St. Louis County

Missouri Preservation: State's Most Endangered Historic Sites in 2013 (PHOTOS)

What historic properties in Missouri are most likely to face demolition? The Missouri Alliance for Historic Preservation has released its annual list of the state's most endangered sites, which this year includes the Book House, a beloved store in Rock Hill that recently got its eviction notice as ... More >>

Is St. Louis County Going to Charge Commercial Photographers Who Shoot in Their Parks?

Can St. Louis County officials charge photographers for taking pictures in their parks? That question was raised this week when someone posted a photo on Reddit of a new sign in a St. Louis County park that reads in all caps: "Professional photographers are required to obtain a commercial photogra ... More >>

About to Lose Your House in the County? Judge OKs Law That Might Be Your Last Chance

A circuit-level judge gave the greenlight on Wednesday to a St. Louis County law that will require a lender to sit down with a homeowner before foreclosing on a home. This law -- a.k.a. the "foreclosure mediation" law -- was passed by the County in August, but has been challenged in court by the ban ... More >>

Man Charged With Murder of Imo's Deliveryman in Dellwood

Earon A. Rivers, a 17-year-old from North St. Louis County, has been charged with murdering the Imo's Pizza deliveryman who was found slumped over his steering wheel on Monday night in Dellwood. Rivers, a resident of the 10000 block of Bon Oak Dr. just east of Dellwood, has just been charged with se ... More >>

July 2012 Openings & Closings

July was a relatively quiet month for openings, with several smaller restaurants debuting in St. Louis County, and only a couple of new ventures opening in the city. Perhaps the biggest story of the month was the number of temporary (in theory, at least) closings. The fire in the apartment building ... More >>

Tidbits: Dog Town Opens, Selam Ethiopian Restaurant Closes

- North St. Louis County has a new hot-dog joint: Dog Town opened two weeks ago at 2182 North Highway 67 in Florissant. (The space was previously the second location of White Barn and, before that, a Rally's.)

Tidbits: Sushi Sake, Delmonico's Diner, Chronicle Coffee, Taylor's Place

Catching up on this and that... - There's a new sushi joint in south St. Louis County. Sushi Sake is now open at 4418 Lemay Ferry Road, featuring all-you-can-eat sushi and hibachi. The restaurant is open 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday through Friday, 11 a.m.-10:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 11:30 a.m.-10 ... More >>

Fireworks Are Canceled Everywhere; Is This the Year Without a Fourth of July?

The region's continued dry stretch and the oppressive heat are forcing municipalities to cancel or delay Independence Day fireworks displays. The risk of fire is just too great, and so Arnold, Chesterfield, Columbia (IL), Ellisville, Eureka, Farmington, Kirkwood, Pacific, Potosi, Washington (MO), We ... More >>

April 2012 Openings & Closings

April was a relatively quiet month for openings and closings. For openings, consider this a pause for breath, not a slow down. The months to come look to be very busy. Page through to see the complete list for April. And, as always, please let us know in the comments of any openings or closings tha ... More >>

Sir's Bar-B-Que Returns (Again)

Sir's Bar-B-Que (6174 Olive Boulevard, University City; 314-669-0025.) is back. Sir's closed suddenly in December of last year due to a regulatory dispute with St. Louis County. What was supposed to have been a brief closure stretched into the new year, and its listed number was disconnected, which ... More >>

Check Out the Bling That Dunard Morris, Former CEO of Urology Practice, Allegedly Stole

​The feds may or may not prove their indictment against Dunard Morris, who until late last year served as CEO of Metropolitan Urological Specialists in St. Louis County. But sweet bejeezus, he loved the flossy flossy!!! And he claimed to be a war hero, when in fact, he was not. And now his jet-set ... More >>

Openings & Closings 2011: The Final Reckoning

At last, Gut Check closes the books on 2011 with our annual roundup of all the year's openings and closings and relocations. Of course, we say "at last" knowing that, in spite of our best efforts, we likely missed more than a few restaurant debuts and departures. Please let us know in the comments!

