Tag: City of St. Louis

Updated Mo & St. Louis City Candidate Qualifications, Requirements

2026 is an election year. In Missouri, State Auditor and all US House of Representative seats are up. In St. Louis City, there’s an election for State Senator (open seat due to term limits); all State House seats; County offices of Collector of Revenue, License Collector, Recorder of Deeds; Board of Alders President and all even numbered ward Board of Alders seats; a Community College seat representing southwest City; and two School Board seats up in November.

I tried to update the blog page for information on running for public office in St. Louis City and Missouri but there’s missing information because…

  • City of St. Louis Board of Election Commissioners (appointed by Governor) has not updated their website with information on Spring 2026 filing dates and City does not follow the Missouri Election Calendar which would have had candidate filing open November 4-25. Board President and half of the Board of Alder seats will be on March 3rd ballot
  • St. Louis School Board has no information on November candidate filing process and neither does Board of Election
  • St. Louis Community College Board of Trustees has no information on April Subdistrict 3 candidate filing process and neither does Board of Election

Sinquefields Donate to Nexus PAC. Again

Man with giant green money bag

Updated 11/28/2025 with additional information from Missouri Ethics Commission: Contributions TO Progress PAC, St. Louis City Board President Megan Green; St. Louis City Comptroller Donna Baringer; and dozens to electeds outside of St. Louis City as well as other PACs; plus October contributions FROM developer McCormack Baron Salazar and airport concessionaire OHM KCI JA LLC. Also added a note about Nexus PAC Treasurer’s failure to recuse himeself from economic development board votes benefiting Nexus PAC donors.

Free market, anti tax, school privatization evangelists and high roller campaign contributors Rex and Jeannne Sinquefield made a $25,000 donation this week to Nexus PAC (not their first), the legal campaign money laundry for Nexus Group, a prominent lobbying shop in Missouri.

Some of Nexus Group’s current and past clients include various school privatization organizations (that’s probably what the Sinquefield money is for), Airbnb Inc, and developers.

But wait. There’s more.

The Treasurer for Nexus PAC is attorney Matthew McBride. McBride also sits on a number of economic development boards for the City of St. Louis. He chairs the St. Louis City Port Authority Commission and also serves on the City’s St. Louis Development Corporation Board, Enhanced Enterprise Zone Board, Land Clearance for Redevlopment Authority, Planned Industrial Expansion Authority.

Preservation Square redeveloper McCormack Baron Salazar is a donor to Nexus PAC but McBride failed to abstain or recuse himself on economic development board votes relating to Preservation Square.

These are powerful entities that authorize corporate welfare for developments. Sometimes these boards act on their own and sometimes what they adopt then goes on to the Board of Alders for approval. Sometimes these boards grant more incentives after Alders have acted, a breathtaking lack of transparency.

Clear to a lot of us who follow the corporate welfare sausage making machine in St. Louis, the treasurer of a PAC that legally launders money from developers, someone who writes campaign checks to City elected officials, should not be appointed to boards, let alone boards with elected officials as members, with millions of dollars in incentives for developers on the table.

But here we are. No one at City Hall seems to see a problem with all this conflict of interest.

The only thing that makes sense, sadly, in all this is Rex Sinquefield donating a lot of money to a PAC for lobbyists who not only represent school privatization interests but also developers who seek tax abatement, which is taking money away from public school kids who Sinquefield despises.

2023-October 2025 Nexus PAC Funders
10/07/2025 $10,000 McCormack Baron Salazar (developer)
09/29/2025 $10,000 OHM KCI JA LLC (airport concessions)
09/23/2025 $25,000 Rex and Jeannne Sinquefield
07/29/2025 $20,000 Nexus Group
05/21/2025 $5,000 McCormack Baron Salazar (developer)
03/28/2025 $10,000 Paric Holdings (developer)
02/24/2025 $2,500 OHM KCI JA LLC (airport concessions)
10/29/2024 $40,000 Paric Holdings (developer)
09/30/2024 $16,000 Rex and Jeannne Sinquefield
09/12/2024 $1,000 Invenergy Transmission
09/12/2024 $2,000 Invenergy Transmission
08/12/2024 $6,000 Invenergy Transmission
07/31/2024 $1,000 Invenergy Transmission
07/19/2024 $10,000 Nexus Group
02/07/2024 $2,000 Shelter Insurance, Columbia MO
02/01/2024 $4,000 Shelter Insurance, Columbia MO
01/25/2024 $4,000 Shelter Insurance, Columbia MO
12/18/2023 $6,000 Invenergy Transmission
12/11/2023 $10,000 Paric Holdings (developer)
12/05/2023 $2,000 Nexus Group
11/28/2023 $10,000 Nexus Group
11/13/2023 $15,000 Rex and Jeannne Sinquefield
09/26/2023 $10,000 Paric Holdings (developer)
06/16/2023 $10,000 Paric Holdings (developer)
05/05/2023 $10,000 Paric Holdings (developer)
03/20/2023 $2,000 McCormack Baron Salazar (developer)
02/09/2023 $2,000 Shelter Insurance, Columbia MO
01/27/2023 $4,000 Shelter Insurance, Columbia MO
01/25/2023 $4,000 Shelter Insurance, Columbia MO

