This Week in Gardening & Nature

Thru Nov 6th Seedfolks at Grandel Theater. A 9-year-old Vietnamese girl plants bean seeds in a trash-filled, vacant lot and starts a series of changes. Tickets

Brightside St. Louis still has some daffodils and tulips for sale. 30 for $17.

Missouri Fall Color Report and Illinois Fall Color Report

10 am Tuesday Horticulture Trolley Tour @ Bellefontaine Cemetery. Two-hour trolley tour led by a Master Guide sharing horticulture and arboretum highlights. Tickets $5 Register

5:30 pm Tuesday Heartland Conservancy Prairie du Point Watershed Informational Open House, Kappa House, Cahokia Hts, IL. Register

10 am Wednesday Seed St. Louis and St. Louis County Public Library Workshop: Container Gardening. Jamestown Bluff Library. Register

4 pm Wednesday Grow Native Missouri Zoom Master Class: The Seed Cycle: Native Seed Collection, Stratification, Propagation with Mike Hoyle, manager, Missouri Wildflowers Nursery. Free: MPF members and Grow Native Professional Members. $15: non-members. Register

4 pm Thursday Grow Native Missouri’s FINCA EcoFarm Tour and Native Edibles Tasting @ Lincoln University, Jefferson City. Register

9 am Saturday ForestReLeaf Fall Tree Planting, Ruth Porter Park, St. Vincent Greenway, West End. Volunteers Wanted. Register

7:45 pm Saturday Missouri Conservation Department’s Night Shift Walk to the Confluence, Columbia Bottom Conservation Area. 3 Tickets Remaining. Register

3:30-5 pm Nov 7th Missouri Conservation Department’s Beaver Moon Stroll at the Confluence, Columbia Bottom Conservation Area. 12 Tickets remaining. Register

6 pm Nov 9th Old North’s Northside Workshop Support the Bee Sanctuary FR at Turn Restaurant, Midtown. Tickets: $50

5-7 pm Nov 10th Seed St. Louis Urban Ag Happy Hour at Schlafly Tap Room, 2100 Locust No program. No agenda. Just fun and making connections.

9 am Nov 12th ForestReLeaf North Riverfront Mississippi Greenway Tree Planting. Volunteers Wanted. Register

10 am Nov 19th Seed St. Louis In Person Workshop: Utilizing the School Garden in Winter. At Carriage House, Bell Community Garden, 3815 Bell. Register

4 pm Nov 23rd Missouri Prairie Foundation Online Master Class Wasps: The Astonishing Diversity of a Misunderstood Insect Free to Mo Prairie Foundation members & Grow Native Missouri professional members. $15 for non-members. Register

Join us Sundays on Twitter for #GardenSunday with host @stl7thward to interact with other outdoor and indoor gardeners and nature enthusiasts, ask questions, give answers, share photos.

Lawyers of TIF Donations to Alders

This survey includes campaign contributions reported to Missouri Ethics Commission, for report years 2019 to 2022 to date, to current members of the St. Louis City Board of Alders and interim Board President, regardless of what office, if any, is identified as their office sought.

This survey includes only campaign contributions by the major law firms engaged in development incentives, tax abatement, and tax increment financing, that I am aware of, and attorneys at those firms, regardless of whether their practice includes corporate welfare. Contributions are reported here regardless of whether the attorney today practices at the firm identified in MEC records.


There are links to law firm bios when the contributor is known to work for corporate welfare. When an attorney is also a lobbyist, there is also a link to their MEC lobbyist registration.

Contributions to Alders and the Board President who have vacated office over past four years- and there were a lot- are not included.

Contributions to ward organization- and there were some- are not included.

Contributions of amounts lower than $100 and not itemized by the candidate are not included, obviously.

