EX ALDERMAN NEWSLETTER 339 AND CHESTERFIELD UNAPPROVED 284

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1 EX ALDERMAN NEWSLETTER 339 AND CHESTERFIELD UNAPPROVED 284 July 22, 2018 TOWN AND COUNTRY MAN ARRESTED FOR BURLARY 1 ST DEGREE: Sheldon Stallings, 23, of 28 Clayton Hills Lane was arrested by the Town and Country Police for committing a Burglary 1 st Degree. (1 st Degree is when someone is legally in the house at the time of the burglary.) The location of the offense was at 2220 Cedar Valley Drive Cedar Valley Stalling was found inside the closed attached garage at 2220 Cedar Valley. He apparently entered through a shut but unlocked door. When the police arrived and arrested him he claimed he was looking for his dog. Perhaps his dog is very well trained and can open and shut doors. He was later charged with Trespassing in Municipal Court after the County prosecutor refused to prosecute on the felony burglary charge. Jan June 2018 T&C mug shot 1

2 Stallings is a convicted felon on probation in both St. Louis and St. Louis County for drug crimes. (You can tell the drug problems by looking at his mug shots. ) Both probations were revoked with arrest warrants issued after his arrest inside the closed garage attached to the Town and Country home. It was the first Trespassing Arrest in 2018 in Town and Country. Arrest Record: 05/17/16 Felony Drug Possession St. Louis PD 07/24/17 Pled Guilty SIS No-Fine, No-Jail probation 06/28/18 Probation Violation Arrest Warrant Issued 08/05/16 4 offenses all reduced to Littering fined $735 Jefferson Co. Sheriff Failed to Pay Fines Warrants issued 11/07/17 Speeding, No Op Lic, No INS pending Town and Country PD 11/26/16 Speeding pending Town and Country PD 03/29/17 Felony Drug Possession MO Highway Patrol 5/17/18 Pled Guilty 5-year SIS No Fine, No-Jail prob 06/13/18 Probation Violation filed 06/21/18 Probation Violation filed 06/27/18 Prob Violation No-Bond Arrest Warrant issued 06/07/18 Improper Lane Use Creve Coeur PD 06/08/18 Burglary 1 st Degree issued as Trespassing Town and Country PD ATTACK HELICOPETERS FOR PGA? Someone who had been attending planning meetings for the 100 th PGA Championship Tournament at the Bellerive Country Club passed along to me an interesting tidbit. Someone with Bellerive who wanted everyone to know he had been a Marine asked if the County Police helicopter had fixed machine guns, he told me. 2

3 Of course he was talking about Allen Allred. The lawyer and member of the Town and Country Police Commission who refuses to obey Missouri license plate laws by not attaching a front plate to his mid-life crisis Porsche sports car. We are not sure if Allred was expecting a terrorist attack requiring airborne firepower or if he wanted warning shots for people trying to sneak on the course. None of the local police helicopters have guns mounted. PGA IS STEALING FROM RESIDENTS: The PGA is demanding that Ladue Road be shut down from Hwy 141 to well east of Mason Road and for Mason Road is to be shut down from Conway to 1 ½ miles north of Ladue Road. That s not all. There are two streets that go from Conway Road to Ladue Road, they are Pebble Acres and Babler Road. They will be closed to traffic. Residents will be given 3 hang tags per house. I hope you are not planning a birthday or family BBQ. All this requires police officers. This PGA event was scheduled over a year ago, including the PGA demanded road closures. But they are not willing to pay for it. A sign in the window of the T&C Police Station ref obtaining Tags that prove you are a resident and want to go home. 3

