Eminent domain OK’d for north St. Louis site
“City lawmakers on Friday designated a north St. Louis area as blighted, allowing for eminent domain there.
The Board of Aldermen voted 17-11 to approve the bill, 263. St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay has indicated he’ll sign it, possibly by Feb. 23.
The city is hoping to lure the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency’s new headquarters to the more than 100-acre site. At stake is the construction of the $1.6 billion NGA facility, the retention of 3,100 jobs in the city, and, along with them, $2.4 million in annual tax revenue.
The NGA will decide where to move (it is considering three other sites) in 2016. Its current western headquarters is located near the Anheuser-Busch brewery.
Alderman Antonio French, calling the bill “immoral,” said property values in the affected site have been artificially lowered in recent years. He said the LCRA would borrow up to $10 million to acquire the affected properties, with no guarantee that the NGA would select the site.”
Kirn, Jacob. St. Louis Business Journal 13 February 2015.