2023-October 2025 Nexus PAC Contributions to St. Louis City Electeds
09/30/2025 $2,500 Progress PAC, St. Louis City Board President Megan Green
09/29/2025 $1,600 St. Louis City Comptroller Donna Baringer
06/26/2025 $1,000 St. Louis City Comptroller Donna Baringer
06/17/2025 $2,500 Progress PAC, St. Louis City Board President Megan Green
05/07/2025 $2,500 Progress PAC, St. Louis City Board President Megan Green
04/02/2025 $500 St. Louis City Alder Shane Cohn
03/31/2025 $5,000 A Brighter Future for St Louis PAC, St. Louis City Mayor Cara Spencer
02/28/2025 $2,500 314 Forward PAC, former St. Louis City Mayor Tishaura Jones
02/25/2025 $5,000 Progress PAC, St. Louis City Board President Megan Green
01/23/2025 $500 St. Louis City Treasurer Adam Layne
01/16/2025 $1000 St. Louis City Alder Anne Schweitzer
10/29/2024 $5,000 Progress PAC, St. Louis City Board President Megan Green
10/29/2024 $2,000 St. Louis City Board Prez Megan Green
10/29/2024 $1,000 St. Louis City Alder Shane Cohn
10/29/2024 $1,000 St. Louis City Alder Daniela Velazquez
10/07/2024 $500 St. Louis City State Rep Marty Joe Murray
10/07/2024 $2,400 accused rapist and St. Louis City State Senator Steven Roberts Jr
12/27/2023 $1000 St. Louis City Alder Daniela Velazquez
12/04/2023 $5,000 STL Democratic Coalition, appears to be connected to accused rapist and St. Louis City State Senator Steven Roberts Jr, former State Rep Wiley Price, former Sheriff Vernon Betts; $60,893.08 on hand
04/07/2023 $500 St. Louis City Alder Pam Boyd
03/24/2023 $500 St. Louis City Alder Laura Keys
03/05/2023 $500 St. Louis City Alder Rasheen Aldridge
02/23/2023 $500 St. Louis City Alder Shameem Clark-Hubbard

