All Entries Tagged With: "Sunday news clips"
Sunday News Clips: 6/13
• A big NoCo high-five to Nate Bennett and his staff at Hendel’s Market Cafe in Old Town Florissant! Not only has business been booming lately, but St. Louis radio legend Ron Elz, aka Johnny Rabbitt, just named Hendel’s one of his top ten favorite restaurants in St. Louis! In a lengthy history and review of the cafe, he called it “an increasingly hard-to-find type of place where everything blends together to give you a memorably wonderful dining experience.” Wow! Go, Hendel’s!
Steven Harris CPA
• Congratulations are also in order for Florissant resident and CPA Steven Harris, who was recently promoted to partner at RubinBrown, one of the Midwest’s largest accounting and business consulting firms! A graduate of UMSL, Harris is actively involved in the local community and serves as director of the National Association of Black Accountants. Bravo, Steven!
• Accessible Play, a local nonprofit dedicated to building an “all-inclusive playground” in Florissant’s Manion Park, is hoping to get one step closer to its goal of raising $1 million…and you can help. On June 30, the organization will receive 20% of all food sales at Deaver’s Restaurant and Sports Bar, located at 2109 Charbonier Road.
Accessible Play‘s plans for the 10,000-square-foot playground (pictured below) call for numerous accessibility features, including braille signage, barrier-free pathways and rubber surfaces to accommodate people with mobility issues. Groundbreaking is scheduled for 2011.
A playground for everyone, courtesy of Accessible Play
• Why let summer vacation just slip by? If you’re a young woman in high school, you have until June 15 to sign up for Girls’ Leadership Camp at UMSL! This four-day workshop offers practical, hands-on learning experiences and the chance to hear from successful professional women in multiple career fields. Find a mentor. Prepare for college. Meet new friends! Enrollment is $195, with financial assistance available. To sign up, look here or call (314) 516-5908.
• You may have read about Florissant’s historic Henry Albers house back in November, which was for sale at the time. Now, the National Register property is set to get a new tenant: Generations Antique Mall. After three years on rue St. Francois, the shop is relocating in order to have more square footage and hopefully higher visibility. Stop by for a visit @ 250 rue St. Catherine.
• Bel-Nor’s most infamous residence – the house on Roanoke Drive where many events from the real-life Exorcist took place – is soon to be featured in a new documentary by “paranormal filmmakers” Christoper and Philip Booth. The Haunted Boy: The Secret Diary of the Exorcist aims to tell the “real story” of what happened here back in the 1940s, when a young boy from Maryland was exorcised by local priests. Keep an eye out and you’ll also notice the grand old St. Vincent’s Hospital on St. Charles Rock Road, whose Chateauesque towers and basement “therapy” rooms (complete with shackles) have yielded plenty of ghost stories on their own.
• Not long ago, the State Board of Education voted to replace school board members in the Riverview Gardens School District with a special three-person administrative board led by veteran educator Lynn Beckwith, Jr. Now, that new board is seeking input from students, parents, staff and area residents, and all are invited to a community meeting on Tuesday, June 22. Participants will each have up to three minutes to speak. The meeting will be held at Westview Middle School, 1950 Nemnich, at 7pm.
• North County Incorporated is once again seeking nominations for its 30 Leaders in Their Thirties award, which recognizes those who are making a positive contribution to North County. If you know someone in their thirties who lives or works in NoCo and deserves to be honored, go to the NCI website for a nomination form. The deadline is July 16, 2010, and awards will be distributed in September.
• It’s amazing what volunteers can achieve…just ask the city of Hazelwood! Members of the Hazelwood Police Department’s Volunteers in Police Services (VIPS) recently presented the city council with a check for $301,000, symbolizing the amount of money they save for the community each year. VIPS has 25 members who donate a total of 10-12,000 hours of service annually, helping the police department with a variety of tasks.
“They do everything ranging from school DARE program graduations to providing traffic control at city-sponsored events, organizing neighborhood watch programs and manning the St. Louis Mills police substation,” says Hazelwood Police Sergeant Don Routh. “This volunteer support allows more of our officers to be out in the community instead of being chained to a desk doing paperwork.”
Hazelwood VIPS members Pat Corzine and Chuck Hermann (center) present their check to Police Chief Carl Wolf and Mayor Matthew Robinson.
• If you’re a recent college graduate and you’re looking to buy a home, be sure to check out Ferguson! Thanks to UMB Bank and the Ferguson Neighborhood Improvement Program, you might be able to score a $2,500 grant in the Ferguson Graduation Gift Program…as in free money to help you purchase a house! Only two grants are available, and they’re given out first come, first serve, so act quickly! College grads at all levels – bachelor to doctorate – are eligible. For more info, call (314) 524-5196 or visit the city’s website.
