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Committee advances 'Northern Lights' event‑district incentive after debate over encampment displacement
Summary
The committee gave board bill 166 a due‑pass recommendation to enable tax abatement and a blight plan for the proposed Northern Lights Special Event District; supporters touted jobs and community benefits while service providers and unhoused‑outreach advocates warned about displacement and pressed for concrete plans for people living in a nearby encampment.
The Housing, Urban Development and Zoning Committee advanced board bill 166 on March 17, sending the developer‑sponsored proposal for a tax abatement and blight plan in north St. Louis to the full Board of Aldermen with a due‑pass recommendation.
Sponsor Alderman Aldridge presented the project, described as the Northern Lights Special Event District, which would use abatement and other incentives to support an event center, a kids zone, amphitheater and housing near the 10th/Cass corridor. SLDC representative Zach Wilson told the committee the bill could allow abatement up to a 25‑year maximum and that financial scoring would occur if land and financing are secured.
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