2023-October 2025 Nexus PAC Contributions to candidates and PACs elsewhere in Missouri and other states
09/30/2025 $2,000 St. Louis County State Senator Tracy McCreery
09/30/2025 $2,000 St. Louis County State Senator Brian Williams
09/30/2025 $500 St. Louis County State Rep Raychel Proudie
09/29/2025 $1,000 Atlanta GA Mayor Andre Dickens
09/04/2025 $2,000 MAGA Warren County State Rep Jeff Myers
08/27/2025 $2,400 Conservative Solutions for Missouri PAC, MAGA Jefferson County State Senator Mary Elizabeth Coleman (now owns a $1.9M home in Central West End, St. Louis City)
08/27/2025 $2,400 Boone County State Senator Steve Webber
08/27/2025 $2,400 MAGA Scott County State Senator Jamie Burger
08/27/2025 $2,400 MAGA Cole County State Senator Jake Vogel
08/27/2025 $2,400 MAGA St. Francois County State Senator Mike Henderson 
08/27/2025 $2,400 MAGA 1776 PAC
08/27/2025 $2,400 MAGA  Pettis County State Rep Brad Pollitt, now candidate for State Senate
08/27/2025 $1,000 Boone County Commissioner Kip Kendrick, former State Rep
08/27/2025 $1,000 MAGA Lake of the Ozarks State Rep Jeff Vernetti ( also a developer)
08/27/2025 $1,000 MAGA Mid-Missouri Conservative PAC
08/27/2025 $1,000 MAGA Dunklin County State Rep Cameron Bunting Parker
08/27/2025 $1,000 MAGA St. Charles County State Rep Travis Wilson
08/27/2025 $1,000 MAGA Butler County State Rep Hardy Billington
08/27/2025 $500 MAGA St. Charles County State Rep Dave Hinman
08/27/2025 $500 MAGA St. Charles County State Rep Terri Violet
08/27/2025 $500 MAGA Cass County State Rep Bill Irwin
08/27/2025 $500 MAGA Clay County State Rep  Mark Meirath
08/27/2025 $500 MAGA Jefferson County State Rep Cecelie Williams
08/27/2025 $500 MAGA St. Charles County State Rep Scott Miller
03/31/2025 $1,250 Kansas City Councilwoman Ryana Parks-Shaw, candidate for KC Mayor
01/09/2025 $2,400 MAGA Jefferson County State Senator Mary Elizabeth Coleman
11/22/2024 $500 MAGA Lake of the Ozarks State Rep. Jeff Vernetti (also a developer)
10/29/2024 $2,825 MAGA Governor Mike Kehoe
10/18/2024 $2,000 MAGA St. Louis County State Rep Brad Christ
10/07/2024 $2,500 Homefront PAC, Boone County State Senator Steve Webber
10/07/2024 $2,400 MAGA Linvingston County State Senator Rusty Black
10/07/2024 $2,000 Great Northwest PAC (MAGA Livingston County State Senator Rusty Black)
10/07/2024 $2,400 St. Louis County State Senator Doug Beck
10/07/2024 $2,000 DougPAC, St. Louis County State Senator Doug Beck
09/26/2024 $500 Jesus Oset, failed MAGA candidate for Boone County Circuit Judge
09/18/2025 $250 St. Louis County State Rep Mark Boyco
09/18/2025 $500 St. Louis City State Rep Nick Kimble
09/11/2024 $2,000 Kansas City State Rep Ashley Aune
09/03/2024 $2,400 MAGA Stone County MAGA State Senator Brad Hudson
09/03/2024 $2,400 MAGA St. Charles County State Senator Adam Schnelting
08/12/2024 $500 152 Freedom PAC (could not find this in MEC database, address is a UPS store in Poplar Bluff, probably related to MAGA State Rep Hardy Billington)
08/09/2024 $1,000 MAGA Jasper County State Rep Lane Roberts
08/09/2024 $1,000 MAGA Hannibal State Rep Louis Riggs
08/09/2024 $1,000 MAGA Jefferson County State Rep Renee Reuter
08/09/2024 $1,000 MAGA Kansas City State Rep Sean Pouche
08/09/2024 $1,000 MAGA Lincoln County State Rep Doyle Justus
08/09/2024 $1,000 MAGA Clay & Platte Counties State Rep Josh Hurlbert
08/09/2024 $1,000 MAGA Jasper & Newton Counties State Rep Bob Bromley
07/23/2024 $2,400 MAGA Ozark County former State Rep Travis Smith
07/19/2024 $825 MAGA Jasper County former State Rep Cody Smith
07/19/2024 $1,500 America Forward
07/10/2024 $1,000 MAGA Reynolds County former State Rep Chris Dodson Dinkins
07/10/2024 $1,000 MAGA Scott County State Senator Jamie Burger
07/10/2024 $1,000 MAGA Newton & McDonald Counties State Rep Dirk Deaton
07/10/2024 $2,400 Jackson County Leadership PAC, MAGA State Senator Mike Cierpiot
07/10/2024 $2,400 MAGA St. Francoise County State Senator Mike Henderson
07/10/2024 $2,400 Kansas City State Senator Patty Lewis
07/10/2024 $500 MAGA St. Charles County State Rep Travis Wilson
07/10/2024 $500 MAGA Jefferson County State Rep David Casteel
07/10/2024 $500 MAGA Warren County State Rep Jeff Meyers
07/10/2024 $500 Kansas City State Rep Wick Thomas
07/08/2024 $1,000 North County Solidarity PAC (Walton Family- Elbert, Rochelle)
12/23/2023 $2,500 MAGA former Attorney General Andrew Bailey
12/04/2023 $5,000 DougPAC, St. Louis County State Senator Doug Beck
12/04/2023 $5,000 B PAC, St. Louis County State Senator Brian Williams
11/16/2023 $500 MAGA Greene, Christian and Webster Counties State Rep Darin Chappell
11/16/2023 $1,000 Kansas City Councilwoman Ryana Parks-Shaw, candidate for KC Mayor
11/16/2023 $1,000 St. Louis County State Senator Tracy McCreery
11/16/2023 $1000 MAGA Warren County State Rep Jeff Meyers
11/16/2023 $1000 MAGA St. Louis County former State Rep John Diehl
11/16/2023 $2,400 Clay County State Senator Maggie Nurrenbern
11/16/2023 $2,000 Eastside Forward PAC, Kansas City State Senator Barbara Anne Washington
11/16/2023 $2,000 MAGA St. Charles County State Senator Nick Schroer
11/16/2023 $2,000 MAGA Clay and Ray Counties former State Rep Doug Richey
11/16/2023 $2,000 MAGA Saline County State Senator Kurtis Gregory
11/16/2023 $2,500 Missouri United, former St. Louis County MAGA State Rep Dean Plocher
11/16/2023 $2,500 Lincoln PAC, MAGA Springfield State Senator Lincoln Hough
11/16/2023 $2,825 MAGA Buchanan and Platte Counties State Senator Tony Luetkemeyer
10/09/2023 $500 MAGA St. Charles State Rep Travis Wilson
10/06/2023 $1,000 Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee’s campaign for Mayor of Houston
09/28/2023 $2,500 Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee’s campaign for Mayor of Houston
09/14/2023 $2,500 MAGA Springfield State Senator Lincoln Hough
09/06/2023 $1,000 MAGA former Independence State Rep Robert Sauls
09/06/2023 $1000 MAGA Hannibal State Rep Louis Riggs
09/06/2023 $1000 MAGA Kansas City State Rep Sean Pouche
09/06/2023 $1,000 MAGA Clay & Platte Counties State Rep Josh Hurlbert
08/29/2023 $1,000 North County Solidarity PAC (Walton Family- Elbert, Rochelle)
08/29/2023 $1,000 Six County PAC, MAGA pac based in St. Francois County, helped elect Elaine Gannon to Missouri Senate
08/02/2023 $1,000 MAGA Springfield State Rep Alex Riley
08/02/2023 $500 MAGA Dunklin County State Rep Cameron Bunting Parker
08/02/2023 $500 MAGA Lee’s Summit State Rep Jon Patterson
06/25/2023 $1,000 Kansas City Councilwoman Melissa Patterson Hazley
05/16/2023 $1,000 Kansas City State Senator Barbara Washington
05/08/2023 $2,500 MAGA former Attorney General Andrew Bailey
05/04/2023 $2,500 Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson
03/24/2023 $500 former Bellefontaine Neighbors Mayor Tommie Pierson Sr
01/26/2023 $2,400 Columbia State Senator Steve Webber
12/27/2022 $2,500 Page PAC, St. Louis County Executive Sam Page