4 The PGA is paying for off-duty officers working on the grounds of the tournament, but not 20 feet away in the middle of Ladue Road. Some people say this is a community event, but it isn t. It is not open to the public. Those attending have to buy expensive tickets. It isn t Fire and Ice in Town and Country or the Fourth of July Parade and fireworks in Webster Groves that are free and annual community events. The Spirit of St. Louis Air Show in Chesterfield is a 2-day annual event, young kids are free and GA tickets are $20 to walk around the vintage airplanes. Police handle event security and traffic at no charge for these events. But a PGA event is a money making event with a worldwide TV contract, corporate sponsorships and more Ticket prices are $100 for practice rounds and the first round. The final three rounds tickets are $145. That is $5,800,000 a day for the final three rounds. That is a total of $17,400,000 for just the final three days, which are already sold out. The PGA wants Ladue Road and Mason Road closed where the roads abut the country club, but they are not paying for it. I am and all the other residents and businesses in town are paying for it. The police officers handling the road closures for 12 hours a day will be off duty and on overtime out of city budgets. This is not only Town and Country Police, but Creve Coeur Police, Chesterfield Police, St. Louis County PD and the Missouri Highway Patrol. Police and fire officials say this is mutual aid. But is it? This is an event that was planned over a year in advance. It is for a large money making operation. The PGA wants or demands that Ladue Road and Mason Road be closed, not the citizens of Town and Country and Creve Coeur. Mutual aid is normally sending officers to help with bad accidents, manhunts, fire companies to large fires and unplanned events like the Ferguson riots. The PGA is also building a two story glass enclosed structure on the 10 th Fairway. It will contain a restaurant and bar. Here is an I sent to Craig Wilde, the City s Service Director who oversees all plans and inspection, plus the City Administrator, Bob Shelton. From: John Hoffmann [mailto:johnhoffmann@charter.net] Sent: Sunday, July 15, :25 AM To: 'Wilde, Craig' Cc: 'SheltonB@town-and-country.org' Subject: question on PGA 4

5 Craig, The below structure being built by the PGA at Bellerive is two stories high, offers bar and restaurant service. Ticket prices are $2,650 for two days or $3,600 for four days. It is clearly FOR PROFIT. Did they obtain a building permit? Is the building being inspected? Are the plans available for viewing at City Hall? When did they obtain a State and City Liquor License? (This is clearly from ticket sales on the PGA website a PGA Operation and not a Bellerive operation.) When is the County Electrical Inspection going to be done? When will the Fire Inspection be completed? Does this structure have enough fire exits? What will the maximum occupancy per the fire marshal be for this structure? John Hoffmann Here are the answers from City Administrator Bob Shleton: Building Plans: The Planning & Public Works Department has issued a permit, there are inspections being completed, and the plans are available to view. Fire Inspections and Fire Exits: Fire inspections are being completed and there are enough fire exits for the specified structure. What will the maximum occupancy per the fire marshal be for this structure? The plans call for 600 person occupancy per floor, well below the 845 person per floor occupancy load allowed by the IBC and IFC. 5

6 Liquor License They have requested the temporary liquor application it has been sent to them. It has not yet been returned. They know they have to get both the State and the City liquor permit. Let s do the numbers. $17,400,000 for three days of tickets (first round and practice round not included) $3,500,000 estimated for memberships to the Centennial Club, two story temporary building with restaurant and bar. 1,200 persons with at least 100 employees, plus possibly not selling out of the $3,600 memberships. Figure 1000 memberships x $3,600. Plus two day memberships for practice rounds and if available for some of the four rounds at $2,650. The grandstand still under construction and the Centennial Club three weeks before the tournament. This is just a small portion of the golf carts stored on the church lot across the street from Bellerive. 6

7 FIRE AND EMS COSTS: I understand that the West County EMS & Fire Prevention District will have ambulances from House 2 on Manchester Road and House 3 on Clayton Road at Bellerive. I have been told that other departments from around the area will fill in at those two fire stations, including Valley Park and Monarch FPD. They are say it is mutual aid. That is CRAZY! The people as far away as Valley Park, Chesterfield, Manchester and Ballwin should not have to pay for EMS coverage in Town and Country because of a Golf Tournament. The PGA can hire a private ambulance firm such as Abbott Ambulance. Most of these ambulances are staffed by off-duty fire department paramedics and the PGA could require that in the contract. PARKING: Very Convenient Fenton, just miles from Bellerive. BULLSHIT TO PEOPLE SAYING THINK OF ALL THE MONEY FOR THE COMMUNITY The PGA in the past with tournaments at Bellerive have used the Ritz- Carlton Hotel in Clayton for the players. The Maryville Marriott I m is sure booked. Other than a hotel tax, that hotel is located in the tax pool area with no direct sales tax to Town and Country. The PGA recommends hotels in St. Charles, Downtown St. Louis, South County, South St. Louis City, and the Airport. People with cars have to drive to Fenton and take a bus to and from Bellerive. After each round the Twisted Tree in Sunset Hills and Sugar Fire on Hwy 141 just south of I- 44 will see the business. Town and Country is not making money off of this. However Town and Country and Creve Coeur will have cops on 1 ½ or double overtime closing roads, blocking entrances to subdivisions and dealing with PGA related traffic. The cities will not be reimbursed for this. The PGA is emptying police budgets and refusing to pay for services directly connected to the tournament. 7

