Oakville Speaks Out: LIVE from St. Louis County Planning & Zoning

Have to miss tonight's St. Louis County Planning and Zoning meeting? Don't miss what Oakville residents and neighbors have to say about the 1.4-acre property at 6050 Telegraph. Mehlville-Oakville Patch will be updating this article live with details. 

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10:04 p.m. - The commission asked the audience to raise their hands and vote for or against the project. Twelve people voted for, 250 against.

9:05 p.m. - "Shame on you" if you don't look further into this, says Tammy Kennon to the commission.

9:03 p.m. - The talk is moving to lawsuits now. Rick Emnett, Jr., says while he recognizes we don't want to face a lawsuit from NCR, the variances and other issues could leave the county liable to lawsuits. 

This earns a large round of applause and cheers from the still-packed audience.

8:52 p.m. - So everyone who's wanted to speak on behalf of a group is done presenting. Now, the testimony opens up to individuals who want to speak up.

A mom kicked things off talking about how her kids are her biggest investment, and she recently enrolled them in Goddard School, next to the property.

Another neighbor says she went door-to-door in her neighborhood to ask folks if they received notice of the project. Only one woman said yes.

8:32 p.m. - A 22-year resident enters the petition against the complex, adding that if this issue goes to the county council, she'll come with 3,600 signatures, earning a round of applause. Sign the petition here.

8:29 p.m. - Brian McGovern, attorney for the Goddard School, talks about the roof of the complex's smoking patio, which is just 8 feet from the school property."The problem is to put that project on this small of a site next to the monastery and next to the Goddard School."

McGovern says he and his team submitted Sunshine Law requests into the police responses at properties owned by National Church Residences. He says they found 1,700 police calls to the property NCR has worked at the longest in St. Lous, including calls for peace disturbance, larceny, assaults, auto theft, fighting, burglary and prowler attempted entry. 

8:22 p.m. - State Sen. Scott Sifton says that had the Oakville community not spoken out on this issue, the building would have gone up without a second look. "This is a terribly intensive use for the area that is being investigated," Sifton said, comparing the project to fitting too many potatoes in a potato sack. "This is simply too intense a use, plain and simple."

8:11 p.m. - Christine Elise, who uses a wheelchair, is helped to the podium by State Sen. Scott Sifton. She raises concerns about safety for the residents of the proposed housing complex, especially the lack of basement during tornado season and the lack of sidewalks on Telegraph Road. She says the facility is next to the second most dangerous intersection in the area.

8:07 p.m. - How in the world did we get to why we are hear tonight, Rep. Marsha Haefner asks the commission, so that this issue will never happen again.

"Transparency failed the citizens of Oakville," Haefner says. "This is government at its worst. The system has failed."

8:00 p.m. - Sister Mary Michael speaks out with her concerns, which include trash, lights, privacy and safety. She says she'll pray, since it's her job, that the commission chooses a new piece of land for this project. Watch the video here.

Mark Haefner is up next: "We do not want this project." He blasts the media about making this issue about race, not income. "I don't care if its housing for billionaires, the building is too big for the space."

"I ask you to listen to the citizens whose lives this will effect. Please stop this project and let the voice of the people be heard," Haefner said.

7:47 p.m. - Watch a resident of a National Church Residences facility speak in favor of the senior living complex in Oakville.

7:43 p.m. - Lynn Link, an Oakville volunteer who's been researching the issue tirelessly, kicks off the testimony against the proposal with nine points:

• Not enough notice was given
• The proposed facility is too large
• The County could be liable for lawsuits
• The market study is incorrect
• The facility is not ADA compliant
• The facility is not safe for residents
• Census data does not show Oakville needs senior housing
• The effects on neighbors like the Goddard School and Poor Clare Monastery will be negative.
• The National Church Residences could have purchased a larger, cheaper lot elsewhere in Oakville.