St. Louis County Looking Nationally to Help Kids With Mental Illnesses

Interesting lead story in today's Post-Dispatch, where Nancy Cambria reports that St. Louis County teenagers beset with mental illnesses are typically turned away by emergency rooms after their first visits and that, in the last 18 months, St. Louis County saw unprecedented demand for domestic viole ... More >>

Regulatory Issue Closes Sir's Bar-B-Que Till December 15

Ian FroebSir's Bar-B-Que in University City​Sir's Bar-B-Que (6714 Olive Boulevard; 314-727-1474) is closed until Thursday, December 15, while the restaurant works out a regulatory problem with St. Louis County, according to a sign posted on its front door.The sign states that Sir's is closed "for ... More >>

E. Coli Outbreak in St. Louis County

Image viaE. coli, magnified​The St. Louis County Department of Health has reported an E. coli outbreak, with 14 cases of the disease reported this week. According to the department's official release, the source of the outbreak has not been identified.The Post-Dispatch spoke with the father of one ... More >>

Would This Image Keep You From Smoking?

Saint Louis County Department of Health​No? Okay. But what if you saw it 26 times in one day? Then 52 the next? And 78 times by day three -- all the way up to 130 images by day five?The Saint Louis County Department of Health's youth anti-tobacco initiative, Air-O-Dynamic, hopes the Grim Reaper im ... More >>

St. Louis County Residents Forced to Pay For Recycling After Court Loss

Paying for recycling services is not optional, says the Missouri Appellate Court.​A group of St. Louis County residents has lost another round in its effort to opt out of a recycling service -- and the quarterly fees that go with it.Today's appeals court decision is the latest (and possibly final) ... More >>

The Physiology of a Heroin Overdose

not-even-once.com​Last week we published a feature titled "Smackdown," which tells a tragic tale of the region's heroin epidemic and the growing number of lives the drug has taken. Two of the central characters in our story died from overdoses, and one woman, Angela Halliday, has been charged ... More >>

Tiny Towns, Expensive Elections, St. Louis County Report Shows

​There are exactly 1,653 registered voters in the tiny municipality of Bel Ridge, Missouri. And so when the village decided to hold a special election in February 2010 to increase property taxes, the proposition was bound to be expensive on a per-vote basis. The St. Louis County Board of Election ... More >>

Tidbits from Berix Coffeehouse, Caitlin's Green-Eyed Grill

​A reader alerted Gut Check to the possible closure of Berix Coffeehouse (5053 Gravois Avenue; 314-353-5758). A call to Berix's second location at 2201 Lemay Ferry Road in south St. Louis County confirms that the Gravois address has been shuttered for at least a month. (The employee with whom I sp ... More >>

Pine Lawn Residents Really Don't Like Paying for Trash Pickup

It's going to take a lot of work to clean up Pine Lawn.​That headline is perhaps the most memorable factoid culled from a state audit into the finances of the north St. Louis County suburb. According to the audit released yesterday, 799 trash customers in Pine Lawn (or 63 percent of all accounts) ... More >>

Kaelin Gilmore-Mitchell: Teen Shot Dead in Black Jack

​St. Louis County police have identified the person found shot to death yesterday morning in the 11600 block of Carolview (right) in Black Jack. Sixteen-year-old Kaelin Gilmore-Mitchell was discovered around 9:30 a.m. Wednesday lying in a common ground area in the neighborhood. As of yesterday, po ... More >>

St. Louis Heroin "Epidemic" Topic of Forum Tonight at Pattonville High School

Smoking (and snorting) heroin has increased its popularity.​For the second time this year, St. Louis area police chiefs and drug counselors will gather together to discuss what's been called an "epidemic" of heroin use in the region. As we reported earlier this year, the number of heroin overdoses ... More >>

Missouri Preservation Announces Most Endangered Historic Places

image courtesy of Missouri PreservationSave the Oak Grove Mausoleum!​Yesterday Missouri Preservation released its annual list of the Most Endangered Historic Places in Missouri. The list now contains fifteen structures, nine held over from last year and six that are new additions. Among them a ... More >>

