St. Louis Board of Aldermen

Three of the four candidates who received the backing of an initiative called Flip The Board won their aldermanic races in St. Louis, giving progressive-minded aldermen a working if fragile majority at City Hall.

With a new mayor incoming in St. Louis, progressives have announced their intention to "flip the board" to create a new progressive majority on the Board of Aldermen. Candidates Anne Schweitzer and Shedrick Kelley discussed the effort on St. Louis on the Air, with analysis from Rachel Lippmann.

A nonbinding referendum on closing the north St. Louis jail known as the Workhouse will not be on the April ballot after Mayor Lyda Krewson failed to take action in time.

Mayor Lyda Krewson vetoed an effort to undo a planned reduction of wards from 28 to 14. Opponents of the cut do not have time to attempt an override.

A contract with Ohio-based Persistent Surveillance Systems got first-round approval Friday by a 15-14 vote amid concerns about civil liberties and whether the actions of the aldermen were legal. It still needs one more vote to get to Mayor Lyda Krewson’s desk.

Owners of electric vehicles who live in or travel to St. Louis may soon find more places where they can charge their cars. The St. Louis Board of Aldermen earlier this month gave first-round approval to requirements for installing electric vehicle charging stations. A final vote could come Friday, and Mayor Lyda Krewson is expected to sign the measure.

The board’s public safety committee voted 6-1 Tuesday to endorse a three-year contract with Ohio-based Persistent Surveillance Systems. The company’s planes fly at low altitude taking photos of the city, which investigators can use to track the movement of people or cars leaving the scene of crimes. That information can be paired with ground-level cameras to identify witnesses or suspects.

In an effort to elect candidates with a broader base of support, a group called STL Approves is backing Proposition D, which is on the ballot Nov. 3. It would make the mayor, comptroller, board president and aldermen nonpartisan offices. Voters could select as many candidates as they want in March, a method of holding elections known as approval voting. The top two candidates would run against each other in April.

The head of St. Louis’ corrections department is warning that closing the north St. Louis jail known as the Workhouse could cause overcrowding at the city’s other jail downtown.

Former south St. Louis Alderman Larry Arnowitz was sentenced Friday to one year in prison, followed by six months of home confinement, for using campaign donations for personal expenses.