8 REVISED PLAN FOR WORK AT CITY HALL AND THE FIREHOUSE FROM CITY PROJECT MANAGER: Two weeks ago we reported how work at the City fire station and city hall was going to cost $167,320 which seemed expensive for the work listed by project manager Tim Randick. Here was the work listed: We received an last week from Tim with some corrections that included more work. From: Randick, Tim Sent: Wednesday, July 11, :47 PM To: John Hoffmann Subject: RE: question on Firehouse work John, I apologize for not providing the complete scope of work to be performed by A.Eilers Construction. When you ask about work being done at the firehouse I only responded with that information. The complete scope for the Municipal Center/Firehouse is as follows: Municipal Center: Remodel of the Public Restrooms Repair/refinish to the terrazzo flooring Painting of exterior metal (doors, sally port, car port, front railings, etc) Replace broken irrigation system Firehouse: Replace broken irrigation system Replace all guttering & down spouts Minor interior drywall repair Window replacement My one question concerning the remodeling of the public restrooms at city hall is, where do people go during construction to pee? HERE IS THE ANSWER: From: Randick, Tim [mailto:randickt@town-and-country.org] Sent: Thursday, July 12, :57 AM To: John Hoffmann Subject: RE: question on Firehouse work 8

9 Staff has access to other facilities in the building. The public will have a temporary restroom trailer facility located on the parking lot during the remodel. This is included in the contractors pricing and we will work to try and start/finish construction when it affects the fewest night meetings. SIGNS, SIGNS, CITY PUTS UP IMPROPER ROAD SIGN BUT IT IS OKEY WITH THE POLICE COMMISSION: FROM THE MISSOURI DRIVER S GUIDE: 9

10 So if this is the OFFICIAL MISSOURI WARNING SIGN FOR BICYCLES why did Town and Country replace it with this? We reported in Newsletter #337 on July 8 that Craig Wilde, who oversees the city s streets told us he was instructed by Police Chief Gary Hoelzer to replace the signs. This is odd to begin with. The Street Department puts up the signs, not the Police Department. To make matters worse the police chief told the director of streets to take down an official Missouri warning sign and replace with a hard to impossible read when driving sign. Apparently the Director of the Principia School, Peter Stevens, an avid bicyclist, had asked Hoelzer to remove the standard MISSOURI sign and replace them with his special signs. THIS IS WRONG ON SO MANY LEVELS! At a recent Town and Country Police Commission meeting the majority of members including one bicyclist liked the new signs better that the State approved sign, with the comment people ignore the orange warning sign. (Like they are not going ignore these little one they can t see.) OUR SUBDIVISION DOESN T BELIEVE IN THE BILL OF RIGHTS. CANCEL THE 4 TH OF JULY PARADE! A couple of weeks ago two Mark Mantovani for County Executive campaign signs popped up in our subdivision. Oh My God! Signs for a 10

11 Democrat in a subdivision full of Republicans! What can you do about that? Here is what: From: Thornhill Estates Communications [mailto:thornhillcommunication@gmail.com] Sent: Sunday, July 15, :58 AM To: undisclosed-recipients: Subject: Fwd: Political Signs Dear Thornhill Residents- We have had complaints regarding political signs. Please see the T&C rule below. In addition, the T&C rule is supported by our indentures. Thanks ~Your Thornhill Trustees Political signs. Temporary signs advertising political parties or candidates for election may be erected or displayed and maintained provided that: b. The signs shall not be erected or displayed earlier than fourteen (14) days prior to the election to which they pertain Keep in mind that courts have struck down all the ordinances against political signs as being unconstitutional. But subdivisions, condos and apartments can have indentures restricting them. Here is my to the Board of Trustees and a specific trustee. 11