Returned or Not Delivered Nexus PAC Donations
10/29/2024 $2,825 MAGA former Attorney General Andrew Bailey (reported 07/14/2025)
10/07/2024 $1,900 Boone County State Senator Steve Webber (reported 10/10/2025)
07/08/2024 $1,500 St. Louis City Alder Shameem Clark-Hubbard (reported 07/14/2025)
09/26/2024 $500 Columbia State Rep Steve Webber (reported 12/02/2024)
01/08/2024 $2,175 MAGA former Attorney General Andrew Bailey (reported 04/05/2024)
12/21/2023 $2,825 MAGA Jasper County former State Rep Cody Smith (reported 07/26/2024)
11/16/2023 $2,000 MAGA Livingston County State Senator Rusty Black (reported 07/26/2024)
11/16/2023 $2,000 MAGA Callaway County State Senator Travis Fitzwater (reported 07/26/2024)
10/12/2023 $5,000 United We Stand PAC, connected to Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas (reported 01/16/2024)
10/31/2023 $2,400 MAGA State Rep, unsuccessful Secretary of State candidate Dean Plocher (reported 01/16/2024)
09/28/2023 $1,000 St. Louis County Executive Sam Page (reported 07/26/2024)
09/28/2023 $500 St. Louis City Alder Daniela Velazquez (reported 01/16/2024)
09/12/2023 $1000 Tri-County PAC, not listed in MEC database, might be Professional Firefighters of Tri-County PAC, (reported 01/16/2024)
02/21/2023 $500 St. Louis City Alder Pam Boyd (reported 04/17/2023)
03/09/2022 $1000 ATL for All (reported 02/27/2023)
06/16/2022 $500 MAGA former Caldwell County State Rep Randy Railsback (reported 02/27/2023)
11/28/2022 $1,000 MAGA St. Charles County State Senator Nick Schroer

St. Louis City Needs Tax District Reform

Man with giant green money bag

I am posting the written testimony submitted by Gerry Connolly to St. Louis City Board of Alders Housing and Urban Development Committee on Board Bill 19 to create two single-site tax districts for luxury living Jefferson Arms, a Community Improvement District and Transportation Development District.

Gerry is right about both the Board make up of these tax districts and the need for tax district reforms, which former Missouri State Auditor Nicole Galloway also recommended in 2019.

In the 2024-25 Board of Alders session, a special committee was created to look into special tax districts, but nothing came of it. The committee was not even renewed for the 2025-26 session.

If you’re on Bluesky, search #TransparencyFail. Most of the posts are about St. Louis City Special Tax Districts (or Local Tax Districts (LTDs) if you’d prefer not to use STDs).

Also check out the ProPublica series: “Policing in St. Louis. Private Policing Firms Patrol Wealthy Neighborhoods” about neighborhood tax districts.

Gerry’s testimony

“Please consider this recommendation to amend Board Bill 19 as follows: change the composition of the boards to ensure that representatives of the developer of property in the Jefferson Arms CID/TDD do not constitute a majority of the board. Officials representing City of St. Louis government should make up a majority of seats on the board. 

BB 19 specifies the CID shall have five board members, the City of St. Louis should therefore have three representatives on the board. 

