[clayton]
Designers, sharpen your pencils. And private developers, line up. Bring briefcases full of ideas and proof of solvency. The former police HQ at 227 S. Central Ave. (pictured above) is available, and Clayton officials are accepting proposals until the end of the month for the site. (I’ve got one, but no money to put where my mouth is: How ’bout a disco? With those concrete columns in front, the building has plenty of mid-20th century character. Anyone remember Jimmy’s, the club that was in an old bank building on Delmar Boulevard in the 1980s?) RFPs also were sought for a parking lot at the intersection of Forsyth and Brentwood boulevards downtown; four responses were received by the time the clock ran out, but the city is mum about which ideas were put forth. At any rate, there’s still plenty of time for creative juices to flow for a third site, Hanley Road and Wydown Boulevard, now a parking lot a little larger than a third of an acre. Visions of high-rises probably are dancing in the heads of dreamers who can afford to dream big, at least until Oct. 27.
[chesterfield]
One thing that happens as baby boomers age, and I know because I am one, is their vision starts to fail. Meanwhile, they hope their relationship with their kids is solid. Said kids are, after all, going to pick out their rest home. One they won’t be able to choose is a property that was to be built on Wild Horse Creek Road in the Chesterfield Valley because the owner, Vision Ventures LLC, filed for Chapter 11 in March. The property was sold last month at auction for $1.1 million. According to St. Louis Business Journal, plans were to build a $16 million ‘faith-based’ senior-living complex on the 8-acre plot, which is about a mile south of Spirit of Saint Louis Airport. Lord knows there’s plenty of ground available inside the levee. Another thing that seems to happen as baby boomers age is there are more and more senior living facilities popping up everywhere you turn. I haven’t visited a contemporary of mine in one … at least, not yet. Problem is, for all of us, once you’re over the hill, you really start to pick up speed going down the other side. Yikes!
[kirkwood]
A former exec of Paric Corp. has been found guilty in federal court of three counts of mail fraud in an investigation that alleges illicit use of a company AmEx card over four years, including personal travel, spa visits, and gifts for family and friends. Paric also paid for a country-club membership as part of the former exec’s employment. Paric assisted in the investigation that snared Brian Paluch, 58, of Kirkwood, formerly a vice president and the firm’s CFO. Among many other tawdry details, Paluch is alleged to have paid a law firm $5,000 as an incentive to hire his niece as a summer intern. He faces a 20-year prison sentence and/or a $250,000 fine on each count and is scheduled for sentencing Nov. 30.
[university city]
U. City isn’t big enough to include both Washington U. and SLU, but the metro is, and we’re blessed to be the only city to have not one, but two entrepreneurially wired universities in town. In an annual ranking of the nation’s top 25 universities offering the best programs for entrepreneurship studies, The Princeton Review has Washington U. at No. 16, and SLU at No. 23. Got a business-worthy idea? Both universities have programs in place to nurture it. At Washington U., the Skandalaris Center for Interdisciplinary Innovation and Entrepreneurship is a campus-wide initiative that serves students in seven schools across the university, as well as the metro at large. The center’s flagship program, IdeaBounce, allows anyone to post ideas and receive feedback from a network of innovators, creators, investors and business people. The Skandalaris Center also offers training, funding and other resources for budding entrepreneurs. Meanwhile, for nearly three decades, SLU’s Center for Entrepreneurship has created innovative programs to encourage entrepreneurship through through training, opportunities for high school students, networking, mentoring and competitions. With much of our nation’s manufacturing capacity shifted offshore, it’s encouraging that the metro encourages entrepreneurship in such a big way.
[webster groves]
Miss Jubilee & The Humdingers. Well, don’t that just beat all? The ukelele-strumming Miss and her retro combo are slated to be one of the featured acts at the Old Webster Jazz & Blues Festival, which will be held Saturday, Sept. 19, for 11 1/2 hours on two stages off Lockwood Avenue. Let’s hope the gawkers and listeners leave plenty of empty street for folks to cut a … well, pavement … because Miss Jubilee plays music that goes way beyond just toe-tapping. If you don’t dance, you must not have a pulse. The big band of Humdingers includes a gal on sax, not that that’s so unusual, but she really rips it up. This is music that evokes the heady mid-1940s, when the good ’ol U.S. of A. was unstoppable and lead singers wore gowns. Of course, there’s more to hear from 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m., including the world-class Webster Groves High Jazz Band, Bach To The Future featuring Eric Marienthal, Marquise Knox Blues Revue, Matt Rowland … the emphasis is on blues and jazz, but expect some genre-bending out in the street for this 15th incarnation of the beloved ‘Fest,’ which will be held rain or shine. But if it rains? Maybe more blues, that’s all. Families bring blankets and folding chairs and enjoy local musicians and food and drink from nearby restaurants. And street entertainers will amuse the younger throng members with juggling, face-painting and balloons.
Got a ticket from one of those red-light cameras in St. Louis city? To pay or not to pay, that is the question that has been answered in drivers’ favor, thanks to the Missouri Supreme Court, which last month ruled the devices unconstitutional. The company that runs the program, American Traffic Solutions, somehow managed to make lemonade out of this lemon by issuing a statement that posits the information gathered by the devices may be used in court. Whatevs. If you listen very, very carefully, you might be able to hear the ripping, tearing and shredding of correspondence from all over the metro. I received a ‘red light’ notice a few years back for making a right turn on red from Grand Avenue onto I-44 after maybe tapping the brake pedal once, but lightly. Wouldn’t want to wear out the pads prematurely, you know. But a camera has no wiggle room. The law allows a right turn after a stop, period. That said, I’m sure many other drivers do more yielding than stopping before making a right at a red light. In my case, I remember receiving more than one nasty letter from an attorney … in San Antonio, Texas … advising me to pay up. They must have weighed the odds and decided it wasn’t worth the postage to go after a scofflaw like me. However, I live in the city, and they’re not fooling about those tickets they issue if you’re parked on the side of the street when they sweep it the sixth Monday of the month, or whenever it is. If you don’t pay it promptly, the fine doubles. Why, it’s a tax on Procrastination Nation, I say! Because members of the nation have yet to pay the original fine. After I get a bill for double in the mail, I suppose they’re serious, write a check, and vow to park in the garage from then on. Anyhow, back to red-light cameras: The legal argument boils down to not knowing who’s behind the wheel. Why should dad get the rap if junior was driving?