PROJECT CORNERSTONE:  Necessary?  Or Waste of STL County, MO, Taxpayer Dollars?

Administration Spends Millions yet sought no Asbestos Abatement/Sprinkler Retrofitting Bids

Cindy Winkler

We hear often about the $40-41 million budget deficit at St. Louis County.  Recently, a letter was shared with me that shows the county is discontinuing health insurance for retirees.  Take a look:


 

Yet, even amid cutting benefits relied upon by retirees under 65, the current administration has appropriated/encumbered about $16 million for *consulting services* related to updating and “reimagining” the county’s office space.  Note:  No construction has been done with the $16 million; it’s all professional services.

The genesis of this spending is the requirement that all high-rise buildings in City of Clayton be retrofitted with fire sprinklers or suppression systems by 2028.  The local media have been reporting the costs to retrofit the building would be:

                ~Sprinkler Upgrade, $50 million, plus $200 million in other upgrades (2023):  https://stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/another-5-million-costs-mount-on-fix-for-aging-st-louis-county-government-hq/article_ad14d3b6-3aa2-5bbf-a24d-10732538dcd3.html

                ~ $50 million (November 2021):  https://stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/faced-with-50-million-in-needed-upgrades-st-louis-county-considers-replacing-administration-building-in/article_171ed6e1-9ad1-53d2-b9d6-010ae0604ef8.html?_gl=1*guws3v*_ga*MTcwMDg3OTkxMS4xNjY4NDMzNjM2*_ga_LCNYTE04MR*MTY4MjQzNzM2Ni4yNjQuMS4xNjgyNDM4MTg5LjU4LjAuMA..#_ga=2.15362102.1225994915.1682437367-1700879911.1668433636

                ~Sprinkler Upgrade/Asbestos Abatement, $35 million (10/2019):  https://stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/aging-st-louis-county-government-building-needs-35-million-in-updates-so-officials-eye-replacement/article_cbc93442-a538-5fbe-9772-3035c6888ffe.html

NO BIDS FOR FIRE SUPPRESSION HAVE BEEN OBTAINED:  Per open records requests, no bids for sprinkler retrofitting/asbestos abatement of 41 South Central have been sought.  Here are the results:

Planning Department:


 

Department of Administration:


Office of County Executive:

Part One:


Part Two:





Department of Transportation and Public Works:



Department of Transportation (not a duplicate; Dept of Transportation and Department of Transportation and Public Works are choices on the departments pulldown menu):


County Council Department:






 

There was rehab work done to 41 South Central during Covid time.  At least one floor has already been remediated and sprinklered. 

In closing, we should all be concerned that the current administration has spent around $16 million  dollars when no bids have been sought to do the immediate, required work to meet the City of Clayton fire codes.  That should have been the first thing done. 

Next up:  What have other high-rise building owners in Clayton done to meet this 2028 deadline for fire suppression upgrades?  And what are some of the administration’s proposals for Project Cornerstone?  One of the eight options looks to bypass county voter approval………

~*~

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