 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
St. Louis Front Page P.O. Box 1354 St. Louis, MO 63188 Voice: 314-771-0200 Fax: 314-771-0300 To submit news, contact: editor@slfp.com To advertise, contact: advertising@slfp.com  |
 |
by Bob Moore, SLFP.com ST. LOUIS, MO (SLFP.com) January 21, 2002 - Several thousand civil rights and community leaders, politicians, families and friends gathered at the Old Courthouse, Monday morning, to celebrate the 31th anniversary of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday in St. Louis.Mayor Francis Slay, Congressman Richard Gephardt and Senator Jean Carnahan provided official remarks in the rotunda of the historic building, which was the site of the Dred Scott decision for freedom from slavery. Following the ceremony, the large crowd gathered outside along Market Street to begin the march to Powell Symphony Hall for the Interfaith Service. Cathy Walker, an employee of Leer Corp, stopped on the steps of the Old Courthouse to comment on the event. "Martin Luther King Day is a day that all people - black, white, whatever your religion or ethnic background is - should be together as one as Martin Luther King was. We have to pull things together. It's up to us to do it by uniting together. We can make this world, this city, this state, this nation move forward in a way that Martin Luther King would be proud of in doing so." Walker noted that St. Louis has the second largest celebration honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. "I'm proud of the way black people and all other races come together for this one day. People are uniting and making his dream of walking as well as pushing legislature and all other things that are binding our country and our city together. We need to get out as one on all of these issues that's coming up in Congress, in our states and make Martin Luther King proud of what we are doing today." "I think the September 11 event opened at lot of our eyes to the awareness that we are just as vulnerable in certain areas as anyone else. We need to stand together, fight together, love together, sit together and talk together," stated Walker proudly. 
Regional Park System Becoming a Reality ST. LOUIS, MO (SLFP.com) January 24, 2002 - The Metropolitan Park and Recreation District has collected $4 million to fund regional projects and is accepting proposals through March for a round of funding to develop parks, trails and greenways in St. Louis City, St. Louis County and St. Charles County. The regional park system is becoming a reality," said Anne Zerr, president of the Metropolitan Park and Recreation District board of directors. In an announcement Zerr stated that "We fully expect to hold a progressive, three-county-wide series of ribbon cuttings on projects this fall. Counties, municipalities, not-for-profit groups and other entities were invited to propose and request funding for park and trail projects that would promote, preserve and enhance a seamless system of interconnecting parks and trails. Preference also will be given to projects that provide their own funding for overhead, operating and planning costs. The District will review and discuss responses to the RFP at their January 25, February 4 and March 4 public meetings. The meeting on January 25, will be held at 9 a.m., at Knoll Inc., 2 North Meramec in Clayton. Agenda also includes operating budget and discussion on a Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) policy. Voters in three Missouri and two Illinois counties passed a tax initiative in November, 2002, to create and fund regional parks districts, whose goals are to improve water quality, increase park safety, link community assets through trails, restore and expand existing and new local parks, provide expanded access to recreational areas for people with disabilities and protect wildlife habitat. The District began collecting a one-tenth of one cent sales tax in April, 2001. Half of the sales tax collected by the District is allocated for regional trails, parks and open space. The counties and municipalities within District boundaries share the remaining half. The District previously committed $36 million over four years to develop the Missouri side of The Confluence, a planned bi-state greenway along the Mississippi River. See archived story: Mississippi River Trail Dedicated  The Saint Louis Front Page is owned and maintained by the Moore Design Group for the sole purpose of disseminating news and information about the Metropolitan Saint Louis area. Text or graphics may not be copied, rewritten or distributed in any manner whatsoever without written permission. For more information, contact editor@slfp.com All rights reserved world wide © 1996 - 2008 Moore Design Group . |
|
