Clayton's Next Mayor? 2013 Field So Far Includes Three Candidates
Filing for the April election begins late this year.
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Saturday, May 19, 2012
Patch Political Potpourri
PBS Focuses on Missouri's Payday Loan Initiative This Weekend
The national program airing Saturday and Sunday will focus on initiative petition campaigns tied to capping interest rates at 36 percent.
A Missouri ballot initiative aimed at curtailing interest rates at “payday loan” entities is getting some national attention. For an episode of PBS’s Need to Know, airing locally this weekend, the program traveled to the Show Me State to follow around activists who are collecting signatures for an initiative petition. If the ballot measure makes it to the ballot and if voters approve it, interest rates on certain lending companies would be capped at 36 percent. Supporters of the initiative argue that the loan agencies place poorer Missourians in a cycle of debt. But opponents counter that the entities are usually the only way lower-income citizens can obtain short-term loans to pay ordinary expenses. While supporters of the initiative …
Friday, May 18, 2012
Clayton's 2013 Mayoral Race: Sanger, Harris, Berger III to Run
The three confirmed their intentions this week.
Ward 3 Alderman Alex Berger III recently launched his bid for Clayton mayor in a very public way: He opened a Twitter account. The description that accompanies his online handle, @AB3forMayor, states: "Leadership necessary to enhance our community, empower citizens, pro-active in approach to economic development and fiscal management. Passionate about Clayton!" The second term of Mayor Linda Goldstein ends in April, when the mayoral election will be held. (Like Clayton-Richmond Heights Patch on Facebook for up-to-the-minute news and information about your community.) Berger III confirmed on Thursday that he intends to run for mayor. A formal announcement is planned later this month. Two other Clayton residents—Ward 2 Alderman Michelle …
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Election 2012: Sewer Vote June 5 Flows from Clean Water Act
St. Louis voters will decide the rate at which their sewer rates rise this summer. Here's a look at the federal law—and lawsuit—that started it all.
Hundreds of sewer overflows in the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District (MSD) system are at the heart of a Clean Water Act settlement agreement and a ballot issue planned June 5 in Clayton and Richmond Heights. That's according to a primer document compiled by MSD. In August, MSD reached the settlement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Missouri Coalition for the Environment Foundation, a news release posted to the federal agency's website states. Now, MSD customers are tasked with deciding whether they will pay more now—or later—to fund the $4.7 billion in repair work mandated by the agreement. Several sources outline the alleged violations and the reasons for the EPA's involvement in the case. The following are …
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Patch Political Potpourri
Missouri's U.S. Senate Candidates Stir Up Novel Approaches For Fundraising
Country music and laryngitis are two of the methods employed this week.
The last few iterations of this column have noted how several candidates for the U.S. Senate utilized creative means to entice fundraising efforts. For instance, Rep. Todd Akin (R-Wildwood) used his rhetorical scuffle with President Barack Obama over student loans in a fundraising pitch. And Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO) has directly attacked third-party organizations that are pre-emptively attacking the incumbent lawmaker as she makes a difficult bid for re-election. McCaskill’s campaign staff continued on a creative path in an email that was sent to supporters earlier this week. They played on the fact that McCaskill had lost her voice right before she was supposed to make a speech at a Democratic gathering in Kansas City. “Between …
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Wednesday, May 16, 2012
Brilliant Antiques to Close After 35 Years in Clayton
Store owner Arlene Brilliant calls herself competitive. She shared the challenges and joys of buying antiques in England—along with a celebrity encounter—in an interview this week.
Arlene Brilliant remembers being woken by a midnight phone call during an antique-buying trip in England. She asked whether the caller realized what time it was. The call proved worthwhile: An employee of her store, Brilliant Antiques in Clayton, was phoning to say that Liberace had just purchased nearly every piece of merchandise in the building. Turns out, the pianist had been dying to visit from the moment he arrived in St. Louis. She met the celebrity on a subsequent visit. Those are some of the many adventures Brilliant, 85, recounted this week during an interview at her home in Ladue. She will close her business by the end of next month after more than 35 years in Clayton. A sale is underway at the store, which will remain open to …
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Monday, May 14, 2012
Sewer Vote Would Slow Guaranteed MSD Rate Increase
A June 5 vote is planned in St. Louis county and city on Proposition Y, along with eight charter amendments aimed at increasing the efficiency and transparency of the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District.