Husch Blackwell (law firm)
2022 Jack Coatar $2,600 + Jack PAC $10,000
2021 Jack Coatar $2,600, Tom Oldenburg $2,600
2020 Jack Coatar $1,000
2019 Christine Ingrassia $500

Husch Blackwell (attorneys)
David Richardson
2022 Jack Coatar $1,000
2021 Jack Coatar $1,000
2019 Christine Ingrassia $250
Scott Hammell
2022 Tom Oldenburg $1,000
Steven McCandless
2021 Tom Oldenburg $500
Patrick Eckelkamp
2021 Tom Oldenburg $500

Lewis Rice (attorneys)
Bri Hoy
2019 Anne Schweitzer $250
Lucas Jackson
2022 Jack Coatar $250
Alfred Ludwig
2021 Cara Spencer $200
Jerina Phillips
2022 Megan Green $500
David Sweeney (lobbyist)
2022 Pam Boyd $500, Shameem Clark Hubbard $100 + $100, Jack Coatar $250 + $1,500 + $100, Michael Gras $250, Megan Green $500 + $500, Anne Schweitzer $100 + $200, Joe Vaccaro $500
2021 Jack Coatar $250, Tom Oldenburg $500
2020 Jack Coatar $200
2019 Dan Guenther $100, Bret Narayan $150, Joe Vaccaro $100, Joe Vollmer $250

Thompson Coburn (law firm)
2022 Jack Coatar $2,600

Thompson Coburn (attorneys)
Elizabeth Feldmeir
2021 Tom Oldenburg $1,000
Chris Hohn
2021 Tom Oldenburg $1,000
Jarrod Sharp
2021 Tom Oldenburg $1,000
Celeste Vossmeyer
2021 Cara Spencer $250 + $1,000
2020 Megan Green $500
William Kuehling (lobbyist) now private practice, previously at Thompson Coburn
2021 Cara Spencer $2,000 + $250
2020 Jack Coatar $100 + $100
2019 Carol Howard $250, Cara Spencer $250

Spencer Fane (attorneys)
Jack Coatar
2021 Cara Spencer $250
Bradford Cytron
2022 Jack Coatar $1000
James Dankenbring
2022 Jack Coatar $1,000 + $1,000
Robert Epstein
2022 Jack Coatar $200
Elizabeth Felker
2022 Jack Coatar $100
Jason Flower
2022 Jack Coatar $250
Arthur Gregg
2022 Jack Coatar $150
Gerald Greiman
2022 Jack Coatar $1,000 + $1,000 +$1,000
2021 Jack Coatar $250 + $500
2020 Jack Coatar $1,000 + $500
Thomas Jerry
2022 Jack Coatar $250
2021 Jack Coater $200
James Loranger
2022 Jack Coatar $150
Jessica Merrigan
2022 Anne Schweitzer $250
2020 Anne Schweitzer $50 + $250
2019 Anne Schweitzer $250
Robert Preston
2022 Jack Coatar $250 + $250
Francis Slay (former lobbyist)
2020 Jack Coatar $125
2020 Anne Schweitzer $200
Erik Solverud
2022 Jack Coatar $250

Also see Aldergeddon: October MEC Reports

Aldergeddon: October MEC Reports

October campaign finance reports were due October 17th. Where “None” is shown for this report, it means none filed to date. Where Limited Activity for October was filed, the next report showing activity is also used. Where the last report showing activity is older than 2022, only on hand and debt amounts are shown. Links are to the candidate’s campaign finance or political action committee page at Missouri Ethics Commission.

New 1st Ward
Current 12th Ward Alder William ‘Bill’ Stephens, October 2022 Report- Limited Activity (late). September 2022 Report, State Rep 81st District- $500 raised, $2,515.84 spent, $2,686.15 on hand, $5,108.16 debt. Note: now says it is a State Rep 81st District 2024 account
Current 13th Ward Alder Anne Schweitzer, October 2022 Report, Alder- $2335 raised, $84.43 spent, $35,967.89 on hand, $0 debt

New 2nd Ward
Current 14th Ward Alder Carol Howard Termination Report: $0 raised, $1,312.60 spent (mostly to her treasurer), $0 on hand, $0 debt. October 2022 Report, Alder- $0 raised, $333.20 spent, $1,312.60 on hand, $0 debt
Current 16th Ward Alder Thomas R Oldenburg, October 2022 Report, Alder- $0 raised, $10,911.54 spent (mostly to Kelley Group), $31,787.12 on hand, $0 debt

New 3rd Ward
Current 11th Ward Alder James ‘Jimmy’ P Lappe, October 2022 Report, Alder- Limited Activity. July 2022 Report, Alder- $1,575 raised, $1,096.21 spent, $1478.79 on hand, $0 debt
Current 25th Ward Alder Shane Cohn, October 2022 Report, Alder- $1,525 raised, $787.85 spent, $3,483.09 on hand, $0 debt