I have included below an except from my written testimony on the FY 2026 Budget/Operating Plan which outlines eight recommendations to reform the Local Taxing Districts in the City of St.Louis.

  • Budget testimony item 7: Eight reforms for the BOA to enact for Local Taxing Districts (LTDs) It is possible that changes to Missouri law will be necessary in order to accomplish some of the recommendations. The budgets of the 100 plus LTDs in the City likely exceed $50 Million, with taxes and/or special assessments imposed on the public. The vast majority of LTDs operate routinely in violation of Missouri Sunshine law.
  1. Enact all recommendations of the 2019 Missouri Auditor’s report on LTDs. The audit report is available online (See pages 9 – 18 for recommendations)
  2. Place all policing duties funded by LTDs under the command of SLMPD.
  3. Extend community oversight of surveillance technology to all LTDs.
  4. A representative of the following must be appointed to the board of all single-site LTDs: Mayor, Board of Aldermen and Comptroller.
  5. Prohibit developers from controlling single-site districts.
  6. Document all City of St. Louis resources allocated to the LTDs. Such resources include: (i) City funds expended on projects of the LTDs. (ii) city staff attending LTD meetings. (iii) work performed by city staff to support the activities of LTDs. (Examples of city staff: SLMPD personnel when working for the City; Neighborhood Improvement Specialists).
  7. Establish robust Conflicts of Interest regulations for people serving on the boards and committees of LTDs.
  8. Establish a limit on the number of LTD boards on which one person can serve. (Some individuals serve on at least five LTD boards)”

I Sunshined a Record from Governor’s Office, Sigh

I have been trying since January 15, 2025, to find out which St. Louis business organization(s) or business trade association(s) nominated Darryl Gray to the Missouri Workforce Development Board.

Missouri Governor Mike Kehoe’s office, which I contacted on January 16th, says I can expect the record(s) on or before January 31st and they will let me know if the cost is over $50. January 31st would be eleven days after my email to Sunshine@governor.mo.gov.

Letter from Governor Mike Kehoe's Office

I worked for decades in public records preservation and public access. My ass would have been fired if I had told a customer that it might take eleven days to retrieve a record.

The person handling this Sunshine request is Jordan Roling, Deputy General Counsel, a seasoned member of the Missouri Bar since… July 2024.

Roling’s previous jobs, per LinkedIn, were Assistant Tennis Coach at Helias Catholic High School in Jefferson City and summer internships at the Cole County Prosecutor’s Office and U.S. Department of Homeland Security during law school at Mizzou.

Roling’s most recent job, per Missouri Ethics Commission records, was working on the campaign of Mike Kehoe, now his boss as Governor, at $2,500 a month since August plus mileage.

Back to Darryl Gray. He has a business- Gray and Gray Associates, a political consultant business. I wrote about it here. It’s a side story to the Mayor Tishaura Jones v. Sonya Gray, Personnel Director battle. The Mayor is trying to fire her for cause. Sonya Gray is wife of Darry Gray and was, until October 28th, agent for Gray and Gray Associates.

And allow me to insert here that this whole Jones v. Gray thing would not be news click bait if mayors of the City of St. Louis had the authority to hire and fire any cabinet level appointee. The Personnel Director and Police Chief do not serve at the pleasure of the Mayor in St. Louis under the City’s arcane Charter. You want to hold Mayor Tishaura Jones accountable for the Personnel Department or Police Department, hiring and crime? Sorry. The Charter has a confusing chain of command for both. Blame the Charter Commission and Alders for not sending a fix for this mess to voters.

Back to Darry Gray. He was nominated to serve on the Workforce Development Board under former Governor Mike Parson, appointed by Parson. There’s a weird subplot involving accused rapist State Senator Steven Roberts trying to derail nominations. Of course there is.

Darryl Gray holds a “Business Representative” seat on the Board, meaning, per Board’s By Laws, he had to be nominated by one or more local business organizations and business trade associations.

I am trying to find out which business group nominated him. It seems odd that a business group nominated a political consultant to Democratic candidates. Workforce Development Board does not require a parity of political parties. Even more peculiar, a MAGA Governor appointed a Democratic consultant.

The Workforce Development Board said it did not have records. I emailed a Sunshine request to them on January 15th and heard back next day. They didn’t bother to tell me who else to ask for the record(s). This sort of thing annoys me because when I worked at City Hall, a county office, we were not allowed to say, “not my job.” We had to find the correct resource and refer, give the customer the contact info and, if by phone, try and tranfer them.

Since this is a former governor appointment, I decided to email the Governor’s Office regardless of the change in occupants. I had no idea the request would be handled by a recent tennis coach/political campaign worker.

This qualifies as a Sunshine Fail, in my opinion.

Charter Amendments. Sigh.

Old black and white photo of St. Louis City Hall

The St. Louis City Board of Alders Legislation and Rules Committee set aside two hours of their 28 day summer vacation to hold in-person plus virtual option hearings on Board Bills to send voters seven Charter Amendments.

