City approves $65 million in subsidies for Ballpark Village expansion

View article from St. Louis Business Journal

ST. LOUIS, MO - The St. Louis Board of Aldermen on Friday voted 16-7 to approve $65 million in subsidies for Ballpark Village’s planned $220 million expansion.

The subsidies narrowly passed, as the measure needed 15 votes.

Second phase plans include a 29-story, 230-foot-tall luxury high-rise apartment tower, a new Class A office building and additional retail space.

The original development agreement, reached in 2012, allowed for some $50 million in subsidies for a phase two, but the St. Louis Cardinals and Cordish Cos. argued that the scope of phase two was larger than originally planned, and that parking and infrastructure costs would be higher.

The new subsidies come from tax increment financing ($43 million), a community improvement district ($6.8 million), a transportation development district ($6.6 million) and state of Missouri ($8.8 million). The Ballpark Village bonds, originally issued in 2013, expire in 2037.

The Cardinals and Cordish will also be able to apply for New Markets Tax Credits, which would thereby reduce the city’s incentive burden. Officials guessed such a move could lessen city incentives by up to $6 million.

The Cardinals first announced phase two plans in October.

“We are grateful for the city’s leadership on this project and are very excited to get started with the second phase of Ballpark Village,” said Bill DeWitt III, President of the St. Louis Cardinals. “We appreciate the city’s willingness to work with us to help make our shared vision of a world-class, mixed-use neighborhood next Busch Stadium a reality.”

Construction is slated to begin in the second half of 2017, with some areas to open in 2018 and the entire second phase addition completed by 2019.

Officials said the second phase of Ballpark Village is expected to create 1,500 construction jobs and over 1,000 permanent jobs. The project's first phase created over 1,000 construction jobs and 1,700 permanent jobs when it opened, according to the team.