• Innovation seems to be a key concept at the Hazelwood School District lately. First there were the e-textbooks offered in a pilot program. Now the district has teamed with Washington University to allow fourth though eighth grade math and science teachers to earn a graduate certificate and 15 credit hours toward a master’s degree! Co-sponsored by Boeing and MasterCard, the program will have a minimal cost for participants, and the goal is to enrich teachers with advanced skills and knowledge.
• In other school news, three North County districts – Pattonville, Hazelwood and Ferguson-Florissant – recently received the “What Parents Want” Award from SchoolMatch, a national firm that ranks schools based on their ability to meet the needs of their communities. Twenty-eight Missouri districts achieved the honor (including Clayton, Ladue and Parkway), with winners chosen based on parent questionnaires and criteria such as class size, academic test scores, teacher salaries, and how money is spent for media services. Only about 16 percent of public school districts nationwide meet the award criteria. So…what’s that I hear about “bad schools” in NoCo?! Ha!
• Finally, a huge thank you to my newest NOCO advertiser, Commercial Bank, whose ad will start running in a few days! As you can see in this April article, bank president Brad Purcell is a lifelong North County resident and all-around great guy! If you’re shopping for a local bank that delivers truly personal service and will work closely with you to achieve your financial goals, visit the Florissant location of Commercial Bank!
Sunday News Clips: 5/23
With summer weather on its way, it’s not surprising that we had a few hot stories in NoCo this week…
• More than 130 local residents showed up at Bridgeton’s May 19 public hearing to express their views on the city’s proposed Walmart Supercenter. In fact, so many people wanted to speak that the city council has postponed the hearing until 7pm on June 2 and moved it to a larger setting at the Bridgeton Community Center, 4201 Fee Fee Road. As you may know already, the developer of the Supercenter is seeking up to $8 million in tax increment financing (TIF) and is asking Bridgeton to use eminent domain to acquire a portion of the Garden Ridge parking lot. Plans also call for closing the existing Walmart across from Northwest Plaza.
• In other hotly debated development news, St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley recently came out against the proposed Riverview Casino near Columbia Bottom Conservation Area in Spanish Lake. In a letter to the Missouri Gaming Commission, he cited “environmental concerns” with the project, essentially adding another roadblock to the developer’s bid to secure the state’s 13th and final gaming license. Still, the attorney for North County Development LLC, which hopes to build the 377-acre casino, says he is pressing on.
• Over in Florissant, the fate of another local gem, Little Creek Nature Area, will be discussed at an open executive session Monday, May 24, at 7:30pm. The city would like to annex the property at 2295 Dunn Road, which is currently owned by the Ferguson-Florissant School District and sits within unincorporated St. Louis County. All are welcome at the meeting.
Sydney Secours
• A huge NoCo hat tip to Sydney Secours, a senior at Hazelwood Central High School who will graduate on May 26 following 13 years of perfect attendance!! Since she first started kindergarten at Walker Elementary, Sydney, the daughter of a teacher at Hazelwood Central Middle School, has never missed a single day of class! This fall, she will attend St. Louis University to study pre-medicine and biology, with a goal of becoming either a pediatrician or a gynecologist. Hooray for you, Sydney!
• In other school news, the Ferguson-Florissant School District has decided to ask voters to approve a $25 million bond issue in the August 3 election. If approved, the bond issue will not increase tax rates or cost district residents any additional money, nor will it go toward funding salaries, utilities, textbooks or employee benefits. What it will do is allow the district to invest in capital improvements like technology and energy efficiency, complementing the $15 million in cost-cutting measures that district administrators have already implemented this year.
Hazelwood's historic Knobbe house
• Congratulations to the city of Hazelwood, which just won the St. Louis County Historic Buildings Commission’s 2010 Adaptive Reuse Award for its work in preserving the circa-1870 Knobbe house. Originally located on the north side of 270, near Village Square, the Victorian-style home was moved across the highway and placed in Brookes Park along with two other historic structures. After the city restored it and made it handicap-accessible, the house was opened to the public for meetings and social events. For more info about renting the property, call (314) 513-5080.
• North County Incorporated held its 33rd annual awards breakfast last week, honoring the St. Louis County Economic Council for its work in securing two significant local developments: the Express Scripts distribution center in NorthPark and the National Archives & Records Administration (NARA) building near 270 and Bellefontaine Road. Bringing $74 million in investment to North County, the Express Scripts project is expected to create 270 jobs. The NARA facility involves a $112 million investment and will keep 800 jobs in the area. It’s also anticipated to have a $430 million impact on the local economy. Bring it on!
