Thursday, January 10, 2013
The commission voted 9-3 against $15 million in tax breaks for a 172,000-square-foot redevelopment of Kenrick Plaza. A public hearing before the vote drew emotional testimony from residents for and against the project.
The St. Louis County TIF Commission has rejected the request for $15 million in public financing for a controversial re-development of Kenrick Plaza that would bring a Walmart to Shrewsbury. The Wednesday night meeting at the Shrewsbury City Center drew an audience numbering in the hundreds and entailed more than an hour and a half of impassioned written and oral testimony during a public hearing from residents eager to weigh in on an issue many see as vital to the future of the city of around 6,000. The commission voted 9-3 against a motion to recommend the proposed development agreement for the blighted property and the request for $15 million in tax increment financing. In this case, the TIF would have generally split any increase in …
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
The Ward 2 alderman is racing for reelection today. His opponent is John Bub.
Ward 2 Alderman Ed Kopff has been on the board two years, and says he’d like to finish what he started. He’s referring, of course, to the stalled Kenrick Plaza redevelopment project and the contingent efforts to salvage Shrewsbury’s troubled financial prospects should the project not come together. The Walmart-anchored redevelopment plan has been the most contentious local issue in Shrewsbury in recent years, but Kopff stands behind it as the best option to bring in sales tax revenue to sustain the city’s dwindling coffers. “If this development doesn’t come through, what can we do to gain some time before we eat through all our reserves?” Kopff said in an interview, referencing Shrewsbury’s continuing budget deficit. “If we don’t address …
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Aldermen considered raising real estate or utility rates in response to continued deficits during a strategic work session for the city's 2013 budget.
The Shrewsbury Board of Aldermen is considering putting a temporary property tax increase on the November election ballot. However, board members opted to delay their decision after talks concerning the uncertainty surrounding the Kenrick Plaza redevelopment and a less-than-projected deficit from 2011. In a work session that drew little public attendance, the board discussed a potential property tax increase that would most likely include a sunset provision of six years. The measure could potentially raise anywhere from $250,000 to $400,000, depending on the size of the hike. The board had favored upping utility taxes from 7.25 percent to 8 percent at its previous meeting, but that would bring in even less money—only about $100,000. At …
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
A liquidation sale will begin on Thursday, and the store will close by April 1.
Hanneke Hardware’s Affton location on Gravois has lost its lease and will close by the end of the month, according to the owners. “We were a subtenant of Walgreens, and unfortunately Walgreens’ lease expires at the end of the month with the landlord, and the landlord and I could not come to economic terms in order to stay there,” said Michael Grewe, Vice President of Sales and Land Acquisition at GJ Grewe Commercial Real Estate, whose wife Christine Kantis-Grewe bought the store last year. According to Ian Gunn, manager of Hanneke’s store on Southwest Avenue, the owner of the space at 10042 Gravois Rd. wanted to double the business’s rent to continue the lease. “They were not being very kind about that,” Gunn said. “There wasn’t anything …
Thursday, February 2, 2012
In a recent letter to residents, Shrewsbury Mayor Felicity Buckley said the city would have to approach next year's budget without the promise of increased sales tax revenue.
The stalled, and sometimes embattled, Kenrick Plaza redevelopment project remains in limbo, but Shrewsbury Mayor Felicity Buckley has reaffirmed her support for the project. “While we have had significant set backs, the majority of the Board and I remain hopeful, and committed to seeing the project through,” Buckley wrote in a message to Shrewsbury residents. However, Buckley went on to confirm that negotiations with developer G J Grewe and revisions to the proposed site plan were both still ongoing. In November Grewe said the site plan needed revising to avoid “years of litigation” over the plaza’s placement near the guy-wires of a nearby radio tower. However, the awkward landscape of the area appears to have stalled the project longer …
Friday, December 9, 2011
It may be at least several months before the TIF process gets back on track.
