Constructive engagement in North City

From the St. Louis American . Thursday, June 19, 2008

It was roughly a year ago that independent reporting by Michael R. Allen on land assemblage in North St. Louis appeared on the front page of the Post-Dispatch under Jake Wagman's byline. An Old North resident and urban conservation activist, Allen had done an exhaustive amount of research that connected a large number of apparently independent land acquisitions to developer Paul McKee Jr. The Post story tied McKee's veiled real estate investments to a bill in the state Legislature that would benefit a developer with a portfolio very much like McKee had assembled in North St. Louis.

An activist's hints at dark conspiracies by a powerful developer appeared, almost unbelievably, on the front page of the Post-Dispatch, which is usually friendly to any suggestion of economic development and this City Hall. McKee's maintenance of his North City properties and his intentions for the land have been constant sources of speculation and demagoguery ever since.

Candid conversations with other developers have turned up puzzlement over the especially harsh treatment McKee has received. They acknowledge that it is standard operating procedure to assemble land covertly and attempt to influence legislation that will provide tax credits for redevelopment in an urban context. They also know it is rational to keep your development plans close to your chest until all of the critical pieces are in place to move forward. They were puzzled that the Post story and much media attention that followed upon it have been lacking in context and a sense of realpolitik.

A set of primary elections in Missouri are coming up on August 8, with an historic general election on November 4. There are signs that community pressure and the need for additional investment, both financial and political, will lead McKee to disclose more of his plans in the coming months. We urge candidates for office - including Attorney General Jeremiah