Tonight is the night all the young people come home and party with their old friends, making it one of the wildest bar nights of the year (âBlackout Wednesdayâ is at least printable; not all the nicknames for this night are). But if youâre looking for an alternative to debauchery, a St. Louis company is perfecting the art of the once unthinkable: non-alcoholic spirits. Read about their remarkable ascent below.
And donât miss Samir Knoxâs scoop about a well-known St. Louisan now pushing his agenda in a new arena, as well as my story about an interesting court ruling that could have big repercussions. Whether you spend Thanksgiving eve with an NA cocktail or a shot of tequila, it never hurts to have a little reading material!
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The Rev. Larry Rice has his eye on this vacant site in Wellston, now owned by the county's land bank, as the future home of a campus for homeless residents that he calls City of Refuge. Photography by Samir Knox
THIS JUST IN
Rev. Larry Rice wants St. Louis County land for ambitious new shelter complex
Long-time homeless advocate Rev. Larry Rice is resurfacing in St. Louis County, making his pleas to the County Council in three-minute increments over the past few meetings. Nearly a decade after the City of St. Louis ordered Rice to shut down his Downtown West shelter, the homeless outreach services from the Rice familyâs New Life Evangelistic Center have largely gone underground.
But in recent weeks, Rice has been making pleas to the St. Louis County Council to help him create a âCity of Refuge,â his most ambitious project yet, estimated by his grandson to cost up to $15.5 million. Theyâre seeking to build it on one of two pieces of land now owned by the Land Clearance for Redevelopment Authority of St. Louis County, both in Wellston.
Rice, now in his mid-70s, gets animated speaking about requests from St. Louis County Executive Sam Page to spend some of the countyâs Rams settlement money on upgrades to the animal shelter. âThese proposals for dogs have taken place at the same time St. Louis County has not addressed its growing homeless problem,â he and grandson Chris Aaron Rice wrote in a letter to the council. âThis City of Refuge would take the homeless individual to whatever stage they are at and apply the personal resources needed to help them move on to become productive citizens.â More in our online story, including Page's response. âSamir Knox
Can the governor's appointees fire administrative law judges? A Cole County judge's ruling suggests as much, if allowed to stand. Photography via WikiCommons
DEEP DIVE
Democratâs firing has high stakes for Missouri lawâand her political career
A court ruling issued last month is raising concerns about judicial independence in Missouri, but could also cause big trouble for a prominent Democrat running for the Missouri Senate.
The ruling was a loss for Gina Mitten, the Richmond Heights Democrat and former assistant minority leader of the Missouri House. In 2021, Mitten had been appointed an administrative law judge for the state of Missouri, a six-figure job. But Mitten was unceremoniously fired by the state three years later. That triggered her lawsuit, which argues that the state canât just fire administrative law judges without following a process designed to shield them from political whims.
Her attorney, J. Andrew Hirth, says the case has enormous stakes for the future of an independent judiciary in Missouri. âWe don't want you to be able to be fired at the drop of a hat if the governor doesn't like you, or doesn't like the way you rule,â he says.
Go Deeper: What could prove unfortunate for Mittenâs political career, however, is that thereâs no sign she was fired because she angered the state administration with pro-labor rulingsâonly that she didnât do her job. The ânotice of unacceptable conductâ letters filed by her supervisors suggest at best incompetence, at worst utter negligence.
Mitten referred all questions to her lawyer, who noted that Mitten has never gotten a vote of no confidence, much less the several votes he believes are required under state statute. âAt the very least, she hasnât had any kind of due process to defend herself against the allegations,â he says.
Mittenâs opponents in Senate District 4 include state Rep. Steve Butz (D-St. Louis) and former prosecutor Chris Clark. Butz, for one, believes the case is relevant to Mittenâs candidacy. âPublic officials need to show up for work. Period,â he says. âFor me, supporting working people and their families is the very core of what it means to be a Democrat. There is no reason any working person should wait a year to have their workers' compensation resolved.â
Whatâs Next: Mitten is appealing the ruling, but sheâs not likely to see resolution until next summer, or even fallâpotentially the height of campaign season. âS.F.
Fall in love with Jane Austenâs Emma, playing in December at The Rep
Jane Austenâs most spirited heroine, Emma Woodhouse, brings holiday matchmaking, wit, and charming chaos to St. Louis in Jane Austenâs Emmaâa sparkling tale of love and laughter onstage at The Rep.
Baileys Restaurants entity files for bankruptcy (stltoday):Dave Bailey says his restaurants will stay open, but that another bankruptcy is on the way. Monday's Chapter 11 filing was for Baileys' Olive West, which owns a strip of storefronts in Midtown.
âWarehoused in jailsâ: Class action suit accuses state of denying prisoners mental health treatment (Missouri Independent): A federal lawsuit alleges a lack of reasonable action by the state has turned jails into âde facto mental health wards.â
Elvis judge regrets his agreement to retire (stltoday): St. Charles County Circuit Judge Matthew Thornhill argues that the investigation into his conduct was "tainted" and that the deal he cut should be thrown out.
