BOA Notes

Weighing in
The Board of Aldermen announced their opposition to executions in the state of Missouri. A round of applause followed the passage of a resolution (PDF) calling on the Missouri House of Representatives to reconsider HB1496 which would have placed a moratorium on executions and set up a commission to study the use of the practice. The resolution also called for a permanent moratorium on executions.

The board cited several issues in its opposition including
• The dyslexic anesthesiologist recently banned from participating in executions
• The high number of African-American's on death row (48%)
• The increasing number of cases where death-row inmates have been proven innocent through evidence introduced years after their sentencing.

Bill 1496 died in committee last session. It was co-sponsored by a number of reps including some from the St. Louis area (Reps. Johnson, Wright-Jones, Villa, Oxford, Bowman, Hoskins, Hubbard, and Daus)

Podular Living
If you are a recent college graduate and are trying to re-experience your dorm-room days by living in a portable storage unit, it might be time to find a more permanent domicile. Also, for those who move their belongings into a storage unit during their three-week rehab job, which turned into a 6-month rehab, it may be time to put the pins to the contractors.

The board passed a bill, introduced by Alderwoman Lyda Krewson, 28th Ward, that requires a permit for the PODS, as they are commonly called, and limits their placement on the public right-of-way to 14 days, 30 days on private property.

Form-atters
Ears perked among those listening to the meeting when a dispute seemed to bubble up regarding the formatting of 14th Ward Alderman Stephen Gregali's bill to set the upper age limit of applicants to the St. Louis Fire Department at 33. One of the aldermen wasn't pleased with the format of the bill and wanted to have it clarified. The copy passed out to the aldermen was in its raw form, showing where changes were being made to the language.

Gregali explained it was merely a copy to show the aldermen and was not the actual bill that would be written into law. The alderman relented in his opposition.