Greater St. Louis Inc.

The city has made progress on two prominent vacant buildings in the past year, but rebounding from a “real estate nightmare” will take many more years.

The U.S. Census Bureau’s population estimates show the 15 counties across the St. Louis region gained 6,420 new people last year, while the City of St. Louis lost 3,077 residents over the same period.

Legislation from Alderwoman Cara Spencer would establish a mechanism for the city to reimburse 85% of Anders’ payroll, earnings and net profit taxes on new hires at the firm.

This compromise bridges the remaining gaps between Ward 7 Alderwoman Alisha Sonnier’s proposed Transform STL Act and Ward 13 Alderwoman Pamela Boyd’s alternative.

Hall’s tenure in the St. Louis region comes to an end this month, when he moves to Ohio to take over the reins of the Columbus Partnership on Jan. 13.

“Every neighborhood deserves to benefit from this investment,” St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones said.

He was the organization's first CEO after five local economic development organizations merged into a single entity.

The Railway Exchange building has been vacant since 2014 and has become a high-profile downtown eyesore riddled with trespassing and other crime.

The old paradigm in downtown St. Louis, that of a central business district with millions of square feet of office space, has faltered in recent years.

St. Louis business leaders announce financial incentives aimed at bringing businesses downtown. They say $350,000 in grants and other incentives could attract retail shops, restaurants and pop-up enterprises.