Let's Face It -- Youth Anti-Smoking Campaign Kicks Off in St. Louis County

St. Louis County is nagging teens to give up the cancer sticks already.​Since the beginning of the year, the county's been quietly working on an anti-tobacco campaign aimed at St. Louis teenagers.On Tuesday -- which is, not coincidentally, "World No Tobacco Day," because these days they have a day ... More >>

Deeric Davis: Man Dies From Yesterday's Shooting in North County

St. Louis County police report that 29-year-old Deeric Davis died yesterday evening of gunshot wounds sustained earlier in the day.​According to police, Davis was shot near the intersection of Mehl Avenue and News Hall Ferry Road (above) around 12:43 p.m.

Aaron Johnson: Man Threatens To "Blow Up" St. Louis IRS Facility Prior to Tax Day

Think you hate paying taxes? You don't hold a candle to Aaron Johnson of St. Louis County. Yesterday the 20-year-old Johnson pleaded guilty in federal court to calling an IRS facility in south St. Louis County and threatening to "blow it up." According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, the threat was m ... More >>

Lemay Fire District Loses Grab at Casino Revenue -- Again

Moral of today's appellate court ruling: Nobody gets between St. Louis County and its casino revenue!​A south-county fire district has lost, again, in its attempt to grab a share of revenue from the River City Casino.In an opinion issued today, the Eastern District of the Missouri Court of App ... More >>

February 2011 Openings and Closings

Ian FroebSouth Grand Gyro Express returned after an eight-month hiatus.​February was a very busy one for restaurants in St. Louis. Not only were there numerous openings, including at long last 1904 Steak House, the revision of the former Jeff Ruby's Steakhouse at River City Casino, but a few resta ... More >>

Openings & Closings 2010: The Final Reckoning

Farmhaus was a highlight among the 2010 openings.​A snowy day is the perfect time to look back over our archive of restaurant openings and closings -- and notes on restaurants that we forgot to include on our lists of openings and closings -- and draw the obvious conclusion: A lot of restauran ... More >>

Buddy Ferguson: Burglar Suspect Caught Sawing Through Roof

Gee whiz, Buddy. That wasn't too smart. ​A clerk at a south St. Louis convenience store was alerted to a strange sound early yesterday morning that turned out to be a burglar attempting to saw his way through the roof.The incident occurred around 5:20 a.m. Tuesday in the 9300 block of Broadway Str ... More >>

Man Killed at Route 66 Park; Suspect Vehicle Found in South St. Louis

Updated 4:20: The victim has been identified as Kenneth McClure, a St. Louis comic shop owner accused of raping a teenage girl. Full story here.Updated 12:15 with photos of the victim's Camaro "IROC" stolen from the murder scene. Investigators are asking anyone who's seen the vehicle and/or its occu ... More >>

Chopper Down in West County; Missouri Highway Patrol Pilot Killed

The crash site (blue marker) is just a mile or two from the airport.​A Missouri Highway Patrol helicopter crashed around 11 a.m. this morning in unincorporated west St. Louis County killing the pilot. He was the only person in the aircraft. No one on the ground was injured.According to reports, th ... More >>

St. Louis County Police Break Up Vehicle Crime Ring

The group is charged with dozens of smash-and-grabs.​St. Louis County police have charged four people in connection with thefts from vehicles in West County following a stakeout in Queeny Park, the site of several recent car break-ins. During their surveillance of the park, police observed two ma ... More >>

Charlie Dooley: Duly Aware of Breasts This Month

Don't most men celebrate "breast awareness" every month? Me thinks St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley is missing the word "cancer" in the following Tweet fired off this afternoon.​

Hearings This Morning on St. Louis Casino Proposals

A rendering of Casino Celebration at I-270 and Riverview.​Got anything to say in support or opposition to two casino proposals currently under consideration in St. Louis? Then head on down to the Renaissance Hotel at the airport a.s.a.p. That's where the Missouri Gaming Commission is holding heari ... More >>

