ST. LOUIS • Mayor Francis Slay made his case to roughly 200 people Monday night that they should be active participants in the revitalization efforts the city is planning north of downtown.
With the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency scheduled to complete construction of a new campus in the ºüÀêÊÓƵ Place neighborhood by 2022, city leaders are hoping the spy agency will be the anchor that sparks an in an area known for disinvestment and neglect.
City leaders are calling their plan . Monday’s meeting at Confluence Academy in the Old North neighborhood, was the second of four public meetings scheduled between June and February.
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“This is a big opportunity in a neighborhood that hasn’t seen a whole lot of investment in a long, long time,†Slay said. “What we’re doing is making sure we get it right. It’s imperative as we move forward that no one is left out of this growth spurt.â€
The $1.75 billion NGA project is expected to bring with it 3,100 employees. Slay told the audience the Project Connect exercise is about defining and prioritizing neighborhood stability, quality of life and how public money is used.
Slay was joined by Otis Williams, director of the ºüÀêÊÓƵ Development Corporation and representatives from the NGA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
After a series of presentations, guests were encouraged to give input and ask questions at several information tables set up inside the gymnasium.
Ronald Ferguson of Hyde Park called the Project Connect meetings “a wonderful thing,†but said he’s most concerned about minority inclusion during the NGA construction phase.
Officials associated with the project have said hiring goals would be at the federal minimum of 14.7 percent minority and 6.9 percent women workers — far from an actual reflection of the city’s demographics.
Ferguson, said his input to state and federal officials Monday will be focused on boosting those numbers.
“But, in all, I feel as though this is going to be a good thing,†he said. “This will be the biggest project in this area since Sportsman’s Park.â€
Tom Bratkowski, from Old North, said he’s not entirely clear on the overall goals federal officials have laid out. He added his concern over losing a sense of community if the surrounding neighborhoods are merged together into a “super neighborhood,†as he suspects will happen.
“Also, I don’t see how the ideas I put out would find their way to the people making the decisions,†he said.
Calvin Riley, the founder of the George Boyer Vashon African American Culture Research Center Museum in ºüÀêÊÓƵ Place, said he’s optimistic.
“We should all make an effort to give our input,†he said. “Some people will be affected negatively, but, overall, this is a positive thing.â€
Two more Project Connect meetings are scheduled for January and February. Construction on the NGA site is expected to begin in fall 2017.