The changes being made to the controversial Kenrick Plaza site plan by developer GJ Grewe may delay the project by several months, or even call into question the future of the Walmart-anchored redevelopment. The changes are being made to avoid having to move the guy-wires that anchor a nearby radio tower, a move that Grewe said was necessary to avoid “years of litigation.” However, having to build around the cables may mean changes to the size and shape of retail spaces in the development, which could affect the profitability of the profitability of the project. Shrewsbury Director of Administration Jonathan Greever said it would be at least 60 days from the moment he gets the go-ahead to reconvene the commission before the TIF would be …
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
The public hearing set for Wednesday will be rescheduled again with several weeks notice.
Shrewsbury announced Tuesday that the public hearing Wednesday on the $20 million tax increment financing (TIF) assistance proposed for the redevelopment of Kenrick Plaza has been canceled. The TIF commission heard at its last meeting on Nov. 9 that changes were being made to the site plan for the planned Walmart-anchored redevelopment. The commission was told that several of its questions would have to wait until the cost/benefit analysis of the redevelopment had been revised. Shrewsbury's special counsel on the project, Mark Grimm, said then that the changes would be done in a week. But three weeks later, Shrewsbury Director of Administration Jonathan Greever said in the email announcement that the hearing would be rescheduled "if and/or…
Is it fair for low-income Walmart shoppers to pay for the cost of Shrewsbury services?
This Wednesday, November 30 the city of Shrewsbury Tax Increment Financing (TIF) Commission will consider G.J. Grewe’s proposed redevelopment of his property, Kenrick Plaza. This project requires reconfiguring the site for the big-box retailer, Walmart. Most of the attention in the public meetings has been focused on the developer; on Walmart and its tactics as a competitor, employer and retailer; and on the design of the proposed redevelopment, especially the closing of Trianon Parkway and the locating of a massive structure so close to residential neighborhoods. But what has been largely overlooked in the discussion of this project are both the tax and public policy implications from the use of TIF. Even though the process by the mayor…
Friday, November 11, 2011
Parties involved in the Walmart-anchored redevelopment answered some, but not all, of the TIF commission’s questions on Wednesday.
With an audience of more than two dozen watching, representatives of planning consultants PGAV, developer G. J. Grewe and Shrewsbury city officials gathered Wednesday to answer questions from the TIF commission about the proposed $48.9 million Kenrick redevelopment and the cost-benefit analysis. Despite having received the questions in writing after the last meeting, however, special counsel to the city Mark Grimm told the commission that some would have to wait until changes being made to the site plan were assessed. “I’m frustrated to not have all the data. I want to do my job,” said commission member and Affton School Board President Michael McNeil after the meeting. PGAV, Grewe and Mayor Felicity Buckley answered most of the commission…
Friday, November 4, 2011
In the fourth article in a series by Patch, Ward I Alderman Elmer Kauffmann explains his position concerning the controversial Kenrick Plaza redevelopment.
Ward I Alderman Elmer Kauffmann is the latest interview we're featuring as part of an ongoing series where we speak with Shrewsbury's Aldermen about the proposed redevelopment of Kenrick Plaza. Previous interviews were conducted with alderwomen Chris Gorman and Dee Weicher, and alderman Mike Travaglini. Patch: What are your thoughts about the project in general? Elmer Kauffmann: We have got citizens that are split on it. A lot depends on what we present finally. What the buildings look like, how the landscaping is and the road situation. That’s where we are right now because there are just too many ands, ifs and buts. Patch: Do you support the project then? EK: I am on the 50-yard line. I would like to see the final product before I can go…
Jody Hoffman
10:37 am on Tuesday, January 22, 2013
"Shrewsbury WILL continue to thrive and grow for another 100 years and beyond." I sure hope you're right, Keith! This is one thing we can agree to agree on! Thank you. As a sidebar: I'd be glad to send anyone interested a Comparative Market Analysis of the value of their home in Shrewsbury... free of charge. Email me at: jodyhoffman@kw.com. I'm here to help! more ›