New 4th Ward
Current 23rd Ward Alder Joseph A Vaccaro Jr, October 2022 Report, Alder- $8,035 raised, $1,404.60 spent, $13,566.65 on hand, $540.309 debt
Current 24th Ward Alder Bret Narayan, October 2022 Report, Alder- $3,952.84 raised, $0 spent, $5,857.89 on hand, $0 debt

New 5th Ward
Current 10th Ward Alder & Acting Board President Joseph Vollmer, October 2022 Report, Alder- Limited Activity. July 2022 Report, Alder- $0 raised, $600 spent, $19,560.85 on hand, $0 debt

New 6th Ward
Current 8th Ward Alder Annie Rice, October 2022 Report, Alder- $0 raised, $117 spent, $1,908 on hand, $0 debt
Current 15th Ward Alder Megan Ellyia Green, October #2 2022 Report, Board President- Limited Activity. October #1 2022 Report, Board President- $68,584.95 raised, $70.458.98 spent, $40,769.25 on hand, $0 debt. Affiliated PAC Progress PAC, October 2022 Report, Board President- $3,875 raised, $153.08 spent, $3,721.92 on hand, $0 debt

New 7th Ward
Current 6th Ward Alder Christine Ingrassia, October 2022 Report, Alder- Limited Activity. July 2019 Report, Alder- $2,474.33 on hand, $5,800 debt

New 8th Ward
Current 7th Ward Alder John ‘Jack’ Coatar, October #2 2022 Report, Board President- $36,225 raised, $71,884.32 spent (mostly to consultants including Kelley Group), $138,012.29 on hand, $0 debt. October #1 Report, Board President- $116,604.18 raised, $119,651.90 spent (mostly to consultants including Kelley Group), $174,171.61 on hand, $0 debt. Affiliated PAC Jack PAC, October 2022 Report, Board President- $54,134 raised, $500 spent, $96,138.34 on hand, $0 debt
Current 9th Ward Alder Dan Guenther, October 2022 Report, Alder- Limited Activity. January 2022 Report, Alder- $200 raised, $798.95 spent, $8,586.50 on hand, $0 debt
Current 20th Ward Alder Cara Spencer, October 2022 Report, Alder- None. July 2022 Report, Alder- $0 raised, $566.17 spent, $8,400.82 on hand, $0 debt

New 9th Ward
Current 17th Ward Alder Tina Pihl, October 2022 Report, Alder- Limited Activity. July 2022, Alder- $175 raised, $679.92 spent, $1,346.88 on hand, $86.72 debt
Current 28th Ward Alder Michael Gras, October Report, Alder- None. July 2022, Alder- $750 raised, $1,752.01 spent, $460.66 on hand, $6,779.27 debt

New 10th Ward
Current 26th Ward Alder Shameem Clark Hubbard, October 2022 Report, Alder- $8,935 raised, $9,159.84 spent (including golf cart for “events and canvassing), $3,548.49 on hand, $7,952.66 debt

New 11th Ward
Current 19th Ward Alder Marlene Davis, October 2022 Report, Alder- Limited Activity (filed late). July 2021 Report, Alder- $13,440 on hand, $0 debt
Current 21st Ward Alder Laura Keys, October 2022 Report, Alder- $0 raised, $0 spent, $229.53 on hand, $0 debt. Affiliated PAC 21st Ward Organization, October 2022 Report, Alder- Limited Activity. April 2021 Report, Alder- $1,248.58 on hand, $0 debt

New 12th Ward
Current 1st Ward Alder Sharon Tyus, October 2022 Report, Alder- None. July 2021 Report, Alder- $21,257 on hand, $24,978.41 debt
Current 12th Ward Alder Dwinderlin Evans, October 2022 Report, Alder- Limited Activity. January 2022 Report, Alder- $0 raised, $565 spent, $1,077 on hand, $0 debt
Current 18th Ward Alder Jesse Todd, October 2022 Report- Limited Activity. March 2019 Report, Alder- $42.57 on hand, $0 debt

