If my experience on the Board of Aldermen has taught me one thing, it is that ‘things can only get better in our City. We are beginning to attract a large number of younger people who are buying homes and renovating apartments who see the obvious economic benefits of living in the City of St. Louis. They are interested in living in urban neighborhoods in contrast to the suburban areas which they are leaving. I think we are just at the beginning of this trend and that we are going to see more and more people moving into the City over the next few years. However, our policies in City government must be oriented toward increasing this trend. That means we must have a more open government, a government less dedicated to some of the traditional ways of doing things. It is important to continue electing younger and more innovative public officials who can bring the City’s advantages to the attention of those who live in the suburban areas and attract them back into the City with their talents and financial resources. This is one of the functions which I have tried to perform as your Alderman; and which I want to continue performing during the next 4 years. It is through this movement of people back into the City that we can revitalize our neighborhoods and regain the confidence of the business community. A growing, financially stable City population will stimulate new investment in the downtown and outlying areas of the entire City. If we are able to continue working on this in the next 4 years, we will be that much closer to achieving a brighter future for the City of St. Louis and we will meet the decade of the 1980’s with a firmer base and confidence about our future.
Originally published in The Paper, February 1975.
Read this article in the original newspaper issue.
Original source: SD_Times1975_02.pdf, printed page(s) 8; PDF page(s) 8.