The meeting is set for 2 pm Today, Tuesday, July 23rd. The time allotted would appear to be seventeen minutes each Charter Amendment for presentation by Alder sponsor and then pro-con testimony. Absurd. I can see why people would just ignore it.

I have not reviewed all of these Board Bills thoroughly yet but here are some of my notes on these proposed Charter Amendments.

City Counselor Appointment and Removal– Board Bill 60 by Alder Bret Narayan. Changes City Counselor appointment from mayoral appointment to mayoral appointment with consent of Board of Alders. Allows Board of Alders to remove City Counselor for cause with a 2/3 vote.

I do not have strong feelings about this proposal at this time. Doubt Board of Alders will ever have 2/3 vote to do much of anything other than approve corporate welfare. The Charter Commission or Alders should have looked at the whole issue of City Counselor working for Mayor but providing legal counsel to all departments and offices, including other elected offices, and in charge of compliance with State and City Sunshine Laws (cough cough).

Create Transportation Department– Board Bill 61 by Alder Michael Browning. Changes Streets Department to Transportation Department and moves Excise Division (Liquor Licenses) from Public Safety Department to new Transportation Department. Removes engineer qualification for Director of Streets, new Transportation Department.

I oppose this ballot issue because I believe all department heads should have qualifications other than “knows the mayor” and I believe Transportation Director should be an engineer. The removal of engineer qualification looks suspiciously like an effort to help one person move up the ladder. I think the part about removing engineer qualification should be in the ballot language and it’s not.

Creating Office of Public Advocacy– Board Bill 71 by Alder Daniela Velazquez. This whole thing is a hot mess and I will write at length about it later. Well intentioned. Good idea. Poor execution.

Changes Who Decides Hikes in Fines/Fees– Board Bill 72 by Alder Daniela Velazquez. Allows fines and fees to be set by Board of Alders instead of citywide ballot vote. Hard NO.

Changes Election Date and Screws Public Schools– Board Bill 75 by Alder Shane Cohn, Alder Daniela Velazquez, Board President Megan Green. This Charter Amendment would move municipal elections from March and April to August and November. This would leave School Board elections to low turnout and allow groups and persons such as Rex Sinquefield to run the table in electing school privatization slates. Voters defeated this proposal in 2017.

There is a lot more to Board Bill 75 and it’s mostly all bad. Will have more to blog on this later.

Changes name of Board of Alders to City Council– Board Bill 76 by Alder Shane Cohn, Alder Daniela Velazquez, Board President Megan Green. This amendment does a lot of things that would be good- changing pronouns to titles for example. But changing the name of the Board to Council will just lead to confusion and should have been left out. I will write more on this later.

Gives Board of Alders Power to Reorganize City Departments Without Public Vote on Charter Amendments – Board Bill 77 by Alder Alisha Sonnier. Hard NO. Fix the Charter. Board of Alders does not deserve more power to do things poorly.

Community Mobility Committee- Request for Emails

I made a Sunshine request for records relating to communications among members of the St. Louis Community Mobility Committee created by Resolution 233 in 2020. It appears that one or more voting members believe the Committee is not subject to Sunshine Laws and desire the Committee to detach itself from the City of St. Louis in order to not be subject to Sunshine Laws.

The Community Mobility Committee is scheduled to meet 1 pm Tuesday, July 16th, to receive Sunshine training in… Closed Session.

The request was made for emails over the last weekend and specific to one nonvoting member of the Community Mobility Committee. That was necessary because of the City’s not helpful by design Sunshine Portal. The Portal only acknowledges certain departments and agencies for document requests and one at a time. The Portal does not acknowledge the Committee.

The Community Mobility Committee uses a Google Group for communication between members, both voting and nonvoting members. A number of City employees are nonvoting members of the Committee or otherwise included in the Google Group, including but not limited to former Alder Christine Ingrassia, now Director or Operations, Board of Alders President Megan Green; John P. Kohler, P.E., Planning and Programming Manager; Grace Kyung, Senior Strategic Initiatives Manager for Mayor Tishaura O. Jones; Andrew Lackey, Deputy Commissioner, Office of the Disabled; former Alder Scott Ogilivie, now the Program Manager for Complete Streets at City’s Planning and Urban Development Agency; Betherny Williams, Director, Department of Streets; Jamie Wilson, P.E., Traffic Commissioner.

I chose to make a request for records received by Ogilivie. Random choice.

STL City Charter Commission Fail, Again

Burn it all down.

Vote against anything proposed by the St. Louis City Charter Reform Commission. It has proven itself unworthy of the trust and votes of St. Louisans.

It’s been Transparency Fail after Transparency Fail, the latest related to 4:30 pm Tonight’s Commission Special Meeting.

