Mid Rivers Newsmagazine 2-21-24

FACEBOOK.COM/MIDRIVERSNEWSMAGAZINE
MIDRIVERSNEWSMAGAZINE.COM
February 21, 2024
MID RIVERS NEWSMAGAZINE
One city, two directions: Understanding the political divides in Dardenne Prairie
I 11
By JESSICA MARIE BAUMGARTNER
The future of Dardenne Prairie has
become a hot topic for residents and city
officials. What was once known as a small,
quiet area is growing, but some residents
say the city is growing too fast.
At meetings of the city’s Planning and
Zoning Commission and its Board of
Aldermen, residents have expressed opposition
to the city’s urbanization, with the
Prairie Encore development at the intersection
of Bryan and Fiese roads serving as
a flashpoint and resulting in the formation
of the Town Square Vision Steering Committee,
charged with creating a development
plan for the area bound by Route 364,
Technology Drive and Post Road.
Opposing viewpoints also have been
expressed by the mayor and some of the
city’s aldermen, including alderman Mike
Costlow, who represents the board on the
Town Square steering committee alongside
citizens Mike Wooldridge, Cliff Branch,
Jack Ballantine, Wendy Rackovan, Debbie
Haley, EJ Sansone, John LeDoux, Carl
Maus, Mark Hunter and David Hosking.
To better understand their viewpoints,
Gotway and Costlow sat down with Mid
Rivers Newsmagazine.
Gotway, who was an
alderman for six years,
said, “I did not want to
run for mayor.” But run
he did, with two main
goals: fix the streets and
form a friendly partnership
with officials in
the neighboring city of
O’Fallon.
Gotway explained
that while he was walking
the streets talking to
residents during his campaign,
he realized just
how badly they needed
repairing. This led him
to propose Proposition T,
which was a ballot initiative
voted on by residents
to instate a half-cent
sales tax for the purpose
of road maintenance. Anyone shopping in
Dardenne Prairie would then be contributing
to fixing the streets, he said.
According to Gotway, Proposition T pays
for about 60% of the city’s road repairs. It’s
one example of how commercial development
benefits Dardenne Prairie residents.
He said if major retailers serving the area
were to leave, the city would lose money.
“If we lose Schnucks, or JCPenny, or if
we lose Target, we’re bankrupt,” he siad.
“We can’t pay our bills.”
That hypothetical situation is one of the
reasons why the mayor embraces developing
Dardenne Prairie with multi-use projects,
such as the Prairie Encore project at
(File photo)
the corner of Bryan and Fiese roads.
That project met with considerable
objections from residents and even
the Wentzville School District; however,
in response to those concerns,
Mia Rose Developments/KaLeCo
LLC revised its development plan
and reached an agreement with the
school district that offset the impact
of the 12-year tax abatement offered
by the city.
Gotway highlighted the developer’s
actions by pointing out that
the car wash originally associated
with the Prairie Encore development
was removed from the plans after
residents complained. And he noted,
“The final plan is still not final.”
“Your role in any office in city government
is to do the common good for
the whole city,” Gotway said.
He said he believes the common
good for Dardenne Prairie means building
more multi-use developments like other
cities are doing. He referenced a $4 billion
multi-use development in Cummings,
Georgia, where businesses line the streets
with three- and four-story apartments
See DARDENNE PRAIRIE, page 31
YOUR CHOICE OF A FREE
Full Home
Humidifier
OR
50 Gallon
Water
Heater
OR
Home Air
Treatment
System
Sudoku brought to you by Faszold Heating & Cooling
Complete the grid so that every row, column, and 3x3 box
contains every digit from 1 to 9 inclusively.
Plus earn up to:
$1,435
in Rebates when you Purchase
a New Heating & Cooling System!
Offer Ends February 29th!
Go to www.Faszold.com for Sudoku answers!
FOR FREE ESTIMATES, CALL 636-926-NEWS (6397) | WWW.FASZOLD.COM NOW AUTHORIZED DEALERS OF
®