JULY - SEPTEMBER 2020
Another three months have passed, so it's time again for a newsletter. I don't know about you, but this summer seemed to go by pretty quickly. I've been enjoying the recent fall weather and hope you have been able to get out of the house. Anyway - let's get to it.
As a reminder, I will continue to add more posts to the website, as events occur and information is available. So be sure to visit shipleyward3.org, or better yet, subscribe to receive weekly/ monthly updates via e-mail.
Click on the topics below to view each article.
Earlier this year, the city anticipated reduced sales tax revenues due to the pandemic and thus implemented cost savings measures, which included postponing projects and implementing a hiring freeze. Read more in a previous post on this topic.
As expected, sales tax revenues did fall from their normal levels. However, it has not been as severe as it could have. Increased sales from Schnucks, Aldi, Sams Club, and Westlake Hardware helped to offset loses from other stores like Kohls, restaurants, and gas stations.
August revenues include taxes that were collected in June – back when things were starting to reopen. As such, August 2020 sales-tax revenues are actually higher than they were in August 2019. However, even with that bump, city adjusted revenues are still way down – about $780,000 so far with additional reductions likely.
As of September, the city will continue with most of their cost cutting measures, with the exception of filling one of the two vacant Public Works maintenance worker positions – which will help ensure better staffing by the time snow arrives.
CARES Relief – St. Louis County received about $173.5 million from the federal government designated to cover necessary expenses incurred during the pandemic and has allocated $47m of that for distribution to municipalities for eligible expenditures. However, the County has continued to sit on these funds and has not yet distributed them to municipalities. A week or so ago, it looked like those funds were about to be released, but it now seems that this may be again delayed. At last calculation, Crestwood would be eligible to receive about $800,000 – which would allow the city to immediately start to fill those job vacancies.
This has proven to be a tough year for businesses everywhere, including Crestwood. It’s no secret that some of our shopping plazas have seen better days and of course there is that 47 acre vacant lot where the mall used to be. What’s the city been doing about it? Well – several things…
Watson Plaza – This is the plaza where the old Shop-n-Save used to be. With the “anchor tenant” gone from this site, it’s been tough for the small shops and several have closed. In July the Board of Alderman unanimously approved the creation of a Community Improvement District (CID) for this plaza, which will help fund an estimated $3m in improvements to the plaza with the goal of signing a new anchor tenant. If the owner can’t sign such a tenant by 2023, the CID will dissolve. Read more details in my previous post about this topic.
BriteWorx Carwash – As you may recall, back in 2019 the city denied a request to build a new car wash at the Sweet Tomato’s site. The developer sued the city and was still in the courts until July, when the city agreed to a settlement with the owner. As part of that agreement, the owners will reimburse the city for legal fees related to the suit and also make some improvements to the building and landscaping. Construction should complete in early 2021. Read more details in my previous post about this topic.
New Stand-Alone ATM – was approved for the Schnuck’s parking lot. This will be located near the main entrance and will replace about 8 existing parking spots.
Economic Development Commission (EDC) – this is a citizen-staffed commission, lead by the City Planner that normally meets quarterly. However, due to personnel changes and other complications, they hadn’t met for a long time, until June and September of this year. While it’s clear that development at the mall site will surely help spur additional development along Watson, the EDC has decided to focus on businesses “beyond the mall” and hopes to begin discussions with plaza owners and other businesses to restart relationships and begin possible revitalization. This is slow work, but it’s important.
Mall Redevelopment – As you have surely heard, the city received two responses back from their RFP. These were received in mid-August and the city has been working with all interested parties, UrbanStreet (the owner), and their broker since that time. Negotiations between the owner and potential buyers continue, so the city can’t really provide any details until that is settled. One way or another, I would expect some type of announcement during October – but we have been here before, and thus make no promises.
If you walk by the quarry at Whitecliff, it probably looks like it always has, but that’s about to change. During the first part of this year, architects and engineers have been working out the details on the project and a Request For Proposal (RFP) was issued in August. A qualified low bidder has been selected and the Board of Alderman will be voting on award of this contract at the October 13 meeting.
Assuming it is awarded at that meeting, construction will likely begin in early November with completion by March of next year. Click here to view the architectural plans.
Highlights of the project include:
- Removal of the old fencing next to the quarry (fencing above the quarry to remain)
- Boardwalk along the edge of the water with benches, composite decking, and an attractive black metal railing
- Fishing plaza with a bench and a stone wall along the waters edge
- Additional crushed stone paths around the site
- Benches and stone-like textured concrete around the existing concrete columns.
- Two Accessible Parking spots. No other parking is being added, so other than these two spots, all other vehicles would still need to park in the lot near the existing lower pavilion
- Overhead solar powered lamppost lighting – designed to direct light downward and not into neighboring yards.
The total cost for this project is expected to be around $325,000, of which $125,000 is paid for via a grant. That’s a substantial investment by the city, but this is the first step in a multi-phase plan to develop that part of the park and create yet another reason for people to come to Crestwood.
Phase 2 – New Pavilion
The existing “lower pavilion” at Whitecliff has been on the list for replacement for many years. The city applied for another grant to help fund a new pavilion. If funded, it will be located back near the quarry and is being designed for multiple uses, including concerts or other performances. This work is tentatively planned for 2021-2022.
The proposed pavilion design originally included bathrooms, but because there are no existing utilities (mainly water and sewer) the cost for the bathroom portion was too high at this time. Future planning still includes a new bathroom at the site, or perhaps at the location of the existing pavilion, but that’s a couple years away so details need to be figured out.
The long-term goal for the entire site is to connect the quarry trails to a long awaited pedestrian bridge over the creek to Sheryl Ann / Lodge Pole, connecting hundreds of homes to the park and Grants Trail. All of this work is still years away, but perhaps parts will be completed every year or two.
The city has been very successful in their efforts of applying for grants to help fund projects. Clearly these help pay for major projects that we can see, but also smaller grants help fund operational functions for behind-the-scenes work that is still important.
During the past year, the city has applied for numerous grants with the following results:
| Grants Awarded | Amount |
|---|---|
| Aquatic Center Improvements | $397,800 |
| Native Planting Plan | $6,400 |
| ADA compliant picnic tables | $23,400 |
| ADA Entrance Ramp to Government Center | $46,800 |
| Safety Equipment, Trauma Kits, Traffic Safety Vests, Weapon Racks | $,5200 |
| Digitization of Records | $8,000 |
| Whitecliff Bridge | $1,200,000 |
| Update the city's tree inventory report | $10,000 |
| Community Engagement | $1,000 |
Pending Grants |
Amount |
| Purchase a New Rescue Truck | $370,000 |
| Quarry Pavilion | $327,883 |
| Fund a Firefighter Position to get back to full staffing | $270,000 |
| Whitecliff Playground | $51,445 |
Grants Not Awarded |
Amount |
| Pedestrian Bridge – Sheryl Ann | $229,000 |
That’s nearly $3 million in grant requests, of which $1.7m has been awarded to the city and another $1 million additional for grants still pending.
One of the larger grants is for the replacement of the primary bridge at Whitecliff Park. This city has been working with state and federal contacts for several years to monitor the bridge structure and determine when it would qualify for this federal grant. Finally this year it qualified and the city’s application was approved. The replacement will be a multi-year project with design work happening in 2021 and actual construction in 2022.
If you missed any of the previous newsletters, you can find a link to all of them here.