12 On Jul 15, 2018, at 1:06 PM, John Hoffmann wrote: Court rulings have struck down the T&C political sign ord. Political signs and religion signs are free speech protected by the First Amendment. You could take them to court under indentures, but thanks for wasting our money and showing a disregard to the Bill of Rights and the Constitution. John Hoffmann Sent: Sunday, July 15, :39 PM To: John Hoffmann Cc: Thornhill Estates Communications Subject: Re: Political Signs John, The Board was asked more than once by a home owner to please have the sign taken down. It s just part of the job of being a Trustee On Jul 15, 2018, at 3:47 PM, John Hoffmann <johnhoffmann@charter.net> wrote: I think the first amendment comes first. They are signs for Democrats in a largely Republican subdivision. Again the city s ord is unconstitutional and the city attorney has told the city not to enforce it. The indentures are valid. By case law they can have the signs in the windows. But come on the election will be over in three weeks and the signs would be legal in a week under the city s unconstitutional ord. This property owner (who doesn t put up political signs) says, Lighten Up. John Sent: Sunday, July 15, :08 PM To: John Hoffmann Cc: Thornhill Estates Communications Subject: Re: Political Signs John, I agree with you. The Property Owner has requested more than twice for the sign to be taken down. The Board realizes the sign will be back up in a week. ( I m not sure if the sign has been taken down) We referred to the indentures for sending out the . The Board is trying to keep indentures enforced, which can be time consuming. 12

13 Again, it is part of the job, as is trying to accommodate all homeowners equally and justly. On Jul 15, 2018, at 6:07 PM, John Hoffmann wrote: Maybe we should enforce the indentures. Perhaps we could not resurface just one street to afford the lawyer fees to file suit against those lousy Democrats putting up signs. Since the subdivision doesn t believe in the Bill of Rights or the Constitution maybe we should cancel the 4 th of July parade and cookout. John LIGHTNING STRIKE CAUSES SERIOUS DAMAGE TO TOWN AND COUNTRY HOUSE: Thunderstorms roll through the area in the afternoon on July 4. Lightning hit this house on Muirfield Lane in Ward 4 at 5:35 and did considerable damage. Photo courtesy of the WCRMS&FPD 13

14 QUEENY PARK DEER: A former police chief running for County Council brought up the Queeny Park Deer Problem at a Aldermanic meeting. A couple days later I heard from a person that County Executive Steve Stenger would try to block any attempt to harvest (kill) deer in Queeny Park. Apparently his wife is a deer lover. Former County Police Chief Tim Fitch is running as a Republican for Colleen Wassinger s seat on the County Council. Wassinger, a former T&C alderwoman is not seeking reelection to another term. He is using his title of Chief in his campaign material. Fitch retired in 2013 at age 52 after five years as police chief after more than one conflict with then County Exec Charlie Dooley. Fitch appeared at the Town and Country Board of Aldermen meeting on July 9. He announced he was running and asked if there were any questions. He was told comments from the public were for just that, comments and not a Q&A. He did ask about deer control at Queeny Park and got some nods. A week later he appeared at the Chesterfield City Council meeting and again introduced himself, this time asking no questions. Fitch left both meetings after he finished introducing himself and did not stick around to see local governments in action. He later told me that even if Steve Stenger is reelected he can t stop the County Council from 14

15 taking action about the deer in Queeny Park. He then admitted to me that he, like Stenger, he has a wife who is a deer lover and even feds them. THE COUNTY MUD BATH: We understand that the folks who manage Queeny Park for the St. Louis County Parks Department were none-to-happy about getting stuck with the Mud Mania event where people pay $10 to get covered in mud. Mud Manie was Friday July 20 and Saturday July 21 with four two-hour sessions on each day starting at 9am. You have to wonder the liability of the County and the stupidity of parents when half of the Mud Mania page on the County s website deals with diseases and infections you can get by covering yourself in mud. (See below) 15