New 13th Ward
Current 2nd Ward Alder Lisa Middlebrook, October 2022 Report, Alder- Limited Activity. October 2021 Report, Alder- $100 on hand, $0 debt
Current 22nd Ward Alder Norma J Walker, October 2022 Report, Alder- Limited Activity. September 2022 Report, Alder- $3,620 raised, $6,277.87 spent, $1,799.37 on hand, $2,000 debt
Current 27th Ward Alder Pamela Boyd, October 2022 Report, Alder- $2,956.04 raised, $340 spent, $4,002.21 on hand, $0 debt

New 14th Ward
Current 3rd Ward Alder Brandon Bosley, October 2022 Report, Alder- Limited Activity. April 2021 Report, Alder- $100 on hand, $0 debt
Current 5th Ward Alder James A Page Jr, October 2022 Report, Alder- $396.67 raised, $2,084.73 spent (mostly to Meyers Okohson Political Consulting), $2,326.65 on hand, $1,000 debt

School Board October Campaign Finance Reports

Only two of five candidates for St. Louis City School Board on November 8th ballot formed campaign finance committees and filed October finance reports with Missouri Ethics Commission.

Donna Jones raised $2,200 including $2,000 from AFT Local 420 and $200 from St. Louis City Labor Legislative Club; spent $28.10; has $2,171.90 on hand; $0 debt.

Emily Hubbard raised $3,095* including $2,000 from AFT Local 420; spent $1,448; has $1,646.12 on hand; $0 debt.

The other School Board candidates- David Jackson, Bill Monroe, and J.L. Quinones- did not form candidate committees. Missouri law requires candidate committees be formed by the thirtieth day before election if any of the following happens:

  • Candidate receives more than $325 from a single contributor (other than the candidate)
  • Candidate spends over $1,000 of their own money
  • Candidate’s contributions and expenditures are over $1,000

More information on the candidates.

*Marie Ceselski, the author of this blog post, is a donor to Emily Hubbard.

This Week in Gardening & Nature

Missouri Fall Color Report
Illinois Fall Color Report

Tulip & Daffodil Bulbs- 30 for $17 – still available from Brightside St. Louis

1:30 pm Monday Leaf Walk at Bellefontaine Cemetery. Master Guide led walking tour. Register

4 pm Thursday Horticulture Hike at Bellefontaine Cemetery. Horticulturalist led walking tour focusing on trees, shrubs, and flowering plants. Be prepared to walk on uneven terrain with moderate slopes. Register

1:30 pm Thursday Leaf Walk at Bellefontaine Cemetery. Master Guide led walking tour. Register

7 pm Friday Missouri Conservation Department and Missouri Nature & Environmental Photographers Class at Powder Valley Conservation Nature Center, Kirkwood: Conservationist photographer Noppadol Paothong- The Art of Close-up Photography. Register

9 am Saturday Open Space Council’s River de Peres Trash Bash: Litter Pick Up, Storm Drain Marking, River des Peres Watershed Coalition Picnic. Volunteers Wanted. Register

5:30 pm Oct 24th St. Louis Public Library Pumpkin Guts Sensory Storytime at Cabanne Library. For Kids 0-5 years. Kids will play with and learn about pumpkins. Dress for the Mess. Register

5:30 pm Oct 25th Heartland Conservancy Prairie du Pont Watershed Informational Open House, Kappa House, Cahokia Hts, IL. Register

10 am Oct 26th Seed St. Louis and St. Louis Public Library Workshop: Container Gardening. Jamestown Bluff Library. Register

4 pm Oct 26th Grow Native Missouri Zoom Master Class: The Seed Cycle: Native Seed Collection, Stratification, Propagation with Mike Hoyle, manager, Missouri Wildflowers Nursery. Free: MPF members and Grow Native Professional Members. $15: non-members. Register

9 am Oct 29th ForestReLeaf Fall Tree Planting, Ruth Porter Park, St. Vincent Greenway, West End. Volunteers Wanted. Register

4 pm Oct 27the Grow Native Missouri’s FINCA EcoFarm Tour and Native Edibles Tasting @ Lincoln University, Jefferson City. Register

7:45 pm Oct 29th Missouri Conservation Department’s Night Shift Walk to the Confluence, Columbia Bottom Conservation. Area 8 Tickets Remaining. Register

6 pm Nov 9th Old North’s Northside Workshop Support the Bee Sanctuary FR at Turn Restaurant, Midtown. Tickets: $50

9 am Nov 12th ForestReLeaf North Riverfront Mississippi Greenway Tree Planting. Volunteers Wanted. Register

10 am Nov 19th Seed St. Louis In Person Workshop: Utilizing the School Garden in Winter. At Carriage House, Bell Community Garden, 3815 Bell. Register

4 pm Nov 23rd Missouri Prairie Foundation Online Master Class Wasps: The Astonishing Diversity of a Misunderstood Insect Free to Mo Prairie Foundation members & Grow Native Missouri professional members. $15 for non-members. Register

Join us Sundays on Twitter for #GardenSunday with host @stl7thward to interact with other outdoor and indoor gardeners and nature enthusiasts, ask questions, give answers, share photos.

