Is The Zoo-Museum District An Outdated And Unfair Tax?
The Saint Louis Zoo is a great place for families to spend a summer day. Many people like that the...
You Can Call Them Buzzards, But That Makes Missouri The Carcass
Another day, another governor courting — or as some are saying, “trying to poach” — Missouri’s businesses. This time, it’s...
School Transfers, Follow The Money
Following the advice of the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), the Riverview Gardens and Normandy school districts...
Kansas City’s Eternal Emergency
Kansas City leaders may aspire to be Portland or Denver, but their legislative actions make us more akin to third...
No Fee For Photographers
When photographers saw a sign in Faust Park in Saint Louis County this spring banning professional photography without a permit,...
Jackson County Assessment Facts, Part 2
If Jackson County assessments went up at approximately the same rate as Saint Louis County assessments during the boom real...
Jackson County Assessment Facts, Part 1
Is Jackson County property poorly assessed? If so, is it systematically under-assessed, or just inaccurate all the way around? If...
The Right Direction On Occupational Licensing In Missouri
The Missouri Legislature passed Senate Bill 330 last week. I hope the governor signs it (I cannot see a reason...
Missouri Urban Assessments Need Greater Consistency
Some of the land in the heart of the city of Saint Louis’ fashionable Central West End is worthless. Don’t...
Stokes on KWMU – Veolia Contract Would Benefit City
Innovation comes from the private sector. You don’t have to be a radical capitalist to agree with that simple truth....
North Kansas City Should Privatize Its Hospital
The number of government-owned and operated public hospitals in the United States has declined dramatically over the past three decades....
Saint Louis Earnings Tax Is Bad for Our Health – But Do We Care?
Listen online here: Call it “the smoker’s dilemma”: Everyone knows that smoking kills, but a habitual smoker may be convinced...
Property Tax Exemptions Are Too Easy To Get In Missouri
Would you be surprised if I told you that there is no clear rule about what qualifies for property tax...
Stokes on KWMU – TIF Hurts Communities
Shrewsbury is the latest city within Saint Louis County to consider Tax Increment Financing (known as TIFs) to subsidize a...
Pevely Should Disincorporate
In the past year (plus a little more), three Missouri towns — St. George, Mack’s Creek, and Quitman — have disincorporated....
Contract With Veolia Would Benefit Saint Louis Water Services
Innovation comes from the private sector. You need not be a radical capitalist to agree with that simple statement. It...
Can A School Transform A Community?
One criticism I often hear when I talk about holding schools accountable and empowering parents is that schools can do...
Shame on Saint Louis County Council for Union Cronyism
We witness one of the more unsavory examples of democracy gone wrong when elected officials abandon any pretense of fair-mindedness...
Part 2: It Is Time To Close The Book On Aerotropolis
Last week, I noted that Aerotropolis is back in the legislative conversation as supporters try (again) to direct state subsidies to...
Shrewsburying The Free Market
On Tuesday night, the Shrewsbury Board of Aldermen approved a $15 million tax subsidy for the construction of a new...
