Learn about the heated debate surrounding a developer’s proposal to revitalize St. Louis’s Northside and the concerns raised by local businesses and government officials.
An empty lot at the southeast corner of Interstate 70 and Goodfellow Boulevard is the former location of the St. Louis Army Ammunition Plant, seen on Thursday, Jan. 11, 2024.David Carson, Post-Dispatch
After the city said no to a lucrative opportunity by developer giant Clayco’s pitch, to bring jobs and life to the poorest angle of the northside. Both a local business interests and Neal Richardson, President & CEO, of the St. Louis Office of Development Corporation, had some defensive narratives for the citizens of St. Louis.
And the crazy part is I haven’t driven by the area in years, and I didn’t even know the old buildings had been demolished.
More conversations were going on about this news story. however, I felt it was best to allow Neal to say his piece. But before I get to them, let’s go back to last week’s headlines.
Clayco’s chief pitched a major project for a north St. Louis lot. The city said no.
Steph Kukuljan Jan 18, 2024 STL Today
ST. LOUIS — On a desolate, city-owned plot of 16½ acres in north St. Louis, Bob Clark saw the future of one of his companies.
Clark, founder of construction giant Clayco, wanted to move the headquarters of a subsidiary to the lot. The company, Concrete Strategies, would add dozens of jobs and a facility to train the next generation of tradespeople, Clark said. He even envisioned some retail shops there, along the six-lane Goodfellow Boulevard at Interstate 70.
The city’s economic development agency said no.
“It doesn’t guarantee any retail development,” Rob Orr, the agency’s senior vice president of real estate development, told Clark’s partner in an email. “It doesn’t check any of our boxes to be honest.”
Orr and other St. Louis Development Corp. officials are looking to turn the property, the site of the former St. Louis Army Ammunition Plant, into retail. The neighborhood is a “services desert,” they said, and residents want groceries, restaurants and other shops.
STAY WITH ME NOW:
But Clark, a developer for 40 years, said the area, which is largely poor and losing more residents than it’s gaining, can’t support the retail the city is seeking.
“I was shocked that they didn’t call us or send a letter and say, ‘Hey, we’d like you to come in and tell us more about your proposal and we’ll tell you more about what we want,’” Clark told the Post-Dispatch. “But instead they just said, ‘Your proposal is inadequate.’”
The situation is illustrative of the disconnect between economic development agencies, which aim to deliver transformational projects for their communities, and business leaders, who argue that cities’ aspirations often are too lofty for market realities.
The lower the income and housing values are, the less money people have to spend at retailers and the less likely retailers will open. The divide often leaves property vacant, residents unhappy and no one satisfied.
The region saw a similar situation play out recently in north St. Louis County. Jamestown Mall sat vacant for seven years before a developer in 2021 announced plans to demolish the property in favor of a large-scale warehouse development that included some retail. The area’s councilwoman, Shalonda Webb, opposed the project, saying nearby residents wanted mixed retail or a community center, something more “suitable for a residential community.”
Clayco and its partners proposed building an office and industrial complex at 4800 Goodfellow Boulevard where it planned to house the headquarters of Concrete Strategies, a training facility for the trades and a truck maintenance facility. The developers also proposed building nearly 60,000 square feet of retail space to front Goodfellow in order to meet St. Louis Development Corp.’s requirements.Courtesy of Clayco
Now here is what Jarred Holst of Partner at Riezman Berger P.C. & Founder/President of 1904Group had to say:
What would you do if it was your job to revitalize North St. Louis and one of the top private companies in STL offered to build a $30M HQ providing 50 jobs and a minority job training center in one of the poorest communities in the United States?
Say NO?
That’s exactly what the St. Louis Development Corporation (SLDC) said to a subsidiary of Clayco.
I seriously thought April Fool’s Day came early.
Their rationale for turning down the project was the price point and the fact that it was not a retail development. Two steps forward and three steps back.
I’m sorry but we do not have the luxury of being picky in areas that have lacked these types of developments for over 1/2 century.
The surrounding community needs to see companies investing in their neighborhood. This causes a domino effect where other developers like myself then follow up with more investments in those areas.
A waterfall begins with a single drop of water.
Only so many lifelines are offered before they are taken away (see parable of the drowning man).
The St. Louis Development Corporation (SLDC) says they are holding out for a better proposal. For a site that has been vacant for +25 years, I do not share the same optimism.
St. Louis City residents need results NOT pipe dreams!
Neal Richardson, MBA
L. Jared Boyd
Megan-Ellyia Green
And here is Neal’s response:
Jarrad, this is the false narrative that continues to set our region backward and continues to divide us. The proposal didn’t meet the permitted uses for the site as presented by Clayco or speak to the goals of the RFP that was released by SLDC. SLDC offered them additional sites in North City that would be more appropriate for their proposal and meet the requirements of the City’s Strategic Land Use Plan. But they didn’t entertain any of the proposed sites. So is Clayco at fault as well for not being willing to entertain the sites offered to build an HQ for a subsidiary? I wouldn’t put that blame on them or the City. As you know development opportunities in a private-public partnership have to work for the community and the developer.
As a city, we have to consider long-term development opportunities and the comprehensive nature of how all areas of the City are redeveloped, guided by existing neighborhood plans adopted by the Planning Commission.
I am hoping that the city doesn’t give up on this project and as a lifelong citizen of St. Louis, the land is just there. Just there! Utilize it, or wait another 50 years as it sits vacant.