Preservation Research Officeby Michael R. Allen
This morning on my way to work I saw a beautiful sight: the start of construction work on the 14th Street Mall project in Old North St. Louis! Dumpsters were being placed and gut demolition work was underway on one of the buildings in the project. The next 18 months will be great days for Old North as we watch the implementation of the solution to our biggest development problem. More here: 14th Street Mall Redevelopment is REAL!
by Michael R. Allen
Pub Def has posted a video of last Thursday’s bus tour of the 5th Ward, led by Alderwoman April Ford-Griffin with some assistance from myself. Check it out here.
Dave Drebes has posted “My Thoughts on the McKee Tax Credit” on Arch City Chronicle, to which Will Winter has added an insightful comment.
by Michael R. Allen
These photographs of St. Alphonsus Liguori (“Rock”) Church are frpm Friday afternoon. As the photographs suggest, the worst damage was sustained by the roof. The fire appears to have spread quickly across the roof, consuming some of the trusses and rafters while causing some roof collapse behind the steeple and over the altar. Overall, though, the church retains structural integrity. Even the roof damage is far less severe than anyone could have suspected on Thursday night during the fire. No assessment of interior damage is available. Given the amount of water used to fight the fire overhead, I would expect to find extensive water damage.
St. Alphonsus church was opened in 1872, although the steeples were not completed until 1894. The original plans came from Reverend Louis Dold and architect Thomas Walsh, while noted church architect and sculptor Joseph Conradi designed the steeples and the marble altar inside. Construction of the limestone church, designed in the Gothic Revival style, had begun in November 1867. The church was built by the Redemptorists, a Roman Catholic order founded by Liguori. After racial integration in 1947, the church congregation membership became heavily African-American.
by Michael R. Allen
Blunt challenged about deals he wants to make – Virginia Young (St. Louis Post-Dispatch, August 19)
In an unusually specific resolution calling for a new version of the economic development omnibus bill he vetoed in July, Missouri Governor Matt Blunt has called the Missouri Legislature back to a special session beginning Monday.
One of the sections of the bill that remains on the table is the Distressed Areas Land Assemblage Tax Credits. In the new version, a land assembler — there are no meaningful provisions in the bill to guarantee development — would have to acquire a minimum of 50 acres within a 75 acre redevelopment area in order to receive a credit for 50% of land acquisition costs and 100% of interest, maintenance and demolition costs.
As rewritten, only one person in Missouri seems to qualify — developer Paul J. McKee, Jr. Republican leaders are calling the reduction in acreage requirements from 75 to 50 a big move that opens the possibility of competition, but the reality is that in an urban area where a city block is usually less than one acre 50 acres is nearly impossible. No matter, according to one legislator — McKee is a saint:
The sponsor, Sen. John Griesheimer, R-Washington, Mo., said he believed the new proposal satisfies concerns that the program was designed for one man. Griesheimer added that McKee “ought to be nominated for sainthood” for investing in decaying areas of St. Louis.
by Michael R. Allen
The Bearded Babies play at last night’s show. Photo by Sean Thomas.
Last night’s benefit concert at the Tin Ceiling for the stabilization of the Mullanphy Emigrant Home raised $1,900. Coupled with the news last week that the St. Patrick’s Day Committee is donating $3,000 to the Historic Mullanphy Alliance and that reconstruction of the foundation under the south wall will start next week, and there is serious momentum afoot.
Music by the Bearded Babies, the Monads and the Red-Headed Strangers began at 8:00 p.m. and kept people dancing, singing and smiling until well after midnight. The concert was the work of Lindsey Derrington (one of my colleagues at Landmarks Association), brothers Jeff and Randy Vines of STL Style renown, Andrew Weil (another colleague) and others. The Historic Mullanphy Alliance’s co-chairs, John Burse and Claire Nowak-Boyd, deserve credit for keeping the effort alive amid countless other neighborhood tasks in Old North and the demands of private life.
Church set to rebuild – Aisha Sultan (St. Louis Post-Dispatch, August 18)
For more information contact:
Ald. Ford-Griffin – 941-0186; Ald. Davis – 680-9168
Rep. Oxford – 775-8940; Rep. Nasheed – 409-5730
Alderwomen, Representatives Conduct Tour of McKee Properties
Targeted for Controversial Distressed Areas Land Assemblage Tax Credit
ST. LOUIS – Several local and state elected officials joined today to request changes in a proposed “distressed areas land assemblage tax credit†(DALATC) headed for debate in the special legislative session Gov. Matt Blunt has called for Aug. 20. Alderwoman April Ford-Griffin (Ward 5), Alderwoman Marlene Davis (Ward 19), Rep. Jamilah Nasheed (St. Louis City, D-60), and Rep. Jeanette Mott Oxford (St. Louis City, D-59) said that a better tax credit proposal should be designed in cooperation with area residents and presented for full discussion in the 2008 legislative session.
