Councilwoman Shalonda Webb this week publicly opposed the development plans for the shuttered Jamestown Mall — effectively halting the project in its tracks.
Webb released a statement noting that the St. Louis County Port Authority in mid-May announced they had entered a contract with NorthPoint Development to redevelop the site.
“Since that time, I have listened to this community and its overwhelming sentiment is that they are not in favor of this project,” Webb wrote. “Therefore, I will not support the current proposal. This is in no way a reflection of NorthPoint or its efforts to make the project a reality. NorthPoint has been honest and transparent.”
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported the development firm was going to complete a $75.8 million commercial and industrial development on the mall’s 145 acres. Port Authority Chairman John Maupin told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that NorthPoint’s proposal was now “dead in the water.”
“Jamestown Mall will be redeveloped, and it will be something this community can be proud of.”
— Councilwoman Shalonda Webb
The St. Louis American reached out to the St. Louis Economic Development Partnership for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
Webb said she would have supported NorthPoint’s efforts had her community also backed the development plan.
The Councilwoman represents District 4, which encompasses Florissant up north to Pelican Island and east to Columbia Bottom Conservation Area.
North County’s Jamestown Mall was an enclosed shopping mall located at Lindbergh Boulevard and Old Jamestown Road. The million-plus square feet of property was opened in 1973 and formerly included Dillard’s, JCPenney, Macy’s and Sears as its anchor stores.
The mall began declining in 2000 and was finally shuttered in 2014.
“Now that all parties understand the pulse of this community, I look forward to working collaboratively with the St. Louis County Port Authority and the St. Louis County Economic Development Partnership,” Webb wrote.
“When making a decision concerning the residents of this district, I will always take their concerns into account. I will also ensure that others do so as well. Jamestown Mall will be redeveloped, and it will be something this community can be proud of.”
Webb was not available for additional comment.
A month after St. Louis County took responsibility for the property in October 2017, the St. Louis County Port Authority, St. Louis Economic Development Partnership and St. Louis County held an open house at the Detrick Building at Christian Hospital to hear how residents hoped the property would be developed.
Many residents said they were looking for some type of mixed-use development – higher-end retail, senior housing, a decent hotel, entertainment and recreational activities. Some wanted manufacturing to bring in jobs to take the strain off the existing tax base. Others just wanted to see something, almost anything other than letting the site continue to deteriorate.
St. Louis Public Radio’s Maria Altman reported in 2017 that developers had anticipated construction of another 8,000 homes nearby, but they were never built because geologists found sinkholes north of the property.