Chrysler LLC

IKEA In St. Louis? More Rumors Circulate As Kansas City Moves Forward With Its Store

The rumors of IKEA coming to St. Louis come in waves, and Joseph Roth, a company spokesman, says that for some reason, he always seems to get calls when there's a new development in Kansas City (which, tragically for us, is definitely getting an IKEA). On Wednesday, Roth tells us, IKEA began demol ... More >>

Angry Handyman Launches Hammer Attack That Turns Into Gun Fight, St. Louis Police Say

Some sort of disagreement over handiwork prompted one man to attack another man with a hammer in a fight that quickly escalated into a full-on gun battle, according to St. Louis metro police officials. In what could be the strangest incident of violence that we've heard about all week (and there i ... More >>

Answers to the Riverfront Times 2012 News Quiz

In January Riverfront Times published its annual "News Challenge" -- 78 multiple-choice questions testing how well readers paid attention to current events over the past twelve months. Within a week, more than 100 of you submitted your answers to us. A few weeks later a dozen readers e-mailed a simi ... More >>

Will St. Louis Actually Get an IKEA?

How likely is it that St. Louis might actually, seriously be getting an IKEA? "Ikea is committed to having a presence in St. Louis but no decisions on a site have been made final," Stephen Heitz, vice president of development for Pace Properties tells nextstl.com, which is reporting this week that ... More >>

5 Ideas for Fenton's Vacant Chrysler Site

Last month Daily RFT examined a Facebook campaign that seeks to bring an IKEA to the 295 acres in Fenton that -- until 2009 -- was home to a Chrysler plant. As we confirmed from IKEA, the former site of the automaker (above) is too big for one of its stores. So what might this prime real estate alon ... More >>

Facebook Fans "Like" IKEA for Chrysler Plant, But Is It Feasible?

Updated at end of article with response from IKEA. "The old Chrysler plant location in Fenton, Mo., is perfect for an IKEA!" So proclaims the Facebook site "IKEA to St. Louis! (on old Chrysler Plant property in Fenton)" that has garnered more than 12,500 "likes" online. But is it true? Is the shut ... More >>

The Super Bowl Commercial Post, 2012 Edition

​Oy. Every year I keep hoping for a great return to form, and every single year I am disappointed. The Super Bowl was played yesterday -- you may have heard something about it -- and it turned out to not only be a rematch of the 2008 game between the Patriots of New England and the New York G ... More >>

Local Tax Preparer Busted for Not Paying His Taxes

​Although Richard Gray Sr. spends some of the year working at a Chrysler plant in Indiana, he's been running a nice little side business out of his home in North St. Louis: Filing tax returns for friends, family and co-workers using TurboTax. He's even expressed a desire to do tax-prep full-time. ... More >>

Peter Kinder: The American Spectator Profile

We really just wanted an excuse to run this picture again: ladies and gentlemen, we give you Peter Kinder and Tammy Chapman.​Back in the '90s, The American Spectator famously introduced America to an Arkansas woman named Paula Jones -- and it was President Bill Clinton's attempts to fend off J ... More >>

This Year's Five Best Super Bowl Commercials

​That was, without a doubt, one of the worst Super Bowls I can ever remember. Oh, sure, the game was just fine. Instant classic material, I guess. Two great quarterbacks, historic franchises, a great comeback that almost happened, plenty of drama in the last two minutes, and a brilliant storyline ... More >>

Chrysler Plant Could Find New Life

The plant as viewed from I-44 in Fenton.​A group, reportedly comprised mostly of local investors, has submitted a proposal to purchase the shuttered Chrysler plant in Fenton. According to the St. Louis County Economic Development Council, the unnamed group want to turn the plan into a technology p ... More >>

State Senator Kills Tax Giveaway to Ford; Bully for Him!

Great company, but can Missouri really afFord it?​I like Ford Motor Company. Just like those old Remington razor ads, you could say I liked Ford so much, I bought the company.In January 2009 I purchased $500 worth of Ford stock. It was the first time I ever purchased individual shares of a company ... More >>

Ford to Escape Missouri As Legislators Debate Throwing Automaker Millions in Aid Anyway

Left, toward Kentucky.​So, here's an interesting twist to the political story du jour in Jefferson City. As you probably know, legislators are meeting in a special session this week to consider offering Ford $15-million in annual tax-incentives for a decade if it upgrades its Claycomo assembly pla ... More >>

Sweet! The Sixteen Best Player Names in the 2010 NCAA Tournament

​Let the Madness begin! Mizzou is dancing (despite their stumble in the Big 12 tournament) but unfortunately the slipper did not fit for the SLU Billikens, who were pummeled by Rhode Island in the Atlantic 10 tournament and left out of even the lowly NIT, where they could have faced an Illinois te ... More >>

Remembering 1983 -- The Last Year So Many St. Louisan We're Out of Work

The St. Louis-built "minivan" was born in 1983. ​The number of people looking for jobs in the St. Louis region jumped to 10.2 percent in September, according to Federal Reserve figures. That's an uptick of nearly a full percentage point from the 9.5 percent of the region that was out of work in Au ... More >>

