Over the past several months, national publications and news outlets have weighed in on the dramatic turn around that is going on in the St. Louis region’s central city. National media like the Associated Press, USA Today, National Public Radio and the Dow Jones Newswires have thrust St. Louis into the national limelight. Given this national coverage, we felt it appropriate to take a fresh and reflective look at downtown St. Louis and to see what’s behind the national media’s interest. Why is St. Louis suddenly attracting so much national attention? This squarely puts the focus on progress and revitalization of the two and a half miles of landmass that stretches from the Riverfront west to Jefferson Avenue and beyond. In this month’s cover story, Christine Imbs interviewed four of downtown’s “heavy hitters” to get their insiders’ perspective on the St. Louis renaissance. Christine spoke with Tom Reeves, former executive director of Downtown Now! and new president of Pulaski Bank. She also interviewed Rodney Crim, executive director of the St. Louis Development Corp; Barbara Geisman, director of development, St. Louis; and with Jim Cloar, president and CEO of the Downtown St. Louis Partnership. What Imbs discovered is that $3.7 billion dollars has already been invested in current downtown development, including renovation of the Old Post Office, the construction and renovation of the Renaissance Grand Hotel, and $365 million in the new Busch Stadium. Also in this special downtown issue, Linda Jarrett took an in-depth look at exciting plans for the over $650 plus million dollar development of Ballpark Village. Jarrett asked Cardinals Bill DeWitt III and developer Blake Cordish, vice president Cordish Co., Baltimore, Md. to share their plans for this soon-to-be ‘Village Within the City.’ All kinds of creative new spaces are being rehabbed for downtown office space as discovered by Laurie Burstein. She takes a look at Phoenix Creative, the Schupp Co. and other creative spaces being developed in historic buildings (such as the Mississippi Valley Trust Building at 4th and Pine and the Curlee Building at 10th and Washington). Meanwhile, Jim Baer reports that Pinnacle Entertainment, one of the nation’s top gaming companies, has dropped anchor on the edge of Laclede’s Landing with a multi-block, $430 million dollar entertainment, casino, and retail mixed-use development. Generating nearly $4 billion dollars worth of downtown development takes innovative financing. In this regard, reporter Linda Jarrett takes a look at the critical role that tax credits—most particularly, the Missouri Historic Preservation Tax Credits—have had in stimulating this private investment. Looking at the big picture, St. Louis’ downtown population is beginning to accumulate critical mass. The downtown population is projected to hit the 18,000 mark by 2008, with retail shops and restaurants being added to serve them; for example, this special issue chronicles more than 150 downtown eating establishments. Topping off this special issue, Christine Imbs sat down with St. Louis’ CEO, Mayor Francis Slay, and got the Mayor’s views on the dramatic turn-around of our community and his overall vision for what’s next. We invite you to explore our region’s central city in person to see what all the excitement is about. As always, please send your comments and suggestions to us at dfleming@stlrcga.org RICHARD C.D. FLEMING President and Chief Executive Officer St. Louis Regional Chamber and Growth Association

September 2006 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - (clockwise); Tom Reeves, Rodney Crim, Jim Cloar and Barbara Geisman, Ballpark Village Schupp Co. Earl Bingham - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - www.stlrcga.org - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - www.technologygateway.org - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Pinnacle Red Moon Mayor Francis Slay Carlos Pereira