Soulard Taxation Without Representation

There’s a 6:30 pm Tonight Soulard Special Business District Board Meeting at Soulard Station, 1911 S 12th.

Soulard SBD is the property tax district, for part of the Soulard neighborhood, that funds privatized policing, off duty police via TCF, and so-called security cameras.

This is also the tax district that held the extra super #TransparencyFail meeting last month. Not giving proper notice of meetings is just one of many problems with the Board.

Over 70% of Soulard residents are renters who pay property taxes via their monthly rent. Tonight’s meeting will be conducted without a required residential renter Board member. It’s companion sales district district- Soulard Community Improvement District– requires all Board members to be property owners.

The previous residential renter Board member was Molly Dougherty. In March 2021, She bought a home in Soulard but was allowed to remain on the Board repping renters. She now serves as a homeowner Board member. Dougherty is a landlord attorney at Sandberg Phoenix and serves as treasurer for 7th Ward Alder Jack Coatar’s campaign committee for St. Louis City Board President. Coatar served on the Board before he was elected Alder.

The due diligence made by Soulard SBD Board to fill the residential renter Board seat is found in the July 2021 Minutes. They posted a notice in the St. Louis Daily Record, a subscription service for legal notices, a publication read by likely less than a dozen residential renters in Soulard.

Additional transparency issues with Soulard SBD:

  • They post skeleton, generic agendas with meeting notices on their website and a year in advance to City’s Public Meeting Calendar. And, as happened with the last meeting and a number of other times, they change meeting times, dates, places but never update the City Calendar notice.
  • They are always behind posting Meeting Minutes. July 2022 are the latest Minutes posted. You regularly see “forgot to approve Minutes” in Minutes.
  • There’s no Budget or anything resembling Financials posted to the District’s website, only a 2016 pie chart.

These special tax districts represent the worst of government- poorly run private clubs providing inefficient parochial responses to citywide concerns. Instead of stopping this trainwreck, Alders continue to rubberstamp creation of new ones. As the 2023 elections for Alders and Board President approach, who will run on a platform of getting rid of special tax districts?

Further Reading

St. Louis’ Private Police Forces Make Security a Luxury of the Rich by Jeremy Kohler, ProPublica, September 8, 2022

A Private Policing Company in St. Louis Is Staffed With Top Police Department Officers by Jeremy Kohler, ProPublica, September 9, 2022

Official Write-In Candidate 101

Maybe you refuse to vote for a Republican and the Democratic Party’s nominee is pro-predator, or treats employees like indentured servants, or is pro-corporate welfare, or whatever reason.

Maybe you want another option besides voting for the only candidate on the ballot.

Maybe you’d like to make a protest vote other than being a drop vote in a race, leaving it blank.

The good news is that you have a Write-In Candidate option in Missouri during November and April General Elections.

Minnesota Lizard People ballot

Sure. You could write in your name, or Jorts the Cat, or Lizard People. But your vote would not count.

Becoming an Official Write-In Candidate in Missouri is, however, easy and cheap. You are nearly guaranteed defeat at the polls, but earn the privilege of adding “Former Official Write In Candidate for _____” to your social media accounts and email signature line. Win Win.*

Running as a Write-In Candidate is different from running as an Independent in that your name will not be on the ballot and you do not have to pay a fee, collect petition signatures, form a campaign committee, etc. If you want your name on a ballot you will need to do all the things necessary to run as a political party candidate, nonpartisan candidate, or independent candidate.

In Missouri, there is a simple process for declaring your Write-In candidacy so that any votes you get are actually counted. A reporter may even ask the Secretary of State or your local election authority for info on Official Write-In Candidates.