16 Please be advised that skin contact with mud may cause irritation, itching and/or a rash. This condition is called folliculitis. It is transient in nature and usually clears up on its own. If you have sensitive skin or you experience any irritation upon contact with mud during this event, please rinse off the affected area with soap and water. Please do not ingest mud or allow mud to come into contact with your eyes. If that happens, please seek medical attention and rinse out your mouth/eyes with clean water. Please remember that mud contains many different types of bacteria and other irritants. Please rinse off any residual mud or dirt from your skin or take a shower and change into clean clothes as soon as possible after the event. Please seek medical attention if you do not feel well or experience any signs and symptoms consistent with heat exhaustion (fatigue, headache, dizziness, fainting, nausea, vomiting etc.) ONE TOWN AND COUNTRY RESIDENT SHOULD BE HAPPY WITH FIRING OF CARDINALS MANAGER MIKE MATHENY. If you didn t know, Cardinal outfielder Dexter Fowler is a Town and Country resident for six months a year after he bought a $2-plus million dollar house. It has been reported that Cardinals manager Mike Matheny had stopped talking to Fowler, who with a $82-million five year contract was struggling this season hitting well below.200. The Cardinals fired Matheny last week and Fowler hit a home run in his first at bat after the firing. COMING NEXT WEEK: Crime Up in Town and Country and Down in Chesterfield Another change to new athletic fields at Maryville University on Conway Road Residents upset about Fireworks Does the fire hydrant near your house work? 16

17 UNAPPROVED CHESTERFIELD NEWSLETTER 284 CHESTERFIELD BIG TIME EMBEZZLER PLEADS GUILTY AND GETS PROBATION: Thomas Cooke, 58, of 1340 Chesterfield Estates had been charged with embezzling $57,341 from his employer, Golder Associates on Barrett Station Road with offices worldwide. Thomas Cooke According to court documents the embezzling started in August of 2013 and ended with his firing after an audit revealed the crime in Cooke owes just under $900,000 in St. Louis County Circuit Court judgments dating back to This includes an $804,000 judgment. He has not made any payments. Cooke and his wife Virginia sold their house at 1340 Chesterfield Estates on 09/28/17 for $365,725. They are now renting a condo at Hiddendale Lane in Ballwin. 17

18 1340 Chesterfield Estates OUTCOME: On 05/08/18 Cooke pled guilty and Judge Gloria Reno hammered him with a 5-year SIS No-Fine, No-Jail probation term. 20 YEAR-OLD FROM BALLWIN ON PROBATION FOR BREAKING INTO A CAR IN CHESTERFIELD AND STEALING OVER $1,000 IN TOOLS IS ABOUT TO HAVE HIS PROBATION REVOKED: Regular readers may remember Nicholas Gentry Ferguson of 224 Ries Road in Ballwin. If not they surely remember the mug shots of the drugged out trio of suspects connected to a car break in that took place in Chesterfield. The trio was stopped late the same night of the car break-in walking to rear of houses in Ballwin on July 7, Ballwin Police found the tools taken in the Chesterfield car clouting. Ferguson Roman Mandrapa Elizabeth McDonald Roman Mandrapa, 21, ran from the scene, but was later arrested. 42-year-old Elizabeth McDonald said she was too high on drugs to know what happened, but she never got out of the car. She was charged with Receiving Stolen Property, but the charges were later dropped due to a lack of evidence. Mandrapa was charged with Receiving Stolen Property. He was already on probation for Burglary First Degree and Auto Theft. He pled guilty on May 25, 2017 and was sentenced to 7-years in prison His probation for the Burglary and Auto Theft was also revoked. 18

