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Steve Wilke-Shapiro on KDHX Tonight, Farewell Party Tuesday

August 20, 2007 Media, South City 10 Comments

Tonight is Steve night on KDHX‘s Collateral Damage program — Steve Wilke-Shapiro from 15thwardstl.org and myself will join hosts DJ Wilson and Fred Hessel in studio at 7pm on 88.1FM. As many of you know, Wilke-Shapiro and his family are moving to Des Moines for a new job and to be closer to family. Among tonight’s topics will be Steve’s 50 Things I Won’t Miss About St. Louis list which includes, in no particular order:

  • The Board of Aldermen – I’m not going to name all the individual representatives. That would take up 24 of my 50 items in this list. For the most part, they seem to be just about as incompetent at dealing with critical issues in a proactive and comprehensive manner as Congress is. Two big thumbs down.
  • Parochialism – Y’all have to figure out a way to work across borders. The region is killing itself from all the fighting over scraps in a zero-sum game.
  • Eureka, Chesterfield, and friends – That sucking sound you hear? That’s all my taxes going to maintain your unsustainable infrastructure.
  • Paul McKee – Pretty much represents all that is wrong with politics and development in St. Louis. Clear cutting is not the right way to go about rebuilding community.
  • Interstate 64 – Or is it Highway 40? Redoing this road is the biggest boondoggle we’ve seen since, well, the Page Avenue Extension. Should have planned for transit.
  • Page Avenue Extension – I could put together another “Top 50” list of things I would rather have spent a billion dollars on. All you self-centered suburbanites quit complaining about Metrolink “subsidy” until you add up all the money spent on extending and widening your own roads.
  • Loughborough Commons – With a little urban planning, it could have been done so much better. Instead we have another “place not worth caring about.”
  • Riverfront – Quite possibly the biggest missed opportunity in the region. What a huge disappointment it is to cross under the Arch and gaze down the grand stairway only to see the might Mississippi lapping at a sometimes parking lot and a bunch of concrete bollards.
  • Racism – Race seems to inform everything in St. Louis (and not in a good way). I’ve been in St. Louis for 14 years and haven’t seen much forward movement. I don’t know what the right steps are, but I do believe that until people make a conscious effort to equalize some of the spatial disparities in income, education, health, and employment, it will be difficult to deal with the underlying prejudices.
  • The Gateway Mall – If you build it they will come. We don’t need “greenspace” downtown.
  • “Reserved” street parking – They are public streets. I’ll park where I want. Just because you own the adjacent property doesn’t make a street space yours.
  • River Des Peres – Affectionately called River Dispair by those in the know.
  • Schnuck’s – I shop there because it’s so damn convenient to my house (I don’t even have to get in the car), but I don’t like it. Shame on you for demolishing the Century Building. Is it intentional that the logo looks so much like “Schmucks”?

This should make for a good conversation! Tuesday evening friends are giving Steve a farewell party at The Royale. 5:30pm-? And finally, if you are looking for a great home in a great neighborhood consider Steve’s home at 3618McDonald.com (listed by my broker, Christopher Thiemet).

 

Currently there are "10 comments" on this Article:

  1. open records says:

    We are still looking forward to reading Steve’s 50 favorite things about STL list.

     
  2. Steven Smith says:

    There is an e at the end of the Royale. Like the Oldsmobile.

    What I wouldn’t miss? Haters.

    [SLP — Thanks for the correction, I’ve made the change above. I’m so glad you didn’t name your place the ‘Delta 88.’ The Cutlass or Toronado would have been OK.]

     
  3. yomamma says:

    I wouldn’t miss Hipsters.

     
  4. Adam says:

    hipsters wouldn’t miss yomamma. : )

     
  5. Tim Ekren says:

    I grew up a block away from a wheat field, went to school in mid sized city (Fargo, where only so many people will move to), owned a lake cabin outside of town, owned a townhouse in a Chicago western suburb and now live two blocks from St. Louis city limits. Most likely my family will move into the city before moving away from the city. Plus, worked every place in between. I certainly don’t classify myself as an urbanite or suburbanite. Just someone who desired living in different places at different times of my life. It would be a lot more interesting for me to listen to what fifty changes Steve would make based on his experience in St. Louis.

    Tim Ekren

     
  6. Jason says:

    Any idea how often they update the podcasts on KDHX? I missed it last night:(

    I just checked and the last one was from the 13th.

    [SLP — It takes a week or so. If you click on the ‘POD’ image you can get the feed for iTunes.  As new episodes are uploaded by KDHX, you will get them in your iTunes.  It is quick, easy and free.]

     
  7. Ben H says:

    Steve W-S said something very interesting on the show last night; that is the things he will miss about St Louis are primarily physical spaces and neighborhoods. Thinking about that, I guess I agree, which takes me aback. Of course there are individuals we would all miss when moving away. And there is a group of people i find dynamic and open who i would miss. And beyond that, lots of folks black and white and brown, who are thinking in the same mindset as their Jim Crow era great-grandparents. Dont get me wrong, i am a common person, I like common people. But st louis just has a complacent attitude thats killing it.

     
  8. Perhaps I wasn’t clear enough on the show… I’m only 20-some items into constructing the list of things I’ll miss. While many of the entries are physical places, already situated at number one is “Friends”. I include in that list many people I have never actually met in person but feel at least some connection to from our online discussions! One of St. Louis’ best attributes is its collection of active, passionate, diverse, and interesting citizens. I feel lucky to have been a part of this community and consider St. Louis a second hometown.

     
  9. gadfly says:

    Friends ought to be near the top of the list. People often cite “good people” as one of the best things about St. Louis. The friends you make in St. Louis will always be among the best friends you’ll ever have. Often, it is the people here and long-term relationships which bring people back to St. Louis after they have moved away, much more so than the physical spaces or changeable and often hostile weather. Me? I’d take good people over good weather and nice scenery any day.

     
  10. STJUDE says:

    My neighborhood is a NEIGHBORHOOD not a parking lot. Just because you are too lazy or cheap to pay for parking doesn’t mean I have to lie down like a dog and allow you to park in front of my home. I can’t pull up to Busch stadium and park my car at home plate because its “a public street”. Maybe you would like it if I pulled up in your driveway and parked and walked off for the rest of the day. Have fun up north, I pray you get stuck on a public street next to an entertainment district or a school.

     

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