People living in the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District (MSD) can't change the fact that their sewer bills are going to rise incrementally over the next several years, Ed Rhode said. What they can control is the rate at which that change happens. That's why Rhode and Mike Kelley—members of the pro-Proposition Y committee Clean Water STL—are encouraging residents of St. Louis County and St. Louis city to vote yes on the $945 million bond issue June 5. If St. Louisans vote yes, sewer rates for the average single-family MSD user would rise from roughly $29 for the average single family to roughly $44 by mid-2015. The new rate effective July 1 of this year would be about $31. By contrast, a rejection of the measure would raise that average …
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Sunday, May 13, 2012
Patch Political Potpourri
Former State Rep. Gains More Backers In Race To Return To Jefferson City
Former Rep. Gina Walsh is aiming for a spot in the State Senate.
Former state Rep. Gina Walsh (D-Bellefontaine Neighbors) continues to rack up endorsements in her bid for the 13th District Senate seat. Walsh this week said that she had been officially endorsed by St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley, not a surprising development since the Democratic official attended her kick-off party earlier this year. She also received backing from St. Louis County Councilman Mike O’Mara (D-Florissant), Councilwoman Kathleen Burkett (D-Overland) and Councilman Pat Dolan (D-Richmond Heights). Walsh was also endorsed by the Fraternal Order of Police, which represents thousands of police officers across the state. “As the largest law enforcement organization in Missouri, representing over 5,000 sworn law …
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Don Zykan
6:23 am on Monday, May 14, 2012
Gina Walsh is a person of high character and integrity, and should be highly considered as a first choice to represent this area as our State Senator. more ›
Friday, May 11, 2012
Patch Political Potpourri
Claire McCaskill Takes Campaign Finance Fight To Colbert; John Brunner Picks Up Tea Party Support
This edition of Political Potpourri has campaign machinations on both sides of the race to be Missouri's next U.S. Senator.
Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Missouri) made an appearance this week on The Colbert Report, a popular satirical news show on Comedy Central. The first-term senator spent time on the show talking about her latest ad, which hones on third-party organizations that have been running ads against her. “Stephen, as he always does, used his character to point out the absurd loopholes in federal election law that allow corporations and special interests to anonymously influence the political system. I applaud the work he and his show do to educate America about 501(c)(4) organizations and secret money,” McCaskill said in a letter to supporters. “But, until the system is fixed, secret money will continue to flow into Missouri and attack me. As I said, if…
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Devon Seddon
10:45 am on Friday, May 11, 2012
Can't think of a more appropriate place for a joke than Comedy Central. Unfortunately, the Claire joke just isn't funny anymore. I wonder if they could employ her over there full-time? more ›
Saturday, May 5, 2012
Patch Political Potpourri
Potpourri: The Politics Inside Governor Nixon's Endorsement of Rep. William Lacy Clay
Did the Governor do it to spite U.S. Rep. Russ Carnahan?
Back when he was merely a gubernatorial contender, Gov. Jay Nixon reacted to then-Rep. Jeff Harris’ entry into the race for attorney general in fairly simple terms. He said in 2007 that the Columbia Democrat would make a “super attorney general.” When Harris used that line in an ad in 2008, Nixon’s campaign put out a statement that he had not endorsed anybody in the competitive four-way Democratic primary. Harris ended up coming in third place, behind second-place finisher Margaret Donnelly and eventual victor Chris Koster. The episode showcased how reluctant Nixon can be when choosing to endorse people engaged in competitive primaries. That’s why his decision to emphatically endorse Rep. Lacy Clay (D-St. Louis) over Rep. Russ Carnahan (D-…
MikeyParks
12:55 pm on Saturday, May 5, 2012
The thing is, Clay is way to the Left of Carnahan -- and he's pretty far to the Left of center. I always though Nixon was more moderate. Guess I was wrong. more ›
Nate Birt
3:35 pm on Monday, May 14, 2012
UPDATE: A reader had a couple of great questions that Lance LeComb of MSD was able to address for me. First is the issue of cost: The June 5 election will cost between $1 million and $1.2 million. MSD will bear the full cost of the election. As he described it, the cost of elections is split among the entities who have issues on the ballot. So MSD pays the full cost, not taxpayers, because MSD … more ›