Local News
New Apartments Pitched for Kingshighway and I-64 Seek Big Tax Break

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Earlier this year, a nonprofit research center determined that in just the past six years, the tax breaks given to developers have cost St. Louis city and county public schools more than $260 million. While the tax increment financing, or TIF, districts granted by the city have become less common in recent years, many developers have shifted to tax abatements instead.
NorthPoint Development, a Kansas City-based commercial real estate developer, recently applied to the St. Louis Development Corporation for tax abatement on a property halfway between Barnes-Jewish Hospital and the Grove district. According to city records, the abatement request is for 20 years, at 90 percent abatement for the first 10 years, and 50 percent in years 11 through 20.
The developer plans for a modern-style complex with apartment unit options ranging from studios to two bedrooms at the infamous block of 1070-1092 South Kingshighway Boulevard and 4575 Oakland Avenue, where dust still settles on what many city residents consider an egregious case of demolition by neglect.
Asked about their plans for the site, a spokesperson for NorthPoint Development said in a statement, “In alignment with city regulations and our commitment to safety, we secured an emergency demolition permit and began demolition of the condemned buildings on the site last month. We are currently working through the development approval process with the City of St. Louis and Forest Park Southeast as we work towards our goal of constructing a multi-family community.” click to enlarge VIA CITY RECORDS This rendering shows the apartment complex planned for the South Kingshighway site.
The Riverfront Times requested a follow-up interview to further discuss the development, but did not hear back from NorthPoint Development.
In order to obtain information regarding developer proposals, a citizen must submit a Sunshine Request through the public records center on the city website.The city has not updated its publicly available data set of tax abated parcels since 2018. Gadfly Gerry Connolly, who closely tracks development issues, sought and obtained the records in this case and shared them with the RFT.
A Developer Portal exists for developers to apply for tax incentives and track the incentives process, but the public does not have access to a similar portal.
The proposed tax break faces a four to six week approval process. First, the Land Clearance for Redevelopment Authority will review the project for initial approval of a blighting study and redevelopment plan. If approved by the LCRA, someone on the Board of Aldermen could introduce a board bill at the aldermanic session that begins on April 17.
The goal of tax abatements is to incentivize development in blighted or severely underdeveloped areas.
According to the Economic Justice Action Plan, the city’s economic development guide, the area near the intersection of Kingshighway and I-64 is categorized so that future development “should be geared toward supporting workforce development, small business development and encouraging affordable housing.”
The developer has not stated how they plan to directly address the need for affordable housing in the area. According to 2020 census data, the Forest Park Southeast neighborhood increased in population by 19 percent since 2010, but suffered a 33 percent decrease in Black population.
NorthPoint will host its next Apartments Community Engagement Meeting with an open house on Saturday, April 20, from 10 a.m. to noon at Saint Louis University High School’s Currigan Room, 4970 Oakland Avenue.
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Fenton Man Charged in Sword Attack on Roommate

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A warrant is out for a Fenton man’s arrest after he allegedly attacked his roommate with a sword.
Police say that on Sunday, Angelus Scott spoke openly about “slicing his roommate’s head” before he grabbed a sword, raised it up and then swung it down at the roommate.
The roommate grabbed Scott’s hand in time to prevent injury. When police arrived at the scene, they found the weapon used in the assault.
The sword in question was a katana, which is a Japanese sword recognizable for its curved blade.
This isn’t the first time a samurai-style sword has been used to violent effect in St. Louis. In 2018, a man hearing voices slaughtered his ex-boyfriend with a samurai sword. His mother said he suffered from schizoaffective disorder.
As for Scott, 35, the St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office was charged yesterday with two felonies, assault first degree and armed criminal action. The warrant for his arrest says he is to be held on $200,000 bond.
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Caught on Video, Sheriff Says He’s Ready to ‘Turn It All Over’ to Deputy

