After almost 20 years, St. Louis officials say the area surrounding the Cortex district is still blighted and needs further redevelopment for another five years.
Members of the Board of Aldermen's Housing, Urban Development and Zoning Committee voted to renew the blight determination originally made in 2006 at a meeting Tuesday, sending it on to the full board.
Board Bill 68 renews a blighting determination for the areas surrounding the Cortex district near the Central West End and Midtown. The bill effectively renews ordinances that originally allowed the Cortex West Redevelopment Corp. to use eminent domain and taxing districts as part of a plan to redevelop the area that was once an industrial district.
"We're asking for the continuation of partnership for another five-year period to give us an important tool that we frankly have used very, very rarely in the first 20 years,” said Cortex President Sam Fiorello. “It's an important tool to have in our toolbox.”
The board last renewed the blighting determination in February 2021. The determination must be renewed every five years after its initial 15-year term.
James Fister, a senior planner with the city’s Urban Design Agency, said extending the blighting determination would allow Cortex to wrap up its work redeveloping the area.
“The plan is not yet finished, the dream is not fully realized. There's still a little bit of work left to do. So that's what we're trying to unlock today,” Fister said.
The area was initially determined to be blighted in 2005, and the Board of Aldermen approved the redevelopment plan in 2006. The plan created the redevelopment corporation through the Missouri Chapter 353 urban redevelopment corporations law.
The city has used the law several times to create development corporations in an effort to incentivize private developers to bring new development to blighted areas.
Over the years, Cortex development spurred new construction on Duncan Street, including Shriners Children's Hospital, the Cortex Metro Link stop, the Ikea store and most recently the new Washington University Neuroscience Research building.
"As of today, the Cortex district has led to $1.33 billion in development in the area. Those are real dollars invested in our community, and they're for buildings and public infrastructure and public realm improvements,” Fiorello said during a presentation before the vote.
Alderman Shane Cohn cast the lone vote against the bill. Cohn lauded the Cortex district as an example of a Chapter 353 development corporation that has acted responsibly, but said on principle, he is currently voting against supporting such projects until they are used more responsibly as a whole.
“I won't be voting for this, but I just want to make sure that I'm clear that it's not a reflection of any of the work that's being done by all of you,” Cohn said. “It is because of the actions of SLDC and prior administrations.”
Cohn said places throughout the city could greatly benefit from the same type of redevelopment plans but do not get those opportunities.
“At least in the past, we have been told that we can't use those outside of the central corridor,” Cohn said. “Places like north St Louis and southeast city that could benefit from those types of incentive tools have not been able to utilize them.”