• North County is all smiles this week for Dr. Sam Cigno, a local dentist who recently gave free dental care to 37 teenagers from Covenant House, an organization that works with homeless and at-risk youth. For many of the kids, it was their first ever visit to a dentist, inspiring Dr. Cigno and his staff to devote an entire day to cleaning and repairing the teens’ teeth, calming their fears, and educating them about proper oral hygiene. Bravo!
Dr. Sam Cigno works on one of 37 teen patients from Covenant House.
• If you’re a music buff, don’t miss the RFT’s very interesting write-up on the Welders, an all-girl punk band that came out of Florissant in the 1970s! Some of the members have gone on to play with big-name musicians like Courtney Love and Beck, and all have fond memories of growing up in NoCo. Very cool. You can also look here for pics of Ferguson’s own guitar maestro Jeff Thomas, whose fantastic circus punk marching band from Chicago, Mucca Pazza, rocked the house at the Firebird last night!
• Just in case you missed my post on the Ferguson Food & Fun Raffle, I’m happy to announce that we’re still adding some awesome prizes to the mix! To help Team Ferguson meet its goal of raising $10,000 to attend the All-America City Award competition in June, Ferguson Style & Spa has just donated a full day of spa services! Buy a ticket for $10 and you could win a complete pampering package, including a massage, facial, manicure and pedicure! Thanks, Sherry!
• Finally, a hearty welcome to my newest NOCO sponsor, Esse Health! A network of 75 independent physicians, including Dr. Mark Pelikan, who just opened a practice in Florissant, Esse Health is focused on keeping patients healthy through wellness, education and prevention. If you’re looking for a quality health care provider, check out this great organization!
Sunday News Clips (a bit late): 5/12
As you’ve probably noticed by now, NOCO has undergone some big changes recently. I decided to update the site layout to allow for more efficient use of space, as well as improve navigation, speed up loading time, expand advertising options and introduce several new features, which will be added soon.
To be honest, I didn’t expect everything to go live immediately, so I’ve spent the past week playing catch up and tweaking small problems. You may still notice a few issues here and there (especially with photos on older posts), but I’m trying to get them resolved quickly. So thank you for your patience as I work to make NOCO the best North County resource it can be! Now, onto the news clips…
• Tom George, chancellor of UMSL, announced yesterday that the university is one step closer to raising the funds it needs to build a new College of Business Administration building. Helping to make a dent in its goal of $25 million, the school has received a donation of $500,000 from Ameren. It has also renewed its partnership with Washington University for the groundbreaking Joint Undergraduate Engineering Program, which allows students to take general education and pre-engineering classes at UMSL and then complete higher level engineering classes at Wash U.
• May 19 should be an interesting day in the city of Bridgeton. That’s when the city council will hold a public hearing on the proposed Walmart Supercenter, which Rock Road Development LLC would like to build on the site of the former Value City, just west of Highway 70 on St. Charles Rock Road. The developer is seeking up to $8 million in tax increment financing (TIF) and is also asking the city to use eminent domain to acquire a portion of the Garden Ridge parking lot.
Proponents of the Supercenter say it would bring $7 million in annual tax revenue to Bridgeton, beginning in 2012. Opponents say that if the Supercenter is built, the subsequent closing of the existing Walmart across from Northwest Plaza would result in a huge revenue loss for the city of St. Ann, likely prompting layoffs and cuts in municipal services.
To learn more about this proposed development, attend the public hearing on Wednesday, May 19, at 7pm. It will be held at Bridgeton City Hall, 11955 Natural Bridge, 63044.
Kirsten Gindler
• A big NOCO congratulations to Kirsten Gindler, a junior at Pattonville High School who recently won a prestigious essay contest sponsored by the National Society of the Colonial Dames of America. Competing against students from all over the U.S., Kirsten stood out with her essay on Wesberry vs. Sanders, a pivotal Supreme Court ruling that established the principle of “one man, one vote.” As part of her award, she will travel to Washington D.C. this summer for a week-long congressional seminar on politics, government and foreign policy.
Madison Dennis
• Another big NOCO hat tip to Madison Dennis, a junior at Hazelwood West High School who recently won a free trip to Camp Broadway in New York. Nominated by her peers at COCA in University City, where she studies dance every day (!), Madison will spend one week this summer working with Broadway stage professionals on subjects like vocal training, choreography and scene studies.