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Video of St. Louis Sheriff Vernon Betts taken by a former deputy suggests that the sheriff has a successor in mind to hand the reins of the department over to, even as Betts is in an increasingly heated campaign for reelection.
“I ain’t here for all this rigmarole,” Betts says in the video while seated behind his desk at the Carnahan Courthouse. “The Lord sent me here to turn this department around and I’m doing the best I can and I think I’ve done a good job. I’ve got about eight months and I’m going to qualify for my fourth pension.”
He goes on, “Right now I can walk up out of here and live happily ever after and forget about all this…and live like a king.”
The sheriff then says his wife has been in Atlanta looking at houses and that the other deputy in the room, Donald Hawkins, is someone Betts has been training “to turn it all over to him.”
Asked about the video, Betts tells the RFT, “My future plans are to win reelection on August 6th by a wide margin and to continue my mission as the top elected law enforcement official to make St. Louis safer and stronger. Serving the people of St. Louis with integrity, honor and professional law enforcement qualifications is a sacred responsibility, and I intend to complete that mission.”
The video of Betts was taken by Barbara Chavers, who retired from the sheriff’s office in 2016 after 24 years of service. Chavers now works security at Schnucks at Grand and Gravois. Betts’ brother Howard works security there, too.
Chavers tells the RFT that she was summoned to Betts’ office last week after Betts’ brother made the sheriff aware that she was supporting Montgomery. It was no secret: Chavers had filmed a Facebook live video in which she said she was supporting Betts’ opponent Alfred Montgomery in the election this fall. “Make the judges safe,” she says in the video, standing in front of a large Montgomery sign on Gravois Avenue. “They need a sheriff who is going to make their courtrooms safe.”
In his office, even as Chavers made clear she was filming him, Betts told Chavers he was “flabbergasted” and “stunned” she was supporting Montgomery.
“I don’t know what I did that would make you go against the preacher man,” he says, referring to himself. He then refers to Montgomery as “ungodly.”
Betts goes on to say that not long ago, he was walking in his neighborhood on St. Louis Avenue near 20th Street when suddenly Montgomery pulled up in his car and, according to Betts, shouted, “You motherfucker, you this, you that. You’re taking my signs down.”
Montgomery tells the RFT that he’s never interacted with Betts outside of candidate forums and neighborhood meetings.
“I don’t think anyone with good sense would do something like that to a sitting sheriff,” Montgomery says.
Montgomery has had campaign signs missing and on at least two occasions has obtained video of people tearing them down. (Chavers notes that the sign that she filmed her original Facebook video in front of is itself now missing.)
One man who lives near Columbus Square says that he recently put out two Montgomery signs, which later went missing. “If they keep taking them, I’ll keep putting them up,” he said.
Betts says he has nothing to do with the missing signs. In the video Chavers filmed in Betts’ office, Betts says that his campaign isn’t in a spot where it needs to resort to tearing down opponents’ signs.
“If you sit here long enough, a man is getting ready to come across the street from City Hall bringing me $500, today,” Betts says. “I’m getting that kind of support. I don’t need to tear down signs.”
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St. Louis to Develop First Citywide Transportation Plan in Decades

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The City of St. Louis is working to develop its first citywide mobility plan in decades, Mayor Tishaura Jones’ office announced Tuesday. This plan seeks to make it easier for everyone — drivers, pedestrians, bikers and public transit users — to safely commute within the city.
The plan will bring together other city projects like the Brickline Greenway, Future64, the MetroLink Green Line, and more, “while establishing new priorities for a safer, more efficient and better-maintained transportation network across the City,” according to the release.
The key elements in the plan will be public engagement, the development of a safety action plan, future infrastructure priorities and transportation network mapping, according to Jones’ office.
The overarching goals are to create a vision for citywide mobility, plan a mixture of short and long-term mobility projects and to develop improved communication tools with the public to receive transportation updates. In recent years, both people who use public transit and cyclists have been outspoken about the difficulties — and dangers — of navigating St. Louis streets, citing both cuts to public transit and traffic violence.
To garner public input and participation for the plan, Jones’ office said there will be community meetings, focus groups and a survey for residents to share their concerns. The city will also be establishing a Community Advisory Committee. Those interested in learning more should check out at tmp-stl.com/
“Everyone deserves to feel safe when getting around St. Louis, whether they’re driving, biking, walking or taking public transit,” Jones said in a news release. “Creating a comprehensive transportation and mobility plan allows us to make intentional and strategic investments so that moving around St. Louis for jobs, education, and entertainment becomes easier, safer and more enjoyable.”
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