A historically Black farming town in St. Louis County has moved a step closer to becoming a new subdivision.
The Chesterfield City Council voted 7-1 on Monday night to approve a development plan for Westland Acres submitted by Provision Land Development.
The Westland Acres area straddles Chesterfield and Wildwood, so the development plan will now go to the Wildwood City Council for approval of that portion of the project.
The community was founded by William West, a formerly enslaved man, after he purchased land in the area in 1881.
Longtime Westland Acres resident Doris Frazier, 94, addressed the council before the vote.
“Thank you for your consideration and your support in helping us, the descendants of William West, to keep his legacy going,” Frazier said.
The vote followed the council's request for changes to the proposal that the developer originally submitted last month.
Nearby landowners raised concerns about the development, including the possibility of water runoff and the size of the lots. They wanted changes that proponents say would have killed the project.
The council and the developer agreed to remove several homes from the plan and extend a landscaping buffer from 30 to 50 feet.
“It does, in fact, enshrine our intended development restrictions, and we will be there for you and monitor that. I encourage a constant dialogue if there are ever any issues,” Fourth Ward Councilwoman Merrell Hansen said before the vote.
Although Frazier was happy to see the project approved, she noted how difficult the process had been, especially when compared to surrounding subdivisions.
“When developers built all around us, knowing Westland Acres was here, they moved with boldness and great disregard, and virtually forgetting about our community, which to me and many of our descendants, is still so precious and dear,” she said.
Several residents of neighboring areas spoke against the redevelopment plan during nearly an hour of public comment before the vote, saying the new restrictions didn’t go far enough.
