urbanSTL

JivecitySTL wrote:As I've said numerous times, I agree with the MO Supreme Court ruling in this case. I do not think ED should have been used for this project. I'm just very disappointed at the kind of myopic reception Centene has received from a community in which it intended to invest hundreds of millions of dollars in expanded revenue. It's very frustrating, especially when we have lost so many corporate HQs in recent years.



And I really do wish it was as simple as saying, "Oh well, but there are so many other sites in St. Louis to choose from..." There's way more to it than that. Centene has a very bad taste in their mouth now. I'm sure they feel unappreciated and worse-- shunned. Worse yet, there are probably countless other cities/metros that are now falling over themselves to attract a company like Centene.



In my opinion, and I realize it can sound extreme, I think what happened with Centene is an illustration of backwards, fragmented and selfish thinking. When it comes to unifying St. Louis for a common goal of becoming a great city again, we have a long, long way to go.

I'll admit that I don't know much about Centene, but I don't think we want businesses that rely on handouts from local governments in order to succeed. I don't think that governments should bend over backwards to accommodate them either.



Downtown St. Louis appeased Mercantile Bank and the May Company by tearing down the Ambassador and those white terra cotta buildings on Locust. Oops, those companies no longer exist...

Overall, I agree with Jive. I am at the point where I wish Centene and Edward Jones would pack up their sh*t and leave - teach St. Louis a *****' lesson as it continues to slip down to the same stature of Indianapolis and Columbus, Ohio.



Many cities would love to have Centene and Edward Jones.



No...corporations should not be able to run amok in the city/regions where they are headquartered. They should not be able to abuse city/regions or citizens either, but citizens should also realize that corporations serve a purpose in communities - which is why SO MANY cities will be vying for Centene. Although citizens have no control over corporate acquisitions and mergers, corporations are community assets and possibly losing them (Centene) SENSELESSLY like this is much worse than losing A.G. Edwards through a merger. In the case of Centene, the community actually has a little more control.



The property owners should do what is right for the region instead of themselves and get over it.

When it comes right down to it, I don't blame Centene for looking around nor do I blame the property owners for fighting the abuse of eminent domain or refusing to sell. I think the group to blame is the City of Clayton, who clearly believed that they could ramrod through this flimsy eminent domain case with few problems. As a result, more options to accommodate Centene in downtown Clayton were not pursued.



As for where Centene might land IF it decides to stay in the Metro (not at all a certainty), the following is my guesses in rank order:



1. Clayton

2. Creve Couer (With the HQ for Smurfit & Stone already, Centene would be a nice addition to their burgeoning downtown and a strong step toward becoming Clayton West, which is clearly Creve Couer's goal.

3. Chesterfield (With offices already in Chesterfield combined with the municipalities goal of becoming a regional player and the need to keep pace with the business development in Creve Couer, a flood plain campus is a reasonable outcome.)

4. North Park/ UMSL (Following the example set by Express Scripts)

5. Downtown St. Louis (Somehow I just don't see Centene coming downtown.)

5. Somewhere in St. Charles



One place not listed above, but that should go after Centene hard is Richmond Heights. In the late 1980's and mid 1990's RH used it highway access and proximity to Clayton to poach the big retail establishments from Clayton. Given the slowly reducing space available in Clayton for big office development (hence the need to use eminent domain) Richmond Heights should be working with both the Meridian developers and the developers of the Boulevard to put together options for Centene to locate in Richmond Heights.



As for where downtown, some have suggested the useless Gateway Mall land. While I doubt that would ever happen given the current leadership, I am not sure it is the best package the City could offer anyway. The best packages would involve proximity to the Ballpark, such as a location in the Ballpark Village (not what I would want to see, better to spread the development all around the ballpark), or the lots due east and west of the Stadium adjacent to 40. The lot to the east in particular would be a good choice as the Bizjournal reported a few months ago that this property is up for sale. It would offer good highway access, high visibility for the tower (and signage) with its location right on 40 and across from the Ballpark and the potential for the City or Centene to try and aquire part of the property south of 40 for the construction of a garage for the new office tower. While I think the City's chances are slim, I hope Slay and Co. are being aggressive in trying to lure Centene downtown.

appraisalman wrote:Centene was offering the property owners approximately three times the market value of the property.

No, they did not even offer them market value, otherwise the buildings would have sold. They offered them three times the appraised value, but value is subjective. These people obviously valued the property more highly than others.