• In other local school news, it’s time once again for the Teacher of the Year Awards. At Pattonville High School, the honor went to Julie Kampschroeder, a college and career counselor. In the Riverview Gardens School District, third-grade teacher Jackie Hinrichs earned the prize. In the Hazelwood School District, another third-grade teacher, Lesli Henderson, won. And in a special award just for space and science education, I’m very proud to report that my neighbor Steve Marsden, a fifth-grade teacher at Duchesne Elementary in the Ferguson-Florissant district, was named Teacher of the Year by the Challenger Learning Center, an honor given to only five teachers nationwide! (You can see a video clip of him receiving the award here.) Congratulations to all of these great educators!
Lesli Henderson, Hazelwood School District's 2010 Teacher of the Year, and her third-grade class at Lusher Elementary
• Want to do some good the next time you’re dining out? Two North County restaurants recently signed up for Enjoy a Tree, a St. Louis-based program that takes a small portion of what you spend on certain menu items and uses the funds to plant edible, nutrient-rich moringa trees in third world countries. Both Hill Brewing Company in Ferguson and Mattingly’s in Florissant are participating in the campaign, which has a goal of one million trees, so be sure to give them your business!
• Speaking of local restaurants, you may remember my recent feature on Mama’s Sweet Treats and Breads in Bel-Nor. I’m happy to report that you can now find Mama’s delicious bread in Ferguson too! Mike Lonero, always a big supporter of local businesses, is offering it at his restaurant Vincenzo’s.
Barbara Primm
• Spanish Lake resident Barbara Primm was featured in a nice write-up in the St. Louis American recently. An educational consultant and aspiring author, the one-time teen mom now helps students locate scholarships for college and runs a program called LEAP (Literacy and Education Applied with Purpose). She’s also working toward her doctorate degree in education. Awesome work, Barbara!
• If you won’t be in Ferguson this Saturday for the citywide yard sale, why not stop by the Bellefontaine Neighbors Bike Rodeo? Scheduled for 10am to 2pm at city hall (9641 Bellefontaine Rd), this free event sponsored by the Holy Name of Jesus Parish Youth Group will feature a bike riding skills course, free bike helmets, face painting, games, prizes, crafts and the chance to see a medical helicopter up close! All children ages 2-12 are welcome! In case of rain, the Bike Rodeo will be held on May 22.
• Finally, a huge thank you to my newest NOCO advertiser, Prudential Patterson Realtors! The largest locally owned real estate company in the area, “PruPat” is also a sponsor of the Live Well Ferguson Twilight 5K this Saturday, and its vice president, Rory Schwartz, is a lifelong NoCo resident. Please support this great local business!
Sunday News Clips: 4/25
So much good local news to share today! Who says nothing positive ever happens in North County?!
• Trinity Catholic High School in Spanish Lake recently became the only high school in Missouri to have its own full-service credit union. Citing a need for students to learn sound financial management, the school joined forces with Gateway Metro Credit Union, who just opened a branch on-site and invested $5 for every new account. Gateway Metro also runs a comprehensive financial planning program for teens and is a great source for inexpensive vehicles that even high school students can afford to finance. To see KTVI’s video clip about the Trinity credit union, look here.
Mikala McGhee
• Crews for MTV’s reality show Made are currently in town to help Mikala McGhee, a sophomore at Pattonville High School, achieve her dream of being a ballroom dancer. Following six weeks of training, McGhee will trade in her usual soccer uniform for an elegant dancer’s outfit, performing in front of her entire school at a talent contest on May 22. No word yet on when the actual episode will air, but good luck Mikala!
• If you find yourself hungry this coming Thursday, April 29, why not head to Cork Wine Bar, Vincenzo’s Italian Restaurant or Malone’s Grill and Pub? These three Ferguson establishments are the only North County restaurants participating in the 17th annual Dining Out for Life, a fundraiser benefiting St. Louis Effort for Aids. Simply buy your meal as usual and 25% of the proceeds will go toward HIV/AIDS prevention and support of those affected by the disease.
• Over in Hazelwood, another worthy charity will also be raising funds soon. On May 8, the city’s Parks, Police and Fire Departments are teaming up with StrollerFit to sponsor Trike-A-Thon, a fun day of bicycle and safety education that benefits St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. To participate in the event, local youngsters recruit sponsors for donations and then join in on bike safety classes, face painting and custom helmet fitting. Helmets will also be available for purchase at just $5. To register for Trike-A-Thon, which will run from 9:30am to 1pm at the Hazelwood Community Center, 1186 Teson Road, visit the event’s website.
