Happy Thanksgiving

November 25, 2010 Economy, Homeless 1 Comment

I want to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving, enjoy this cute video I found on YouTube:

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1CndP1fYC0M

Also, please think about those less fortunate in our city, those having their Thanksgiving  meal at one of various organizations this year.

– Steve Patterson

 

Readers Think Slay Will Be Elected To Fourth Term As Mayor in 2013

November 24, 2010 Politics/Policy 10 Comments

Last week readers indicated, in the weekly poll, that current 3-term mayor Francis Slay would be elected to a fourth term in office:

Q: Who do you think will be elected St. Louis Mayor in 2013?

  1. Francis Slay 86 [46.74%]
  2. Lewis Reed 42 [22.83%]
  3. Other answer… 16 [8.7%]
  4. Unsure/no opinion 12 [6.52%]
  5. Michael McMillan 10 [5.43%]
  6. One of the 28 aldermen 6 [3.26%]
  7. Darlene Green 4 [2.17%]
  8. Bill Haas 3 [1.63%]
  9. Greg Daly 3 [1.63%]
  10. Sharon Carpenter 1 [0.54%]
  11. Maida Coleman 1 [0.54%]

No St. Louis mayor has ever been elected to four 4-year terms.  The last to run for a fourth term, Raymond Tucker, lost in March 1965 to Alfonso J. Cervantes.

ABOVE: Lewis Reed (left) and Francis Slay (righty
ABOVE: Lewis Reed (left) and Francis Slay (right)

The other answers provided by readers were:

  1. Rex Sinquefeld
  2. Jeanette Mott-Oxford
  3. whoever wins the dem mayoral primary
  4. Rex Sinquefield
  5. steve patterson 🙂
  6. You?
  7. Nelly
  8. Rainford
  9. TERM LIMITS: We desperately need them in the city; city is doomed if no change
  10. I think Lewis Reed should be elected mayor, but how should i know if he will?
  11. Douglas Duckworth
  12. Shane Cohn
  13. Anyone but Bill Haas!
  14. I HOPING anyone but FS. Time is up.
  15. Who are these people? None are a Daley or Giuliani. or even John Nations
  16. Antonio French

Prior to my February 2008 stroke I was plotting a run for mayor  — around 2019 at the age of 52.  I don’t see it happening now, physically or mentally.  I could see both Shane Cohn & Antonio French running for mayor at some point — but not 2013.

My prediction is Francis Slay will not seek a fourth term.  Given the budget issues facing the city he may want to escape before it gets too ugly.  Aldermanic President Lewis Reed’s leadership will be tested next year during redistricting.  When I asked Reed if he was running in 2013 he said he is focusing on 2011.  He didn’t say he wasn’t going to run.  I think Slay won’t but Reed will.  I don’t see McMillan running either, he is not a fan of contested races.

I think Lewis Reed will be elected the 46th mayor of St. Louis.  I’m not saying that is what I necessarily want to have happen, just how I see it going at this point.  But a lot can happen in two plus years.

– Steve Patterson

 

KMOV Confused About Downtown’s Borders, Location Of Shooting

November 23, 2010 Media, North City 12 Comments

CBS affiliate KMOV seems confused about the borders of downtown as well as the location of a shooting yesterday.

kmovdowntown
ABOVE: Screen shot of KMOV story, click to view article

The casual reader would think downtown St. Louis is unsafe.  But the article says the victim was leaving a gas station at 8800 Broadway.  8800 Broadway  – north & south — is over 7 miles from downtown.  The map they show with their article shows 8800 South Broadway but it says the victim hit a house on Riverview so the shooting had to happen at 8800 North Broadway. Granted downtown is between these two points but it would be nice if the media understood that downtown doesn’t extend south of Chouteau, north of Cass or west of Jefferson. The CBD (Central Business District) is even smaller.