I know. I know. We’re supposed to give the Sunshine violations a pass because we personally like some of the Commissioners and some of the ideas they’ve been exploring.

I know. I know. We’re supposed to give them a pass because they’re volunteers.

Nope. It’s a dumpster fire. Let it go down in flames.

Tonight’s Meeting has a notice on the City’s Public Meetings Calendar that was posted on June 20th. But like so many Charter Commission meetings before it, there was no Agenda posted online at least 24 hours in advance of the meeting.

Missouri’s Sunshine Law (610.020) requires public notice at least 24 hours in advance for public meetings and that notice shall include an Agenda. It is a very weak law that does not require the Notice and Agenda be posted online. That’s where St. Louis City’s Sunshine directives come into play here. Executive Order 60 and City Ordinance mandate the public meeting notices required by state law be posted to the online City Public Meeting Calendar.

8:58 am Today, over 16 hours past the deadline for required 24 hours Meeting Notice with Agenda, after much dragging on Twitter about the missing Agenda and need to cancel and reschedule meeting because of noncompliance with City Sunshine requirements, the Charter Commission added an Agenda to the meeting notice on City Calendar. We know this because the Public Meetings Calendar notices have Time/Date stamps for creation and editing at the end of the entry.

Then, and this really has my blood boiling, this afternoon, mere hours before the 4:30 pm meeting, the Commission dumped a 38 page “Meeting Packet” pdf on the documents page created for the Agenda. There is no way of knowing exact time this happened because document pages have no Time/Date stamp.

Time and time again, this Commission has failed to be transparent- lack of Minutes for subcommittees, Meeting Notices with Agendas posted late or never, Meeting Minutes of the Commission that do not reflect the meetings, etc.

And don’t get me started on the writing failures in the proposed Charter amendments.

Let this thing die.

STL City Budget Hearing Fail, Public Denied Opportunity to Speak

Old black and white photo of St. Louis City Hall

The Budget Committee of the Board of Alders (BOA) had a public hearing today, June 5th, 2024, on the 2025 Budget for the City of St. Louis. The hearing, per its City Calendar Notice, was to include public testimony both in person at City Hall and by Zoom. At least two Alders participated by Zoom.

6th Ward resident and local government transparency advocate Gerry Connolly planned to testify by Zoom. He confirmed his participation with BOA staff. He wrote his notes. He logged on to the hearing.

The hearing began with Mayor Tishaura Jones presenting on her office’s budget. Then it was time for public testimony. But Budget Chair Cara Spencer announced a recess. People who had taken time off from work to make their voice heard were told they would have to wait 39 minutes.

When the Budget Committee reconvened, Alders heard in person public testimony. Then it was time for testimony by Zoom. It was Gerry’s turn. I’m not sure how many others had planned to testify via Zoom.

But Gerry was not allowed to speak. No Zoom testimony was taken. No explanation was given. It was yet another Sunshine Fail, Transparency Fail at City Hall.

Gerry was told he could submit comments by email. He was angry, and rightfully so, but he hurridly transformed his notes for three minutes of testimony into written, expanded comments.

Since Gerry’s testimony is not available as a part of the online public record, and while the Budget Committee Chair may not be interested in what he has to say, others may be interested. I asked him if I could publish his testimony on my blog and he agreed. I have made a few edits for formatting purposes and add links.

Below is Gerry’s testimony on 2025 Budget for City of St. Louis which he submitted by email.

———-

Gerry Connolly.
6th Ward resident
38xx Botanical Ave
St. Louis, MO 63110

June 5, 2024

Honorable members of the Budget and Public Employees Committee,

I had planned to provide this testimony via Zoom at today’s Budget Committee meeting. However, due to the fact the committee failed to take any public testimony today via Zoom, I am submitting my comments in writing. 

Public Testimony in opposition to Board Bill 1

I am testifying against Board Bill 1. The City should allocate financial resources from within the budget as recommended by the Board of E and A necessary to implement the policy recommendations described in items 1 through 7 below.