Attorney Justin Gelfand, left, and beleaguered St. Louis sheriff Alfred Montgomery. The removal trial targeting Montgomery wrapped yesterday. Pool photo by Christian Gooden, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Around Town
đïž THE JURY IS OUT
With the argument portion of the quo warranto removal trial of Sheriff Alfred Montgomery officially over, the buzz around the courthouse was that things arenât looking good for the lapsed lawman. The Missouri attorney generalâs office has alleged six counts of misconduct against Montgomery, and Ohmer needs only to agree with the AG on one of them for the sheriff, who is already temporarily out of his job, to be permanently removed. Also not boding well for Montgomery was that some of the claims by his attorney, David Mason, seemed a bit of a stretch. One of the accusations against Montgomery is that he used sheriffâs deputies as free daycare for his kids at the courthouse and government vehicles as free school transportation. Mason rebutted that in his closings by saying that if this case goes against Montgomery, any public employee who brings their kids to work would be headed to jail for theft of government property. â'Take your kid to work dayâ is now illegal,â he said.
Mason also reiterated his claim that Montgomery being in federal custody in no way hampers his management, noting that thanks to the jailâs flexible phone, texting, and Zoom policies, it might in some ways be preferable to Montgomery being in the actual officeâand definitely better than if Montgomery were on vacation at âa resort with bad Wi-Fi.â As he made this argument, Mason employed the unfortunate turn of phrase that there was nothing to âbarâ Montgomery from doing his job despite being locked up. During Assistant Attorney General Greg Goodwinâs own closings, he refuted that rather succinctly: âThere are literal bars.â The case is now in the hands of Judge Steven Ohmer, who is retired and handling the case on a special basis. Ohmer quipped that he doesnât have anything else competing for his professional attention, so a ruling would be coming sooner rather than later. âI know time is of the essence in this matter,â he said. âRyan Krull
đž THE NON-ALCOHOLIC SCENE
James Kempland saw the writing on the wall all the way back in 2017: Alcohol consumption among younger people was on the decline. At the time, Kempland was the director of marketing for Angel's Envy, a Kentucky Straight Bourbon owned by Bacardi, and the market research he saw got him thinking. âIf that trend was continuing, number one, why? And number two, what did it portend?â he says. âAs weâve advanced since then, this is obviously no longer a trend; itâs a movement. The non-alcoholic beverage category, whether thatâs beer, wine, or spirits, is truly here to stay.â Kempland called Sam Newberg, a friend with a food chemistry background, wondering whether they could make a non-alcoholic Old Fashioned. Newberg took a few days to get back to him, but eventually responded not with a non-alcoholic bourbon but âa passable gin,â Kempland says. From there, they founded BARE Zero Proof Spirits, which since launching its products in 2022 has expanded from what Kempland calls its âflagship marketâ of Missouri to Maryland, Maine, South Carolina, Georgia, Washington, Oregon, Arkansas, and Mississippi. âAs it turns out, almost one-third of the American population does not drink alcohol and they were tired of drinking club soda with a lime or Diet Coke with a lemon,â Kempland says. âWe knew that there was a market for this type of product in order for people to feel included in a social setting [and not] stigmatized.â More in our online story. âEric Schmid
Enjoy great food, drinks, and TVs at The Key Burger Bar & Boogieâlocated on Olive Street in the Grand Center Arts District. See menu.
Heard on the Street
Spotted: Former sheriff Vernon Betts, who was not at Alfred Montgomeryâs trial but was working his security job down the street. He stopped a reporter on Tucker to gripe about never having received his retirement badge, a formality for police officers and deputies upon their hanging it up. He knows one was ordered for him and said it is sitting in one of the two court buildings, somewhere. He said he wasnât surprised Montgomery had withheld the badge from him, but was none too happy about interim sheriff John Hayden doing the same.
Talking turkey: St. Louis chef Liz Schuster, who will be on Instagram Live today at 9 a.m. to answer all your culinary questions.
Shuffling off his moral coil: Former St. Louis mayor James Conway, who died yesterday at age 93. Wrote fellow former mayor Lyda Krewson on Facebook, "Mayor Conway was a tenacious fighter for the city and state he loved! His service as a state rep, state senator, mayor, and many boards always made a positive difference." Conway is survived by his son, Steve, the former alderman who also served as Krewson's chief of staff.
đŹ Got a milestone to celebrate or gossip to share? Email sfenske@stlmag.com.
Quick Hits
Home field: For rocker Devon Allman, St. Louis is home
Bold flavors: Longtime CWE favorite is going in a new direction
Empty space: Plans fall through for high-profile Clayton restaurant
Sign of the times: Video shows turkey giveaway line stretching for miles
Another: Cyclist dies at the same South City site as a previous death
âThis is an intimidation tactic. You go after the bigger targets and then the smaller targets just police themselves.â
âAlan Greenblatt, speaking on The 314 Podcast about the Trump administrationâs lawsuits against large media companiesâand the fear they engendered in smaller ones.
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