– Steve Patterson

 

City Employee Parks City Vehicle Next To Fire Hydrant

img_1318
ABOVE: City vehicle parked in no-parking area in front of fire hydrant on 11/10/2010

If you or I parked blocking a fire hydrant it wouldn’t be long before our car was ticketed and towed away, resulting in big fees.  But a city employee driving a city-owned vehicle, it seems, can get away with doing what we can’t.

img_1319
ABOVE: City vehicle parked in no-parking area between disabled space and fire hydrant on 11/10/2010

I’m sure it was just for a few minutes but anyone could use the same excuse.  The fact is the city isn’t going to ticket or tow away it’s own vehicle.  This employee likely didn’t face any disciplinary action for how they parked.  As a matter of policy, city employees operating city vehicles need to be held to the same standard as anyone else.

Some vehicles mention the department on the door but this one didn’t so I assume it is a pool vehicle that can be checked out as needed.  This makes me wonder, who manages the vehicles? What does the employee agree to when they check out a car?

– Steve Patterson

 

Collinsville’s Gateway Conference Center & Adjacent Doubletree Hotel

Where do you look to plan an annual conference in the St. Louis region where you will have large & small meeting rooms plus hotel space for 2,000+ attendees.  If your budget is large you go to America’s Center in downtown St. Louis.  But if your budget isn’t so big you go to the Gateway Conference Center in Collinsville IL (aerial).

“Most of Collinsville’s lodging is within walking distance of the convention center.”

That seems very convenient!

The Gateway Convention Center is located adjacent to the Doubletree Collinsville/St. Louis and is an ideal partner for your larger meetings and tradeshows. Gateway Center offers 50,000 square feet of flexible, ground-level space that is sure to suit all your event needsThe convention center is surrounded by more than 40 restaurants and several visitor-friendly attractions. Lambert St. Louis International Airport is a short 30 minute drive away.

Together with Doubletree Collinsville/St. Louis, Gateway Center is “The Great Way to Gather” in the St. Louis MO metropolitan area for large events!

Wow, perfect! Convention center with adjacent hotel and others within walking distance.  Sounds perfect, right? Well almost…

img_1562
ABOVE: Stairs over drainage ditch from Doubletree to Gateway Center (see in background)

If your conference has persons with mobility issues these stairs are a major obstacle. The problem is a flood control channel owned by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

img_1557
ABOVE: Flood control ditch between the Doubletree (left) and Gateway Center (right)

The Doubletree is adjacent to the Gateway Center  and it has the small meeting rooms the other hotels in the area lack but the stairs are a major barrier when 100 or so of your attendees use mobility scooters, wheelchairs or just push baby strollers.

img_1554
ABOVE: Stairs over drainage ditch from the Gateway Center to the Doubletree (see in background)

Part Two of this post will be published next week on the 29th.  That post will look at the walkability & accessibility of the Eastport Plaza area where Collinsville’s Gateway Center is located.  Pushing carts of convention materials from the main hotel to the center is also impossible.  The solution is a “switchback ramp” on each side of the levee. The Doubletree Hotel has new ownership and recently received a $12 million dollar makeover inside & out.

ABOVE: New concrete work around the Doubletree, but no connection to public sidewalk or ramp to Gateway Center
ABOVE: New concrete work around the Doubletree, but no connection to public sidewalk or ramp to Gateway Center

The hotel was built in 1982, construction on the Gateway Center started six years later. In 2007 the hotel, then a Holiday Inn, made the headlines.  This article from July 3, 2008 explains:

“The state auctioned off the hotel Thursday. St. Louis-based Lodging Hospitality Management, which owns 16 hotels in the St. Louis area, submitted the highest bid of six that were submitted, according to [Illinois State Treasurer Alexi] Giannoulias.

Giannoulias said in a statement that installing new owners will put an end to a 25-year “financial debacle.” Giannoulias said former owners B.C. Gitcho and Gary Fears received “an outrageously favorable $13.4 million state-backed loan” and quickly fell behind on payments enough that the outstanding principal and interest totaled $32.2 million.”

What I don’t yet know is when the steps and bridge were built over the flood control ditch.  Was the costs shared by the hotel and Collinsville? Did bonds for the Gateway Center finance the steps & bridge to the existing hotel?  I will keep digging.

In the meantime, next week I will post a look at the area where the Gateway Center is located, called Eastport Plaza.

– Steve Patterson

 

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