Considering all that Clayton has to offer including a first rate public school education, a plethora of interesting shops, and indoor and outdoor recreational facilities, public art, parks and eclectic restaurants, Clayton is truly a premium location. Real estate is highly sought after, valued and appraised. We should not have to give incentives to developers to build in Clayton.

The CSD welcomes new developments, but not at the risk of losing critical funding.  If one developer receives a tax incentive, then all future proposals in the CSD could potentially expect a similar tax abatement. Over the next decade, this could be a huge potential loss of millions of dollars in revenue to the CSD.

Developer GTE has proposed a $72 million apartment building, called The Crossing, in downtown Clayton.  Before doing so, the City of Clayton blighted an area between South Meramec and Bonhomme.

Clayton, MO does not appear to be blighted or struggling with urban decay. Section 353.110 in the Missouri Urban Redevelopment Corporations Laws states that if an area is declared blighted, in despair, than a developer can request and take advantage of a tax incentive. This allows them to pay only 50 percent of their property taxes. This enabled the developers to receive a tax abatement of 50 percent on their property taxes for 20 years.

With the construction of one, two and three bedroom units, there will likely be a drastic increase in the student population at Meramec, Wydown and CHS.  Students who live in this proposed building will have an opportunity to attend CSD. The Crossing’s building owner would not be paying an equal share in taxes to support our public schools.

Revenue generated from property taxes are the primary source of funding for the CSD. In fact, over 80 percent of the CSD budget is funded by property taxes. How will our community continue to support our world-class school district’s growing and increasing costs and improve our educational offerings without this significant tax base?