19 Ferguson was not affected by his arrest and charges being filed. On 12/12/16 he committed a Burglary and Stealing in Chesterfield. He and a new partner in crime, Deahvion Bishop broke into the house at Courtyard Mill Lane and stole a car that was parked in the garage. He pled guilty to both cases on May 12, 2017 and was given a 5-year SIS probation term with no jail, no fine and no record if he does not violate the probation. Not violating his probation seems to be a problem for Ferguson. Here is part of Ferguson s record: 07/07/16 Receiving Stolen Property Chesterfield PD 05/12/17 Pled Guilty and placed on 5-year SIS Probation 12/12/16 Burglary and Receiving Stolen Property Chesterfield PD 5/12/17 Pled Guilty placed on 5-year SIS Probation 08/13/17 Making a False Police Report pending Ellisville PD 08/13/17 Domestic Assault pending Ballwin 02/14/18 Trespassing at West County Center Des Peres PSD Pled Guilty 05/07/18 Fined $250 Did not pay fine. Warrant issued for Failure to Appear in Court 06/06/18 Destruction of Property Pending Ballwin PD 06/2018 Domestic Assault Pending Ballwin PD Ferguson had had two probation violations formerly filed against him in February and June of 2018 and six citations filed against his probation. Ferguson s co-defendant on the Burglary and car theft, Deahvion Bishop, now 19, received probation violation notices and also was arrested in Des Peres for Felony Stealing, that the judge changed the sentence, sort of. He sentenced Bishop to five years in prison, but then put him on a SES probation term for five years, meaning he has a permanent record and jail over his head. Deahvion Bishop of St. Louis, Chesterfield burglar. 19

20 ANOTHER CHESTERFIELD BURGLAR: Zachary Zike, 25, last address was with his parents at 57 Highland Park Drive in Chesterfield is a troubled person. Zike was arrested for breaking into the St. Louis Bread Co store in the Four Seasons Shopping Center at Olive and Woods Mill Road, while the building was being remodeled. The crime occurred on May 31, After breaking in Zike did thousands of dollars in vandalism. He confessed to using a power lifter and severely damaging a just installed sprinkler system, breaking windows and spraying painting walls. May 2018 June 2018 This is from the court files: 20

21 Zike plead guilty on November 7, He was placed on Probation on a deferred prosecution program. However part of the probation required him to appear in court. In 2018 he failed to appear on several occasions and warrants were issued. The latest warrant was just issued on Friday July 13. POLICE DETECTIVE UNDER THE PENALTIES OF PERJURY CLAIMED ZIKE BROKE INTO HIS PARENTS HOUSE: When we obtained the court files on this case it was more than a little confusing. The charges and the probable cause statement signed by Chesterfield Detective Eric Wittman under the penalties of perjury state that Zike broke into his parents house where he lives at 57 Highland park Drive and not the St. Louis BreadCo. We had a hard time figuring this out so we sent an to the police command staff to find out what building was broken into by Zike. Here is where the court documents incorrectly claim that Zike broke into and vandalized. 21

22 Detective Wittman who wrote a false (or incorrect) probable cause statement has been promoted and is now on the street as a supervisor. CHESTERFIELD RESIDENT ARRESTED FOR FOURTH TIME FOR DWI: Valerie Terschluse, 55, of 1962 Ridge Lake Drive Chesterfield, has been arrested for the fourth time for DWI. This latest arrest was on March 15, Her prior DWI arrests were: 10/26/05 Town and Country PD 07/10/09 St. Louis County PD 03/04/16 Chesterfield PD This time she was stopped driving drunk on a flat tire by Chesterfield Police officer Russell Hesser. This is from the court files of the latest arrest: 22

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24 HERE ARE SOME MORE CHESTERFIELD FELONY DRUNK DRIVERS: These folks are all Chesterfield residents and have been recently charged with Felony Drunk Driving. This information is from court files. Aaron Levinson, 37, Kimwood Court Chesterfield Aaron Levinson 24

25 Elliot Glassman, 65, 53 Chesterfield Lake Road 25

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27 Dennis Timothy Shearn, 61, 210 Hi Point Road Dennis Shearn 27

28 FIVE ARRESTED FOR ASSAULT AT THE CHESTERFIELD TRAILER PARK IDENTIFIED: This was in last week s Chesterfield Police Blotter. Five men were arrested at the trailer park after assaulting a resident complaining about parking. All five suspects gave Chesterfield addresses at the time of their arrests. Two were turned over to Immigration- Customs-Enforcement as they had illegally entered the U.S. on two prior occasions. Chesterfield Police did not advise which suspects were turned over to ICE. 28

29 MIRELES MARTINES, OSCAR OSIEL age 30 GONZALEZ MARTINEZ, ALDO age 30 HERNANDEZ VEGA, RICARDO age 36 LOPEZ VEGA, JOSE LUIS age 32 CONTRERASAVALOS, DANIEL age 29 All Chesterfield residents. All charged with Assault (municipal court) Lopez Vega Gonzales Martinez Mireles Martines Contrerasavalos 29

