By Maria Hickey, KWMU
St. Louis, MO. – In his State of the City address Friday to the Board of Aldermen, Mayor Francis Slay talked about progress in the city's environmental efforts, lead safety, and efforts to stave off home foreclosures.
Then the mayor turned to what he called the "challenge of education" in the city.
Slay said St. Louis Public Schools has seen enrollment drop since 2000 despite a growing population in the city. He made it clear he'd like to see more charter schools.
At a press conference following his speech the mayor said charter schools give parents more choices.
"I support the St. Louis Public School District, but to me the number one priority isn't the institution itself, but it's about providing quality education to the child," Slay said.
The mayor also said he would like to see the district set up its own charter schools; something he says current state law allows.
Mayor Slay moved on to talk about economic development. Although he cited the downturn in the housing market, he said in his speech he refused to "only talk about the negative."
Slay said the Building Division had issued permits for more than $1 billion in construction activity for the fourth year in a row, and he cited smaller developments such as the 14th Street Mall in Old North St. Louis.
The mayor did not mention Ballpark Village during his speech, but the question came up during the following press conference.
Last month Centene Corp. announced it would not move its headquarters downtown as part of Ballpark Village.
But despite that setback, Slay says plans will move forward with developer Cordish Co. and the Cardinals.
"It's been complicated," he said. "But I will assure you that we've been talking with them, and I know firsthand from Bill DeWitt with the Cardinals that they're very interested in getting something done with that big vacant piece of property with a big hole in it."
Slay says with the residential real estate market softening, more office space is being planned for the development.