Step 1. Check to see if you meet the age and residency related qualifications for the office you want to be a Write-In Candidate.

Step 2. File a Write-In Candidate Declaration of Intent in person by 5 pm October 28th. For other elections, the deadline is second Friday before the election. Sample Declaration for Local and State Write-In Candidates. Sample Declaration for Federal Write-In Candidates.

For municipal and county offices, you will file the Declaration of Intent in person with your county election authority. In St. Louis City that is the Board of Election Commissioners at 300 N Tucker. For State and Federal offices, you will file with the Secretary of State at Kirkpatrick Building, Elections Division, 600 West Main, Jefferson City.

Bring with you

Step 3. Tell your family, friends, neighbors, social media followers that you are an Official Write-In Candidate. Let Media know about your campaign. Or do nothing.

Step 4. Remember to Vote for yourself on Election Day.

* Sorry, St. Louis City Civil Service employees, City Charter makes you second class citizens with few political rights, so you don’t have the option of running as a Write-In Candidate (or any other kind of candidate). Most State employees in Missouri are now At Will employees who would probably get fired for running for public office even as a Write-In Candidate.

This Week in Gardening & Nature

Missouri Fall Color Report by region at Missouri Department of Conservation

Gardening by Month: October Tips & Tasks from Missouri Botanical Garden

Carrots fresh from the garden

9 am to Noon Tuesday Plant It Forward at Tower Grove Park. Help dig cannas, elephant ears, other plants; clear display beds of debris; plant 20,000+ spring bulbs. 4 More Volunteers Wanted. Register

1:30 pm Tuesday Leaf Walk at Bellefontaine Cemetery. Master Guide led walking tour. Register

10 am Wednesday Seed St. Louis and St. Louis County Library Workshop: Edible Landscaping. Rock Road Library, St. Ann. Register

10 am Thursday Horticulture Trolley Tour @ Bellefontaine Cemetery. Two-hour trolley tour led by a Master Guide sharing horticulture and arboretum highlights. Tickets $5. Register

6:30 pm Friday Missouri Department of Conservation Discover Nature Night Hike at Powder Valley Nature Conservation Center, Kirkwood. Register

10 am Saturday Missouri Department of Conservation Workshop at Powder Valley Conservation Nature Center: Butterfly Gardening with Tom Terrific. Register

10 am to 3 pm Saturday DIG Annuals & Perennials Fall Sale, 3120 Pennsylvania. 1 pm Workshop on Propagating Woody Plants from Cuttings. Plants for sale from Custom Foodscaping and seeds from Seed St. Louis

Oct 11th Seed St. Louis and St. Louis County Library Workshop: Composting 101 at Grand Glaize Library, 1010 Meramec Station Rd, Manchester. Register

Oct 12th Grow Native Missouri Webinar: Dicamba and 2,4-D- Old Herbicides Causing New Problems. Presented by Robbie Doerhoff, Forest Entomologist, Missouri Department of Conservation. Register

Oct 13th Seed St. Louis Zoom Class: Reuse in the Garden. Register

6:15 am Oct 15th Missouri Department of Conservation Sunrise Breakfast at the Confluence, Columbia Bottom Conservation Area. Register

9 am Oct 15th Americorps St. Louis Clean Up at Laumeier Sculpture Park, Sappington. Mary Miss’s Pool Complex: Orchard Valley needs a clear out, clean up. Volunteers Wanted. Register

10 am to 2 pm Oct 15th St. Louis Audubon Society’s Bring Conservation Home Native Plant Sale at Webster University, Bookstore Parking Lot, 554 Garden, Webster Groves

Oct 15th Plant a tree in memorial to someone special with Sustainable St. Louis Memorial Tree Planting at Shaw Forest, 39th @ DeTonty. Register

Oct 15th Benton Park West Pruning Blitz. Register

Oct 26th Grow Native Missouri Zoom Master Class: The Seed Cycle: Native Seed Collection, Stratification, Propagation with Mike Hoyle, manager, Missouri Wildflowers Nursery. Free: MPF members and Grow Native Professional Members. $15: non-members. Register

Oct 29th ForestReLeaf Fall Tree Planting, St. Vincent Greenway, West End. Volunteers Wanted. Register

Nov 12th ForestReLeaf North Riverfront Mississippi Greenway Tree Planting. Volunteers Wanted. Register