• With so many Americans still without health insurance, it’s good to know that at least some free medical care is available. On Saturday, May 1, Riverview Gardens School District is hosting its second annual Community Health Fair, where participants can enjoy free access to blood pressure readings, BMI assessments, blood sugar screenings, and yes, even mammograms. Local dentists, chiropractors, massage therapists and nutrition experts will also be on hand to give advice, and fair-goers who visit at least six booths and fill out a short survey will receive a complimentary lunch. To register for a mammogram, you must call (314) 996-5170 ahead of time. Otherwise, just show up at the fair, ready to get healthy: 10am – 2pm @ Riverview Gardens High School, 1218 Shepley Drive, 63137.
Katie Schmidt's winning entry
• Congratulations to Katie Schmidt, a freshman at my own alma mater, Incarnate Word Academy, who recently won her age group in the 2010 Heinz Ketchup Creativity Contest. Katie’s design will appear on 20 million ketchup packets. She will also receive $1,000 in art supplies and ketchup for IWA, as well as $1,000 for herself. Here she is being interviewed by KTVI’s Tim Ezell. Bravo, Katie!
• In other student news, a big thumbs up to Anthony Crawford, Adam Dean, Gerald Higginbotham and Reginald Thedford, Jr, four Hazelwood Central students who were chosen to be escorts at Delta Sigma Theta’s Rites of Passage Debutante Ball. The young men were selected because of their strong character, leadership ability and solid academic performance, and the event allowed them to meet many prominent St. Louisans.
Anthony Crawford, Reginald Thedford, Jr. and Gerald Higginbotham (L to R), three quality young men from Hazelwood Central High School
Proving that NoCo’s public schools can and do produce excellent students, Crawford plans to attend Mizzou, where he will study to become a high school music teacher. Dean will attend Purdue as an engineering major. Higginbotham has been accepted to Stanford University and wants to study economics and psychology. And Thedford, the only junior in the group, would like to attend Loyola University in Chicago and become an orthopedic surgeon. Wow!
• Dave “the Tin Man” Behlmann, a member of St. Ferdinand Parish in Florissant, was featured in the St. Louis Review this week for his work collecting scrap metal on behalf of his son’s class. As a result of his ongoing efforts, which entail picking up and cashing in many tons of donated tin, aluminum and other metals, it’s likely that every fifth-grader at St. Ferdinand will be able to attend Camp Wyman in Eureka at no cost! Way to go, Dave!
• Thanks to UMSL and a nonprofit group called Supporters of Civil Society in Russia, 27 Russian civic and political leaders will spend the next week in St. Louis, visiting with UMSL faculty and local leaders like County Executive Charlie Dooley. The fifth group of its kind to visit the area, the Russian delegation is here to experience American democracy and community life, so if you happen to see them out and about in NoCo, be sure to say zdrah-stvooy-tee (hello)!
• Know anyone who loves comic books? Then mark your calendar for May 1 – it’s Free Comic Book Day! In honor of this annual national event, all of the North County branches of St. Louis County Library (as well as the Fantasy Shop in Florissant) will be giving away one free comic to both kids and adults. Some of the titles available include GI Joe, Sonic the Hedgehog, Iron Man, Toy Story and Green Hornet. But get yours early…only a limited number of comics are available.
• St. Louis County Library is also launching a special program during May in honor of Mental Health Month. Every Monday at the Natural Bridge branch, licensed therapist Nichelle Hardy will host a free two-hour session on various mental health issues, with anyone welcome to attend. Topics include dysfunctional families (May 3), being single and satisfied (May 10), premarital counseling (May 17), and stress management (May 24). To register, visit the library’s website or call (314) 994-3300.
• Just a quick shout-out to all the churches, nonprofits and frequent festival vendors out there: planning is currently underway for Ferguson Streetfest, which will take place September 24 & 25. If you’re interested in hosting a booth or being involved in some way, please contact Mary Haux. Streetfest draws thousands of people!
• Finally, a huge thank you to my two newest NOCO sponsors: Blessed Teresa of Calcutta Catholic School and Hill Brewing Company, both of Ferguson! BTC, which is actively enrolling kids of all faiths in kindergarten through 8th grade, made news in 2009 when parents and community members rallied to raise more than $300,000 to ensure its survival. An example of exceptional private education in North County, it really is a cornerstone of the Ferguson community.
Hill Brewing, of course, is probably the hottest thing going in NoCo right now. Our first and only microbrewery and a labor of love from the incredible Joe Lonero, this fabulous restaurant and brewpub has been PACKED every day since it opened on April 13 – and for good reason! If you haven’t been yet, GO!! So far, I’m really digging the Belgian Wit, the St. Louis Pale Ale (made from wild local hops) and the pulled pork. Watching the super cute “Wolfgang” Wilson brew beer isn’t half bad either…
Are you getting ready for the big day? NOCO is a proud sponsor of the 3rd annual Live Well Ferguson 5K