Demolition to bring development
St. Louis Globe-Democrat
April 15, 2010
by Lisa Watson
The scheduled demolition of a building at Ripa Avenue and South Broadway Street in South County was postponed Thursday, but the St. Louis County Economic Council met on the site to celebrate planned development there.
"We're going to tear this building down; it really was detrimental to the neighborhood," said Sheila Sweeney, chairperson of the St. Louis County Port Authority and of the St. Louis County Economic Council. "We're going to tear it down so we can build up."
The St. Louis County Port Authority owns the land and expects to use most of the $4 million in rent from the recently opened River City Casino to help develop the area. Three quarters of the funds will stay in the Lemay community, and the remaining 25 percent will be invested in projects countywide.
"As we work on this corridor, it really is becoming the entrance (to the area)," Sweeney said.
The land, located on a busy stretch of South Broadway, is a good commercial property, Sweeney said. The plans for what might go there are still in development.
"So many people talked about this for years and thought it would never happen," said St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley.
"It's good for citizens and it's good for businesses," Dooley said.
The demolition will begin Friday.