  • 1) Fix the City’s “Sunshine portal, The Public Records Center, which hasn’t been consistently functional for 6 months. Make the responsive records of all city government bodies available in the Public Records Archive. The St. Louis Development Corporation (SLDC) and St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department (SLMPD) currently do not make records available to the general public in the Public Records Archive. Only requesters may view responsive records via their portal user accounts.There may be additional City entities that do not make records available to the general public.
  • 2) Open government and transparency must be consistent across city government. The Board of Aldermen (BOA) must update the decade old transparency ordinance:
    1. Post meeting recordings to Youtube for government entities currently missing. These include the Airport Commission, Affordable Housing Commission, Mental Health Board and Senior Fund.
    2. Standardization of meeting notices, both physical and online. The official agenda (not just the text) must include the resolutions to be voted upon. The meeting packet must include the draft minutes of prior meetings, if applicable. All other documents utilized during a meeting should be posted online. The BOA’s posting of many budget presentations on the BB 1 webpage should serve as a model for all departments.
    3. The following city bodies do not operate consistently in a transparent manner: Board of Estimate and Apportionment (E and A); Charter Commission, Reparations Commission and Detention Facilities Oversight Board. The persistent violation of Missouri Sunshine Law by the Board of E and A is cause for alarm. The Board of Aldermen’s silence on the Sunshine violations by the Board of E and A has been noted.
  • 3) Continue to reform of how development incentives are awarded. Ordinance 71620 was a step forward in the system for awarding tax breaks to development projects. However Ordinance 71620 (BB 64 in the 2022-23 BOA session) had major flaws that subsequent legislation has only addressed in part (See BB 98 and BB 236 in the 2023-24 BOA session). More changes to the ordinance are needed.  All provisions in Ordinance 71620 must be enforced by the BOA. SLDC did not follow the mandated procedures for the 15 projects, with development costs over $10 Million, that were approved in the 2023-24 BOA session. The non-compliance included a failure to consult St. Louis Public Schools (SLPS) and affected tax districts. Every effort must be made to shield SLPS from the impact of tax breaks.
  • 4) All development incentives must be authorized by an ordinance approved by the BOA. Incentives that presently do not require approval by ordinance include, but are not limited to:

    1. Bond issuances authorized by the Land Clearance for Redevelopment Authority (LCRA), Planned Industrial Expansion Authority (PIEA), Industrial Development Authority (IDA) and Port Authority.

    2. Certain tax abatements authorized by the Port Authority Commission (PA) and Enhanced Enterprise Zone Board (EEZB).

    3. New Markets Tax Credit (NTMC) program, currently authorized by the SLDC board of directors.
  • 5) The Land Reutilization Authority’s lot sales policy must be modified. In 2023, the Land Reutilization Authority adopted new sales policies for LRA-owned property, per the recommendation of SLDC staff. In the category of sale of lots for the purpose of building one home, a lot whose area is less than 4,000 sq. ft. is ineligible for sale under the new policy. LRA eliminated the opportunity to provide housing, strengthen the fabric of a neighborhood and grow the city’s tax base.

    The LRA sales policy must be modified in order to restore the ability of homebuilders to purchase lots under 4,000 sq. ft. and construct much-needed housing.

    The Jones administration, SLDC and the Community Development Agency (CDA) frequently cite the Economic Justice Action Plan (EJAP) as a guide for City policy and program spending. SLDC included citations from the Economic Justice Action Plan (EJAP) in the LRA board resolution adopting the new sales policies.

    It is noteworthy that the EJAP planning process, conducted by consultants to SLDC, did not include the participation of the general public or Board of Aldermen. Only narrowly focussed public outreach was performed.

    I have not heard an explanation of the rationale behind the new sales policy in any setting- SLDC website, development board meetings or at BOA committee meetings. The BOA should investigate this matter.
  • 6) All fee revenues from SLDC’s Sales Tax Exemption Fund should be transferred to the City’s General Fund and included in the annual appropriation to the Affordable Housing Commission
  • 7) Eight reforms for the BOA to enact for Local Taxing Districts (LTDs). It is possible that changes to Missouri law will be necessary in order to accomplish some of the recommendations.

    1. The budgets of the 100 plus LTDs in the City likely exceed $50 Million with taxes and/or special assessments imposed on the public. The vast majority of LTDs operate routinely in violation of Missouri Sunshine law. Enact all recommendations of the 2019 Missouri Auditor’s report on LTDs. Read the audit report here (See pages 9 – 18 for recommendations)

    2. Place all policing duties funded by LTDs under the command of SLMPD.

    3. Extend community oversight of surveillance technology to all LTDs.

    4. A representative of the following must be appointed to the board of all single site LTDs: Mayor, Board of Aldermen and Comptroller.

    5. Prohibit developers from controlling single site districts.

    6. Document all City of St. Louis resources allocated to the LTDs. Such resources include:

    (i) City funds expended on projects of the LTDs.
    (ii) City staff attending LTD meetings.
    (iii) Work performed by City staff to support the activities of LTDs. (Examples of City staff: SLMPD personnel when working for the City; Neighborhood Improvement Specialists).

    7. Establish robust Conflicts of Interest regulations for people serving on the boards and committees of LTDs.

    8. Establish a limit on the number of LTD boards on which one person can serve. (Some individuals serve at least five LTD boards).

    I would be happy to discuss the above recommendations by phone, in-person or at a committee meeting. My contact information is below.

    Thank you for your consideration.

    Gerry Connolly

    cc Honorable members of the Board of Aldermen
         President Megan Green
         Clerk Terry Kennedy
         Mayor Tishaura O. Jones
         Comptroller Darlene Green
         Budget Director Paul Payne