ladue: The million or so holiday lights that have glittered and sparkled for the last three decades at Tilles Park in Ladue (pictured above) went dark a few days after Christmas because of the torrential rains and catastrophic flooding that inundated the metro and beyond. No illuminated tunnel, gingerbread men or Santa’s Toy Company to amaze and delight kids of all ages. The flashing mobile signs that the county highway traffic employs to warn motorists of upcoming traffic snarls simply stated, “WW LAND CLOSED.” One was near the eastbound I-64 off-ramp at McKnight, the best route to the popular attraction that this year celebrated its 30th anniversary and was just a little more spectacular than in years past. That is, from Thanksgiving until flooding during the seemingly incessant rain that began the day after Christmas and raised water levels too high for safety’s sake. Curious travelers—well me, at least—went southbound on McKnight just to check it out. But what was there to check out? It would have been unsafe for them to leave the lights on, of course—somewhat akin to throwing a toaster into a full bathtub. (Did I steal that from Agatha Christie?) Anyhow, St. Louis proper didn’t get the worst of it, of course. That was in outlying areas, mostly, where normally harmless streams became raging rivers from flash flooding. Interstates 44 and 55 were closed for a spell. We had a splash of it in our little northwest corner of U. City, stacking sandbags on the sidewalk to keep water in the saturated yard from flowing over the threshold and through the front door. Meanwhile, many relatives, friends, neighbors and businesses experienced the wettest basements they’d had in years. But the worst I heard personally was from my favorite server at Bandana’s at McKnight and Manchester roads. She had to abandon her house in Lemay for one on higher ground in St. Clair. She said the water was so high that the home was a total loss. That’s why it’s so important to give generously to the Red Cross to help alleviate the distress.
central west end: You don’t need to have been down yonder in the bootheel to at least have heard about the ‘throwed rolls’ at Lambert’s Cafe near Sikeston, Mo. Ayup. Servers will throw you one if you’re fresh out. And there’s more where that came from if you don’t catch the first. (One customer even filed a suit last summer because she got hit by one. Geez.) But we didn’t know about the pancakes griddled and tossed with a spatula toward your plate, which we experienced on New Year’s Day in the Savoy Room of the Chase Park Plaza. Been here for decades, and maybe I don’t get out much, but Chris Cakes has been this flippin’ crazy since 1969, and there are mobile franchises all over. At any rate, we saw one griddle master delighting kids and adults at biz guru Carol Wiseman’s fab breakfast, and I don’t think a single one hit the floor. Wiseman’s mate, Dr. Frank Robbins, a retired anesthesiologist, delighted in the festivities, watching as his wife caught a flapjack or two. (The doctor’s business card identifies him as ‘Carol Wiseman’s husband.’) To our knowledge, nobody at the party had the top of their head sliced off by a flying flapjack.
chesterfield: Chesterfield, we remember you when you were only THIS BIG. My, how you’ve grown. And some of your offspring are so accomplished! Michael Herring, hired on as city administrator in 1988 soon after the city incorporated, is no slouch, and by now is an old hand at doing what he was trained to do in college. (Which we’ll get to in a minute.) Herring has told city officials his last day on the job will be March 31. He was the first city employee hired and will have been its longest tenured employee when he retires in the spring. Prior to his long service in Chesterfield, he served as city administrator for Ballwin from 1982 to 1988. Herring also served as president of the Missouri City Management Association (MCMA) from 1991 to 1992, having previously served as vice president and as a member of the board. In April of 1998, the MCMA honored him with its Jay T. Bell Professional Management Award—the highest kudos a professional manager in Missouri can receive. He was president of the St. Louis Area City Management Association from 1985 to 1986 and has been a member of numerous county Municipal League committees. He’s on the board of the city’s Chamber of Commerce. Herring had served in similar positions in southern U.S. cities since graduating Phi Beta Kappa with a master’s in public administration from the University of South Carolina. Married and the father of four, where do you think he makes his home? Good guess … Chesterfield.
maplewood: Maplewood is taking a lot of cars off the road every year—about 750 … so to speak, that is. The city has become the fastest in the state to achieve its present status as an official EPA Green Power Community (GPC) by reaching a goal of matching 334 megawatt hours per month (4,006 MWh per year) with green energy sources, such as solar power. The city ended up matching almost double the percentage set by the EPA. And, it did it in a record-breaking four months. Maplewood and its energy partners (Ameren Pure Power and StL-based Microgrid Energy) encouraged local government, businesses and residents to commit to green power through either purchasing renewable energy certificates or installing solar power. Quite a feat, by which Maplewood becomes only the fourth EPA GPC in the state by far. (Sorry for all that alphabet soup.) Now, about taking all those cars off the road? No. the city isn’t impounding them. Maplewood’s green energy use will reduce its carbon footprint by 7.4 million pounds of carbon dioxide every year. Wowzers. Can you imagine having had to breathe even a minuscule fraction of those exhaust fumes? Cough much?
st. louis: Every year at this time, St. Louis Public Library celebrates the life and work of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. with events and activities at the library branches that illustrate and attempt to carry forward his message of peace and brotherhood. Yes, he dreamed of racial harmony, but there is much left to do. Even when Dr. King accepted the Nobel Peace Prize more than 50 years ago, he was realistic … if not a touch cynical for a man of dreams. In Stockholm on Dec. 11, 1964, as he accepted the honor, he asked why the prize was awarded to a movement t
hat is beleaguered and committed to unrelenting struggle; “to a movement which has not won the very peace and brotherhood which is the essence of the Nobel Peace Prize?” A philosopher said many centuries ago that there are no answers, only questions … one must know what the questions are. As the effort continues, library branches will show films that chronicle the life of this great man throughout the month when we commemorate his birth. A glimpse: the Kingshighway branch has a bulletin board pinned with tags containing information about volunteer opportunities in St. Louis; the Baden branch invites patrons of all ages to submit songs, quotes, poems, art and more to be displayed on a bulletin board throughout January; at Central, there will be a reading of Spike Lee’s Giant Steps to Change the World along with accompanying activities and feature films.
