 8 2.55%
7. Unsure/no opinion 3 0.96%

Other Responses were:

1. the area needs the development but Mckee could have gotten a sum thru investors
2. The idea was a bold and positive one. The TIF was too large of an area, however.
3. Great, plan wasn’t concrete enough; not enough guarantee of financial succe
4. New ordinances needed
5. Paul McKee had not an ounce of good intentions for the area in question, greed.
6. Good – a new plan w/ more community-based redevelopment needs to be made.
7. We need the north side redevelope.
8. Good: Needs more details

So what to make of these votes? I personally fall into the “mixed feelings” group, although I wouldn’t mind seeing many of our elected officials replaced with some fresh faces. The city stopped setting a vision for much of the area in the large TIF boundary, something had to be done.  I share the feeling that the community should have input into the planning of such a large area of the city.  McKee says the project will move forward:

In his 51-page ruling, Dierker raised questions about the development’s economic projections, the city’s approval process, city officials’ reliance on market studies provided by the developer and McKee’s ability to pull off the project and deliver on his promises to transform 1,500 acres. McKee wants to partner with homebuilders and other developers to build up to 4.5 million square feet of office space, 1 million square feet of retail space, 2,200 new single-family homes and 7,800 apartments over the next two decades – a plan that Dierker said puts the “idea of rosy scenarios to shame.”  Full story: Paul McKee: ‘I’m too German and too Irish to walk away from it’ – St. Louis Business Journal

Stay tuned!

– Steve Patterson