The city council said they are in agreement with a recommendation from the Economic Development Commission to pass, for now, on the plan for a 13-acre, $30 million complex of shops and restaurants from the Sansone Group.
The prospect of a fight over a second effort at tax-supported development in Ellisville has been postponed for the moment, following a consensus on the city council to pass on a second proposal from the developer behind a controversial Walmart project. The plan from Sansone called for 92,000 square feet of retail shops and restaurants at the southwest corner of Manchester and Kiefer Creek, according to a report from Fox 2, and adjacent to the future Walmart. The cost was estimated at $30 million, at least $10 million of which would be paid for by public financing. The city's economic development commission reviewed the Ellisville Town Center Project on Monday and Wednesday the Ellisville City Council agreed with their recommendation to …
A St. Louis Circuit Court Judge rejected claims from a resident that the city had made mistakes in its approval of a conditional use permit for the project.
After hearing arguments on Jan. 31, St. Louis Circuit Court Judge David Lee Vincent III ruled Tuesday that the city did not err in its approval of a conditional use permit for a Walmart development project in Ellisville. The move clears a legal front in the battle over the contentious project, which has been the subject of fierce protests by some residents and even sparked a failed drive for the recall election of several council members. In rejecting the lawsuit brought by city resident Thomas Debold to block the development, Vincent said that the city had met each and every requirement for obtaining a conditional use permit that is required by the municipality’s code. The decision to approve the permit for Walmart was “supported by …
The attorney for resident Thomas Debold also argued the city did not follow procedure in approving the project's conditional use permit.
During a Wednesday hearing, attorney Jane Ellen Dueker argued that the city of Ellisville erred in several aspects of its Walmart development project. City resident Thomas Debold filed a lawsuit in November against the city to block the Sansone Group development project that would put a Walmart at the Manchester Road and Kiefer Creek intersection. During the hearing, Dueker questioned Ellisville Mayor Adam Paul and City Clerk Catherine Demeter, asking them questions regarding the city’s actions in retaining legal counsel and approving the conditional use permit for Walmart. Dueker also said the city: During testimony, Mayor Adam Paul said he believed the Sansone Group were allowed to provide legal counsel as a result of the redevelopment …
Mike K
2:13 pm on Monday, March 25, 2013
@CPanter: That is because, the 'but for' clause is an out and out LIE by the developer. And the designation of an area needing development is not 'blighted' just because a city is desperate to shovel taxpayer money at the developer and cripple future budgets for 20 years to pay of the TIF bond. What are we doing to attract other businesses? Well, that's a question for the outgoing council members… more ›