In the 2007 session, the General Assembly passed House Bill 327, an omnibus economic development bill containing the Quality Jobs Act, DALATC and other tax credits to various industries. Gov. Matt Blunt later vetoed that bill. Much controversy arose shortly before the May 18 adjournment of the General Assembly and in the weeks since as to whether DALATC was conceived as a tax credit to benefit one particular developer, Paul McKee.
Numerous media and internet reports have noted that the City of St. Louis is cutting high weeds and grass and clearing trash from more that 500 properties owned by McKee on approximately 150 blocks of the 5th and 19th wards. McKee is reimbursing the city for this maintenance, but some say city workers are needed at other nuisance properties and should not be diverted to maintain the McKee properties. Others question the methods used by McKee in obtaining parcels of land.
“Much positive development is already happening in the 5th Ward,†said Ford-Griffin. “If Mr. McKee would like to join the vibrant efforts that are already underway, he should show area residents the respect of doing so in an open fashion, sharing information freely and receiving their input instead of operating behind closed doors.â€
“Speaker of the House Rod Jetton has said that our part of the city is a setting fit for urban warfare training,†said Davis. “He ignores the $700 million in development that has taken place in the 5th ward and $1.5 billion invested in the 19th.â€
Ford-Griffin, Davis, Nasheed and Oxford invited all Missouri state senators and representatives from the St. Louis Region to join the Aug. 16 bus tour of the area targeted for the tax credit. They said it was imperative that legislators learn about the existing redevelopment plan, see the properties and hear from area residents firsthand before casting their votes.
Rep. Nasheed said: “This is a historic piece of legislation, and our colleagues from the St. Louis City delegation should think seriously about their vote, because as currently drafted, this proposal could be devastating for north St. Louis.â€
“The health of my district in south St. Louis is directly connected to the health of north side districts,†said Rep. Oxford. “We are one community and will sink or swim together. Our best chance for success is an honest and open process wherever development projects are undertaken.â€
Davis, Ford-Griffin, Nasheed, and Oxford all said they were pro-development, but wanted to see some changes from the original form of the DALATC bill. The elected officials and community leaders speaking at today’s press conference and tour called for the following to considered during the special session:
• Reduction of the project size so more developers may compete for the credit.
• A requirement that any development plan approved be consistent with the existing redevelopment plan for a ward.
• Historical preservation safeguards.
• Allowing more than one developer to work in each project area.
• Requiring community input into the redevelopment plan.
Tour organizers pledged to continue working on improving the bill. They also said area residents had been asking for a public forum on the McKee properties, and that such a forum has been set for Thursday, Aug. 30, 6 p.m. at Vashon High School. Paul McKee will be invited to attend to share his vision for development in the 5th and 19th wards.
# # #
State Representatives Jeanette Oxford and Jamilah Nasheed and Alderwomen April Ford-Griffin and Marlene Davis distributed a version of this document at a press conference on August 16, 2007.
What we know about the Blairmont companies
Paul J. McKee, Jr., is a developer who is chairman of McEagle Properties LLC (636-561-9300), a company specializing in large-scale planned mix-use developments, including Winghaven in St. Charles County. McEagle has never undertaken a project in the city of St. Louis. McKee is also vice chairman of BJC Healthcare, board member of Enterprise Bank & Trust Company and a board member of the National Privatization Council.[1]
The first of McKee’s north side holding companies was incorporated in June 2002. Ten separate companies acquiring property in the Near North Side have been traced to McKee: Blairmont Associates LC, VHS Partners LLC, Sheridan Place LC, N&G Ventures LC, Noble Development Company LLC, MLK 3000 LLC, Allston Alliance LC, Dodier Investors LLC, Babcock Resources LC and Path Enterprise Company LLC.[2] McKee’s companies are represented by Eagle Realty Company (314-421-1111).
An unprecedented scale of acquisitions
Purchases began in June 2003 and continue to this day.[3] The total number of parcels in north St. Louis owned by these companies was 662 at the end of June 2007.[4] The companies own property on over 150 different blocks.
