Police Step Up Patrols After Armed Robbery Attempt at Mehlville Home

A similar incident occurred at an Oakville home in recent weeks. Police are urging residents to report any suspicious people or vehicles they see in their neighborhoods.

Green Park Automotive in Mehlville Is Not Closing

The big hole being dug in front is for a new canopy.

Green Park Automotive, known for its service, is going nowhere. A Patch reader was concerned when she saw the work now going on in front. "I have had my cars serviced by them for many years," she said. "They always did a first class job!" The Mehlville station is simply getting a new canopy, and is definitely not closing. Co-owner Bob Haag said the old canopy had started to sway, "so they have to dig out the old piers, pour new piers, and put my canopy back up." The tanks are on the side of the station, and not involved. Service in the garage is not affected by the work, which Haag said should take seven to 10 days. When it's done, everything will be back to normal, including the usual gas service. The station is at 2730 Union Road. More …

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Mehlville Man Opens New Kind of Gym in Arnold

Arlen Castenada, co-owner of CrossFit 636, says rather than focusing on exercise machines to keep his clients fit, he favors a "whole body" approach.

A Mehlville man has opened a new gym in Arnold called CrossFit 636, but you won't see any of the typical exercise machines there. Arlen Castenada, a Mehlville resident and co-owner of the gym, says he wants to keep people fit, but he isn't willing to turn over their training to a bunch of exercise machines that will only provide a workout for one part of the body or another. Instead, Castenada and his business partner, John Powers, favor a whole-body approach, using compound movements where people are getting fit by working on multiple things at the same time. It's something he calls "functional fitness," designed to replicate typical everyday movements that provide a fitness level for the entire body. Castenada has taught everything from …

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Mehlville Students Sign to Play College Sports

Congratulations to the five Mehlville High School students who signed to play sports in college last week.

Mehlville High School had student athletes sign scholarship offers on Tuesday. Twelve Oakville students also signed with colleges. Stay tuned for that story on Mehlville-Oakville Patch.

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Gingham's Restaurant Searching for New Digs

The owners of the building plan to raze it, rebuild it and possibly turn it into a Starbucks.

Gingham's Restaurant, which has been serving the South County community since 1990, is looking for a new home. Jack Pieschel, the restaurant's owner, leases the building. He said the building's owner want to tear it down and build a Starbucks. "We haven't received our 30-day notice yet, but it could happen as soon as the end of June or July," Pieschel said. "We're working on looking for a new spot and hope to stay within a mile or two of where we are now." The building is owned by Sherman J. Irving. John Hamburger manages Irving's real estate. Hamburger said the building, which was constructed in the 1960s, is old and needs a lot of work.  "It would be just as expensive to retrofit the building as it would to tear it down and rebuild," …

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Join Mehlville High School Mothers' Club Road Rally

This scavenger hunt, complete with music, dancing, 50/50 and adult beverages, raises funds for the Class of 2014.

School Board President Responds After Losing Re-Election

Venki Palamand released a short statement after the Tuesday election that ended his six-year tenure on the board.

After six years serving the Mehlville School District Board of Education, Venki Palamand lost re-election Tuesday night. Palamand, the current president of the board, responded to Patch with the following statement: "The voters have spoken and I wanted to offer my congratulations to Larry Felton and Lori Trakas for their successful campaigns.  I wish them, and the Mehlville School District, continued success in the coming year." Previous Patch stories:  

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Election Results: Trakas, Felton Win School Board Race

The two winners will serve three years on Mehlville School District's Board of Education.

Larry Felton and Lori Trakas won Tuesday's election for Mehlville School District Board of Education, defeating the board's current president. Felton, who has served six years on the board and camped out for days to make sure his name was first on the ballot, took the largest share of votes with 36 percent. Trakas defeated Venki Palamand, the current school board president, by only 234 votes. "I want to say thank you to the community for coming out and supporting me and getting behind me because of who I am and what I stand for," Trakas told Patch from her election viewing party at her home. "I just want to do a great job. I want to put the kids first. I want to put the district first. I want to make sure the money is being used to the …

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Mike Stevens

11:04 pm on Saturday, April 6, 2013

Why do private teachers get one-third the total of their peers in public? There is a trade-off. Private school teachers have classrooms of students who were "allowed" into the school and who can be kicked out at a moment's notice. Public school teachers must teach all students---poor, malnourished, special needs, lacking support at home, poor behavior, etc. They don't get hand-picked students. …   more ›

Top 5: Schnucks ID Thefts, Student Starts Bakery

Don't miss a thing! Here are five of our most-read stories in Mehlville and Oakville this week.

With so much happening in our neighborhoods each week, it's hard to keep track of what's going on. Here are the top 5 stories from this week in Mehlville-Oakville Patch:      

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