To Preserve and Protect: Esley Hamilton has a boundless passion for St. Louis' architectural past

Mount My Squirrel! Local taxidermist Rick Nadeau has a lot of fun with his "little buddies"

Worthless Crap and Notorious Scams We'd Invest in Before Buying Ballpark Village Bonds

stlouis.cardinals.mlb.comRenderings of the elusive Ballpark VillageRadio station KMOX is reporting that the St. Louis Cardinals plan to solicit wealthy St. Louisans to buy bonds to help pay for Ballpark Village. According to the radio station, the ball club hopes the bonds will raise at least $100 m ... More >>

Hornswoggled!: Welcome to Gerald, Missourah — the town that did just fall off the turnip truck

Flex Your Cylinder Heads

The Dive Bomber: Fenton Bar and Grill

Robin Wheeler writes for the blog Poppy Mom. She also has a strange attraction to drinking establishments with jars of pickled -- or possibly fossilized -- eggs. She reports on these dives for Gut Check every Friday.I got a GPS for Christmas last year, which has led to me getting lost more than I ... More >>

A Look Back -- 56 Years Ago -- to "Citizen" Harry Truman's Great American Road Trip

It was the summer of 1953. Queen Elizabeth had just been cornonated. The Braves had left Boston for Milwaukee, and Elvis was making his first recording. Back in Independence, Missouri, meanwhile, there was Harry Truman, restless in his first months of presidential retirement and itchy ... More >>

Live Blogging Obama's 100 Day Meeting at Fox High School

10:25: Hello everybody! Have a seat10:26: It's good to be out of Washington and back in the Midwest! Yes. I love you, too!10:27: Obama gives shouts out to Senator Claire McCaskill, Governor Jay Nixon, Secretary of State Robin Carnahan, State Auditor Susan Montee, and everyone at Fox High School. Th ... More >>

Wild Rides: Sometimes the cars accelerate on their own. Sometimes they stop dead. Drivers of the hybrid Prius have discovered they can be an unexpected adventure.

A Glimmer of Hope for Missouri Auto Industry

smithelectricvehicles.comNationally the news ain't good for the beleaguered U.S. auto industry. Just yesterday, in fact, the White House forced the resignation of General Motors' chairman Rick Wagoner and told Chrysler to seek a partnership with Italian car maker Fiat if it wanted any more governmen ... More >>

God. Country (and what a country!). BRANSON.

Join us on a guided tour of emigré comedian Yakov Smirnoff's adopted home, a veritable geezer's Shangri-La.

RFT New Year's Eve Guide

Week of December 22, 2005

Metro Messy

Transit chief Larry Salci knows he has his critics. Ask him if he cares.

Fat Boys

A gang of elderly, seedy Mississippi bluesmen come to your home...in DVD form

Battle of Normandie

A furious fight erupts to save a storied golf course

Flower Power

Nearly 900 botanists are working to chronicle our biological heritage. And boy are they a wacky bunch.

Drop-Kick Gorgeous

Bad timing and institutional racism kept Gary Jackson out of pro wrestling's spotlight. But he's got St. Louis in a hammer lock.

Back to Basics

Unreal offers tips to the youngsters, learns about the much-desired Dodge Neon and breaks down the real cost of a Thickburger; plus, did Roosevelt High School take the name of Baton Bob in vain?

Crunch Time

The demolition derby is still a gas in the nooks and crannies of mid-America

Carnage

Despite the cost, local cops can't resist deadly pursuits

RFT Hires Disgraced NYT Pinocchio

Jayson Blair may be persona non grata in New York, but he'll be right at home here

Twang Bangin'

The RFT music staff previews some highlights from this year's Twangfest line-up.

Grace Note

Week of January 9, 2002

Taking the Plunge

St. Louis' suburban cities have been competing for years to build the biggest and best places to play. Around here, keeping up appearances is serious business.

Best Memory

South City's Sidewalk Vendors

Water Wrongs

William Least Heat-Moon tests the current state of America's rivers

IT'S BEGINNING TO LOOK A LOT LIKE ST. LOUIS

Jobs are leaving, the tax base is shrinking and the population is dropping. North County is feeling the squeeze.

PSYCHIC STEALING

The doors of perception opened to loss and deception when Sister White gave a reading

WINGENIOUS

There's method to her madness, and Lady Luck has the prizes to prove it

How Do You Celebrate Your Patriotism?

The Merchant of Venice

The McKinley Bridge is broke — structurally and financially — and everyone wants it fixed. Trouble is, Mayor Tyrone Echols of Venice isn't about to give away the city's bridge. But he could be talked into trading it.

AGAINST THE GRAIN

Time and progress have conspired to end the working life of the last grain elevator in St. Louis County

Foul Ball

Whitey Herzog takes a vicious swing at money-driven modern baseball, where only the wealthy win -- and the fans always lose

Wheel Be Seeing You

A first-timer's guide to this year's auto show

News of the Weird