30 Hernandez Vega POLICE DEPARTMENT NEWS: Capt. Ed Nestor, the long time assistant police chief of Chesterfield, has been on light duty as he battles an aggressive form of cancer. We understand he was diagnosed with cancer this Spring. Capt. Nestor was a finalist for the Kirkwood Police Chief job late last summer. File photo Ed with his rock band, The Dog s Breakfast in 2016 at Nesby s BBQ in 2016 This is Nester in September of CODE ENOFRCEMENT OFFICER QUITS: The Police Department s civilian code enforcement officer suddenly resigned in late June forcing Officer Kim Beckman and a sergeant to take over the duties until a new one is hired. Beckman is the department s Community Affairs Officer and often speaks at subdivision meetings and is in charge of security for city Council meetings and Municipal Court. He will also often fill in on calls 30

31 when officers are out of service. He now has to add code enforcement to his current resume, which is a job with enough violations for two officers. Kim Beckman on double duty CHESTERFIELD POLICE BLOTTER: 31

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34 DAN HURT HEADED TO WHITE HOUSE: Ward-3 Councilman Dan Hurt announced during the Agenda Review Meeting on July 16 before the regular Council meeting that he would be out of town for the first part of next week. Hurt owns St. Louis Pneumatic, a power tool manufacturer with products ranging from drills to ratchets. Hurt who is regularly cracking jokes, often bad ones, made not a mention of the Trump- Putin meeting and did not even refer to the President, saying he was going to the White House. 34

35 FORMER CHESTERFIELD MAYOR JOHN NATIONS ATTACK ON COUNTY EXEC SEEMS TO BE POLITICIAL AND NOT AN ATTEMPT TO SAVE TAXPAYERS MONEY. John Nations who abandoned his duties as mayor of Chesterfield back in 2010 to take a high paying job as the CEO of Metro Transit despite having no experience in transit, was on the front page of the Post-Dispatch on Monday July 16. Nations with a bright orange Northern Ireland type of a tie on St. Patrick s Day 2014.Apparently he doesn t want the Catholic Vote. Nations announced that in 2016 financial consultants recommended loans to Bi-State (Metro Transit) be refinanced at lower interest rated that would save $7.5-million. The Bi-State board and the City of St. Louis aldermen voted to refinance. Steve Stenger never presented the deal to the County Council and in fact refused to return calls from Nations or respond to letters. I smell a rat: Two years later and six weeks before his last day at Bi-State, Republican Nations attacks Democrat Stenger. Yes Stenger deserves it. But if Nations was looking out for us taxpayers he would have made the attack in Now it simply gives him good press before he files for another elected position. HULL PROPERTY GROUP ANNOUNCES PURCHASE OF CHESTERFIELD MALL: We report three weeks ago that the Hull Property Group out of Augusta Georgia was buying Chesterfield Mall. At the Monday July 16 City Council agenda review meeting City Administrator Mike Geisel said he believed the sale was complete earlier that day.the company sent out a press release on Wednesday July % of the press release was about how great Hull Property Group is so we edited it down a bit. Here is the condensed version. 35

36 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Hull Property Group Acquires Chesterfield Mall CHESTERFIELD, Mo. (July 18, 2018) Hull Property Group announced today the acquisition of Chesterfield Mall in Chesterfield, Missouri. The approximately 1.3 million square foot enclosed mall adds to the company s growing portfolio of retail property comprised of in excess of 15 million square feet including 31 enclosed shopping malls across 14 states. Our company is prepared to invest the necessary resources here in Chesterfield to reinvent this failed property, but we can t do it alone. We need to work together and agree that the Mall and the surrounding area is too important to fail and become a permanent blight. We must determine how to revive a future for this property and the surrounding area in a manner that is financially feasible and supported by the community. Experience instructs us that it is much easier to stop an area from becoming blighted than it is to regain momentum once an area has become blighted, said John Mulherin, Vice President of Government Relations for Hull Property Group. Hull Property Group self-manages its entire retail portfolio and will oversee the repositioning and redevelopment of the approximate 40 acres it is acquiring. Coming next week Hotel at Top Golf More plans on Chesterfield Hockey Association Councilwoman claims citizens have right to have proposals placed on agendas Day Care facility at Edison Road and Long results in 30 minute debate Sunshine Law beats will of City Council NEXT WEEK S BIG STORY The subdivision residents versus Dr. Doug Pernikoff. On Monday July16 there was an overflow crowd of residents from the Clarkson Woods subdivision to speak out against vet Dr. Doug Pernikoff s proposal to rezone the residential property at the subdivision entrance to commercial so he can build a new office building for his veterinary clinic plus space for two other offices. We will have more details about this meeting and an odd comment by Mayor Bob Nation in our next newsletter. 36