Merger of St. Louis City and County Moves a Step Closer

Could the second time be the charm?​Maybe it's not such a pipe dream, after all. Yesterday, St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley publicly announced that he'd be willing to merge the county and the city. St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay first suggested the same over a year ago. A merger would hope ... More >>

Diarrhea Splatters Across St. Louis

Stock up now and avoid pools and daycares.​St. Louis County health officials have recorded 56 cases of the violent diarrhea disorder cryptosporidiosis, compared to just 10 cases by this same time last year. Also known as "crypto", the illness is caused by a parasitic bug that leads to acute, short ... More >>

Cool Treats and Reads

Charlack Will Use Speed Cameras on 170 Despite Criticism

'Cause really, isn't that what they're all about?​Charlack is pushing ahead with the use controversial speed cameras along its quarter-mile section of Highway 170 in north St. Louis County. The cameras began issuing tickets last week. Charlack's mayor and police chief tell the Post-Dispatch this m ... More >>

NAACP Sides with St. Louis County Police

​The Post-Dispatch has an interesting piece today about the local NAACP backing St. Louis County Police Chief Tim Fitch in his desire to consolidate some of the county's 65 policing agencies. In a public letter this week the civil rights group stated:

South County Shooting Spree Leads to Three Arrests in Metro East

Three men are in custody on suspicion of shooting two men late last night and early this morning in the south St. Louis County. The first shooting occurred neary Jefferson Barracks Park. The second shooting followed minutes later at Baumgartner and Telegraph.​According to St. Louis County Police ... More >>

Will Laura Bush Look Like 1980s Country-Club Debutante During St. Louis Visit Today?

​You know, with the upturned collar that she sports on the cover of her new memoir, Spoken From the Heart? So, who's going to the St. Louis County Library headquarters tonight to hear the former First Lady read from her book? If so, could you report back to us on Laura's attire? Inquiring minds, ... More >>

Proposition A Passes Easily; Metro To Get More Sales Tax

It's all down hill now.​Wow. Proposition A, the sales tax hike for public transit in St. Louis, passed yesterday by nearly a 2-1 margin. The issue before St. Louis County voters yesterday would increase sales tax in the county by a half-cent and trigger a similar quarter-cent hike in the city. Six ... More >>

Cash-Strapped Government, Huh? Why Don't These Agencies Pick Up Their Money?

​Did you hear the guy who called in to Charlie Brennan's show on KMOX this morning? Said fella claimed that if you punch "St. Louis" or "Missouri" into the state treasurer's database of unclaimed property -- that's code for dinero, folks -- you'd find all kinds of local and state agencies with dol ... More >>

County Brownies Announce A Crackdown on Area's Barney Fifes

​Ever been pulled over in the county by a Barney Fife type? Good news. You now have a direct line to the St. Louis County Police Department Intelligence Unit (314-615-4692), who wants to hear all about your experience with a fake cop.Freaked about a proliferation of unlicensed po-pos masquerading ... More >>

Bill Would Make All Missouri Smoke-Free in 2011

The entire state could join Chesterfield (and the rest of St. Louis County) in banning cigs in 2011.​State representative Walt Bivins (R- South St. Louis County) is sponsoring a bill that would make all Missouri bars, restaurants and businesses smoke free beginning next year. The bill has early bi ... More >>

Poll: What is the Smokiest Bar in St. Louis?

No password needed, bub.​Riverfront Times reporter Keegan Hamilton writes this week how many bars in St. Louis and St. Louis County will be exempt from indoor smoking bans once those laws go into effect January 2011. Which brings to mind the question -- which bar in St. Louis or St. Louis County ... More >>

St. Louis: Violent Crime Down Slightly in City, Even More in County

​The city and county police departments have released their 2009 crime figures, showing that violent crime fell across the region last year. In the city, crimes against persons dropped slightly by less than one percent in 2009, with one of the biggest percentage drops reported in the overall homic ... More >>