Lambert business park begins to take wing Developers will start drafting plans next week for prized 600 acres

From the July 30, 2004 print edition of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch
By Eric Heisler of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch

A much-discussed idea for a $400 million business park with 12,000 jobs near Lambert Field is about to be tested in the private sector. Planning for the 600-acre industrial and office park has been led for several years by government officials, who've hashed out a rough design through sometimes heated discussion. But next week, private developers will get a crack at the project, one of the largest job-creation efforts for St. Louis County in decades.

In crafting plans for the park, developers will seek to reuse a former residential area that was emptied in an airport noise buyout. As directed by the county, their mission will be to turn the site into a rare find in built-out St. Louis County: open land suited for industry. "This land has issues, but there's really no open ground like it in St. Louis County of that size and potential," said Paul McKee, chairman of McEagle Development, a developer in O'Fallon, Mo. "But there's not much you can do with it the way the land is now. It will take a lot of work and investment."

McEagle, developer of the WingHaven community in St. Charles County, is among the 16 developers expected to submit proposals for all or parts of the park. The company plans to partner with TriStar Business Communities of Chesterfield.

Eventually, the county hopes that the park will have a $7 billion economic impact. An estimated $57 million in tax increment financing would help to overcome several obstacles. Despite its prime location near the airport and several major highways, the site has seen several failed development attempts. Those efforts were harmed by fighting among Kinloch, Ferguson and Berkeley -- all with a stake in the park -- and were tainted by a land scam, where investors were cheated out of millions of dollars.

Until the early 1980s, much of the land was filled by neighborhoods of modest houses. At that time, the city of St. Louis began acquiring the homes in a buyout required by the Federal Aviation Administration. FAA regulations prevent the land from being used for houses but allow commercial use.

Redevelopment is complicated by the way the city demolished some of the houses, crushing them into the ground and covering them with dirt. Another challenge is converting the land for commercial use. "It's a residential grid pattern, and it's hilly," said Jackie Wellington, vice president of the St. Louis County Economic Council. "You can't put big commercial buildings there without completely flattening the land out."

After the three cities sputtered in their attempts to develop separate parks, George R. "Buzz" Westfall, the late county executive, stepped in. Under political pressure, the three cities said they'd work together, and a development committee was formed to pursue the project. The committee has crafted a loose plan, and it will issue its request for developer's proposals next week. This year, it will choose a developer or a group of developers and sell the land to them. The developer will construct buildings and roads on the site and recruit companies to the park.

County officials hope the park will draw employers that otherwise would locate in outlying suburbs or in other metro areas. "If a company wants a large tract of reasonably priced ground and they don't want to go in the floodplain, they're not going to be able to find a spot in St. Louis County right now," said Denny Coleman, president of the economic council. "That's why we're putting forward this extraordinary effort."

The park planned for east of Lambert Field is likely to include . . . Jobs: 12,000 Total investment: $412 million Size: 600 acres Property and income-tax revenue: $320 million Economic impact: $7 billion Public funding: $57 million in tax increment financing

SOURCE: ST. LOUIS COUNTY ECONOMIC COUNCIL
Republished with the permission of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch
2004 St. Louis Post-Dispatch
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