The holding companies has purchased land from private individuals and churches as well as the Board of Education. His companies have not purchased land from the city government. Early purchases consisted largely of vacant properties, but most purchases since 2006 have involved occupied houses. In February 2007 McKee stated he was only interested in acquiring “abandoned buildings in the unpopulated areas of north St. Louis.”[5] Since that statement, he has continued to purchase occupied buildings.
Neighborhoods affected include all of Old North St. Louis, all of St. Louis Place and most of JeffVanderLou. The project includes most of the 5th Ward, a significant section of the 19th Ward and a small number of scattered parcels in the 3rd and 6th wards of the city of St. Louis. The project lies within the 58th and 60th Missouri Legislative Districts as well as in the 5th Missouri Senatorial District.
The properties are located within the boundaries of three national historic districts (Murphy-Blair, Mullanphy, Clemens House-Columbia Brewery) and include properties that contribute to at least two potential historic districts.
A record of neglect
The holding companies only purchase vacant properties, insisting that tenants in occupied buildings be evicted prior to sales.
The holding companies have failed to maintain his properties, causing city government to spend over $260,000 since 2004 to maintain their properties (the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that the companies still owe $37,000 of this figure to the city).[6] These properties have been cited for hundreds of healthy and safety code violations, and one of his companies was even sued by the Building Division.[7] Many are located adjacent to rehabilitated or newly-constructed homes, and homeowners have repeatedly complained about adverse affects. In some cases, Blairmont owns one or two vacant properties on blocks that are full of occupied buildings or near elementary schools (Ames and Columbia).
A record of secrecy
McKee’s companies have yet to release plans, concepts or ideas about any planned development to the public, or to the aldermen who represent the affected area. While surrounding his plans with secrecy, he is asking for one of the largest tax credits in Missouri history to subsidize continued purchases. After residents of north St. Louis uncovered McKee’s identity, he issued a public statement saying that he was “surprised that citizens wanted to broadcast who was behind the acquisitions” that have damaged their communities.[8] Despite recent attention, Paul McKee still refuses to directly answer questions from the press and elected officials about his plans.
Impediment to development
The holding companies tie up an inventory of neglected historic buildings that they are unwilling to sell to interested potential homeowners. Holdings are often located adjacent to properties that are being renovated. Significant rehabilitation work is underway in Old North St. Louis and St. Louis Place in particular, where remaining buildings are difficult to find for future home and business owners. Properties owned by McKee are preventing people from investing in the future of these areas. Vacant properties generate minimal tax revenue and economic activity, while rehabbed buildings create immediate economic impact.
References
1. McEagle Properties website, http://www.mc-eagle.com/experience/people.asp
2. List of Blairmont Companies, http://www.eco-absence.org/blairmont/companies.htm
3. Land Record, Office of the Recorder of Deeds, City of St. Louis.
4. Michael Allen, “McKee’s Holdings Ready for Development,” http://ecoabsence.blogspot.com/2007/07/mckees-holdings-ready-for-development.html
5. Lisa Brown, “Evolution of the ‘CAVE man’,” St. Louis Business Journal, February 16, 2007.
6. Jake Wagman, “Developer pays city to ‘treat’ eyesores,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, July 30, 2007.
7. Jake Wagman, “Manor with murky ties to Twain is a mess,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, November 24, 2005.
8. Lisa Brown, “Evolution of the ‘CAVE man’,” St. Louis Business Journal, February 16, 2007.
State Representatives Jeanette Mott-Oxford (D-59th) and Jamilah Nasheed (D-60th) are hosting a press conference and tour tomorrow, Thursday August 16, to showcase the how properties owned by developer Paul J. McKee, Jr. on the north side have created detrimental conditions within and served as an impediment to the ongoing development of the JeffVanderLou, St. Louis Place and Old North St. Louis neighborhoods.
This is your opportunity to hear from the persons who know this issue best, elected officials and residents of the 5th and 19th wards. Alderwoman April Ford-Griffin and Alderwoman Marlene Davis will be on hand to share information about the McKee properties and redevelopment efforts underway in their wards. The event starts at a tent at 2950 Montgomery at 10 a.m., where elected officials and residents will make statements. A bus tour of the wards begins at 10:30 a.m..
Here are directions to the meeting site: From I-44 or Highway 40, take the Grand exit and go north. From I-70, take the Grand exit and go south. Montgomery is one block south of St. Louis Avenue. Go east on Montgomery to the tent and bus at 2950. Call 314-775-8940 if you need further directions.