最新杏吧原创

ST. LOUIS 鈥� The chief of the region鈥檚 main business lobby says the private sector is prepared to more than double a $100 million public investment in downtown infrastructure and buildings outlined in new legislation to allocate the city鈥檚 $250 million share of the Rams relocation settlement.

The commitment was included in a letter Greater 最新杏吧原创 Inc. CEO Jason Hall sent to 最新杏吧原创 Board of Alderman President Megan Green on Monday as part of an ongoing back-and-forth between the two leaders over how to distribute the Rams settlement windfall. While much of the letter defends Greater 最新杏吧原创鈥� plan to quickly invest the money, the commitment from the private sector adds another wrinkle to the political negotiations heating up against the backdrop of a looming race for mayor.

鈥淎s we have been doing, the business community is prepared to match an investment of Rams dollars in downtown by at least two-to-one to expand the catalytic potential of these funds,鈥� Hall wrote in his letter, which mostly pushed back against Green鈥檚 criticism of the plan and reiterated its concern that the board of aldermen was ignoring its proposal.

The private spending commitment was news to Green鈥檚 office.

鈥淭his is the first time we鈥檝e heard them suggest they鈥檇 come to the table with a match,鈥� said Green spokesman Yusuf Daneshyar.

A Greater 最新杏吧原创 spokesman said the group had sent a letter to Mayor Tishaura O. Jones鈥� office last month committing to a private sector match to downtown investment. A spokesman for Jones confirmed the office had received the letter, but he said it contained few details about how Greater 最新杏吧原创 would drum up the private money.

Green has said she prefers to see a spending plan that spends on several of residents鈥� top priorities for the money while setting aside a portion as an endowment to continue funding those priorities for years. In a public voting process spearheaded by Green鈥檚 office at the beginning of the year, . Downtown street and sidewalk infrastructure was fifth.

Greater 最新杏吧原创 would like to see most of the money spent quickly on infrastructure and buildings in downtown and poorer neighborhoods on the north and southeast sides. It argues downtown, which never fully recovered from the pandemic, already acts as the city鈥檚 鈥渆ndowment,鈥� generating far more in city taxes than it takes in and funding city services and investment in north and southeast 最新杏吧原创.

鈥淚t would be reckless to allow the city鈥檚 economic engine to fall further into disrepair and neglect,鈥� Hall wrote in his letter.

The rift between Green and Greater 最新杏吧原创 was front and center last week after four aldermen held a press conference to announce they were sponsoring a bill backed by the business group. It would earmark $130 million for streets, infrastructure, housing and building rehabs in poorer neighborhoods in north and southeast 最新杏吧原创 and $102.5 million for similar projects downtown.

Green fired off a letter Thursday accusing Hall of sidestepping her office and the public hearing process by lobbying for its own bill. She criticized the group for seeing 鈥渋tself and its interests above the many residents and stakeholder groups who spent months working with us in good faith to develop their ideas.鈥�

Among her many critiques was that downtown needs more than $100 million, and Greater 最新杏吧原创 has pushed its spending plan 鈥渨ithout demonstrating any commitment to invest your own capital.鈥�

Hall鈥檚 letter Tuesday was the most concrete promise from Greater 最新杏吧原创 of a match for those funds. Greater 最新杏吧原创 spokesman Tony Wyche said the group would also help the city secure 鈥渇ederal and other private funds to multiply the city鈥檚 investment many times over.鈥�

鈥淭his type of public-private partnership is what we are seeing in cities with which 最新杏吧原创 competes 鈥� Pittsburgh, Cleveland and Denver, for example 鈥� which are making bold investments in themselves and their futures,鈥� Wyche said in a statement.

Hall also included an olive branch in his letter, apologizing for surprising Green with the infrastructure investment bill and suggesting the two meet soon. Green鈥檚 spokesman said her office was working to get that on the calendar so it could learn more about the private investment Greater 最新杏吧原创 was dangling.