37 TO TELL THE TRUTH: The Post-Dispatch Three times was not a charm at the July 16 Chesterfield City Council meeting. Mayor Bob Nation, the City Attorney Chris Graville and Councilwoman Barb McGinness all made similar announcements at the Monday July 16 Chesterfield City Council Meeting before the rezoning bill was given a first reading. They all said, This was not a vote on the matter. There will not be any vote until the August 6 meeting. The statement s were slightly different with one saying I want everyone to know there will not be a vote. A vote to allow a first reading is not a vote for or against the bill. Three people said this maybe five or six times. On Wednesday morning it was clear the Post-Dispatch was not having any of that. Here is a headline and a lead paragraph from the July 18 th paper that was completely false. 37

38 This proposal was voted down 1-3 in committee. Two more votes will kill it. The Council NEVER GAVE INITIAL APPROVAL. TO TELL THE TRUTH: Schnucks. Schnucks has been advertising how they are the place to go for local and Missouri grown produce. So on Wednesday July 18 while I was in the Town and Country Schnucks with a seedless watermelon on my shopping list I could not help but notice that well over half of the watermelons were not from Missouri. They were not even from the United States. So of course I took a couple of photos. To Tell the Truth Host Bud Collyer (standing) L to R Tom Poston Peggy Cass, Orson Bean and Kitty Carslie 38

39 BABB WINS AGAINST HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATION: The Clarkson Valley residents won in Cole County Circuit Court in 2013 after the City of Clarkson Valley wanted them to remove solar panels on their house. The litigation cost the City of Clarkson Valley $117,702. (The solar panels were originally approved, but then moved to take advantage more of the Southern Exposure.) Here s a photo of the Babb s house taken on Thanksgiving Day 2013 from the street. Can you spot the solar panels? This is the view of Babbs House when there if foliage Most recently the Babbs and the solar panels were sued by the Kehrs Mills Estates Homeowners Association. On July 11, 2018 St. Louis County Judge Gloria Reno ruled in favor of the Babbs and against the homeowners association. 39

40 Since almost no one can see the solar panels in question it appears as if both the city and the homeowners association were wasteful of limited cash reserves to try and stop installation of the solar panels. Here are some items from the ruling by Judge Reno: 40

41 Here is one section of Judge Reno s ruling that I like the most: 41

42 SPEED KILLS AND SOMETIMES IT JUST COSTS $300,000. Here is a photo taken by the Fairfax County VA Police Department:. The owner of the car, a McLaren 720S, purchased it on Friday 07/13/18 for a little more than $300,000. The owner totaled it in less than 24 hours, speeding, losing control and hitting a tree at 7:45 AM on Saturday 07/14/18. The new owner did not have life threatening injuries. 42

43 HOT SPOT: In the middle of flames is the car that hit the utility pole in the northern end of Silver Spring Maryland on July 15. Yes electrical wire onto the car contributed to the fire. The driver walked away. CORRECTION: Last week in our monthly Deer Report I briefly wrote about a fatal vehicle-deer collision in Reynolds County Missouri on July 4 th that killed a 22-year-old. The vehicle in the accident was listed as a Honda CVR, which is a motorcycle. I confused that with a Honda CR-V. My wife drives a 19-year-old CR-V. However, stupid me, from my fingertips onto the keyboard came a Honda Civic. A regular reader in Creve Coeur was nice enough to take the time to correct me. CARTOONS Guess what? There was a theme in this week s editorial cartoons regardless if the cartoonist lean to the right or the left. 43

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