Imagine this, the free market speaks. A Gen3QT and no mention of eminent domain or a Tif, how can this beeeee???? I'm not seeing the downside. Walk to Whiteys for some bombers, cross over to QT for some smokes & Red Bull then back to MRH high school for Detention.

There is not mention of the building that is currently there, or the business in it. Where are they going?

I am in the process of moving out of the neighborhood (St. John) where this supposedly attractive new Quik Trip was just built. It is not attractive, it's huge and ugly and built right next to ANOTHER QT. I am moving to Maplewood where I'd hoped things would be different. I am a parent of a child who will be attending the middle school and I don't want a qt on the corner right by the school. I'm sure most other parents would feel the same. When is the vote? Because I will be there to vote out a mayor that doesn't care about the opinions of the citizens living in his city.

I could care less about the reactionary complaints about it being near a school. I am upset about the uglification of this great city. The building and scooter store that are there now bring a lot of charm to Maplewood and make my walk to the metrolink a little less hectic. This isnt Ballwin and I did t move here for the selection in strip malls and drive through restaurants. I moved here for the walkability. In my opinion, a new QT would help ruin that.

hum, the way I read this, there is still time for discussion and negotiating. The Lessegs/QT recognize this is a process and the "citizenry of Maplewood will obviously have to agree to the building going there as well; at least a majority.” Hopefully the School Board and PTO are preparing for these discussions and will be pro-active in letting those interested know how to help their cause.

Never trust anyone who thinks a QT is beautiful. Barry Greenberg, I live in your ward, and you just lost my vote for your next term. What's going to happen to the scooter shop? Are they just getting kicked out? If I wanted to live in a generic suburb full of stupid chains, I would live in O'Fallon. This part of Maplewood is perilously close to looking like every other ugly suburb in the county. Thanks a lot, Mayor White. You've also lost my vote.

There seems to be some confusion here. My understanding is the current Shell Station, Scooter Store and White Castle are staying where they are and both CVS and proposed QT would be on the corner. All that said, I agree that this building is hardly "beautiful", not for a 1908 town anyway. These days you throw some Crown on the top of some blocks and its called beautiful. The building Scheidt Hardware occupies is beautiful. This design like most modern designs fails to fit a historic community.

Thanks for clearing it up Doug. Now I am definitely opposed to this. Lets endanger a unique business for a gas station? I am not a fan of that.

It is the scooter shop corner for sure. I confirmed it with Brian Adkisson, director of communications for MRH, and Marty Corcoran. I think the bases are covered.

Bad idea. Ever see the Shell stations pumps busy? Nope. Getting in and out of a gas station at that intersection is just not worth the trouble. If they move, Phillips 66 becomes the most convenient station for me. That simple.

Mayor White refers to a compromise. The only compromise I see is for QT to stay put and they can keep our business. Current location is better.

What will happen to the current location. Is that to be another vacant business lot? Haven't we learned our lesson with Deer Creek. That place has been an eyesore for years. There is a vacant business across the street from QT's current location. I'm so sick of businesses moving and abandoning their old properties to be eyesores and problems in the community.

Yes, Doug, thank you for clearing that up. This also means I am completely opposed to this. Tear down a perfectly good building currently housing a cool scooter shop to build ANOTHER gas station? No thanks! This provides no benefit whatsoever to Maplewood.

I just wrote Quiktrip to voice my opposition, and I suggest others do the same. I regularly go to the QT on Big Bend, but I will not frequent any of them in the future if this goes through. And don't forget to write the current mayor and council person to express your disapproval and particularly how it could influence your vote in the next election.

Correction - Nadir Djavaherian, the owner of the recent Plaza Ford, still owns the Maplewood Scooter Company and the connected service center. Again, he doesn't own the property. If QT goes through, his lease would end and QT's would begin.

I wrote the mayor and my two councilmen. You should too if you have a strong opinion. The walk from downtown Maplewood to the metrolink station is already unpleasent enough once you pass city hall. This would make it even worse. I am for a more walkable, not less walkable Maplewood.

It is both my intention and I believe the Mayors intention to facilitate a dialogue with the owners of the property, the proposed tenant, the MRH School District, the City of Maplewood and the citizens of our community. This is a complex process that involves feasibility studies, economic projections, governmental approvals, but most of all input from all affected entities. I start from the premise that an owner of a piece of land in this country has the right to entertain development proposals from any business that plans to use the site in a manner that is legally allowed and in conformance with the zoning ordinance. That is what currently is happening and the City is not acting as developer. The debate as to whether the proposed use is the highest and best use is somewhat moot as there have been no viable alternative proposals presented. I say viable because the project is structured as a land lease and no one else has committed to the design, approval, and infrastructure costs required to develop the property. There is no public money involved, so the City does not solicit requests for proposals. Our job is to make whatever happens there a project that will take into consideration everyone’s needs and satisfy as many of those needs as possible.

A follow up to the comment above that implies that I think that Quick Trip is beautiful architecture: I have never opined as to the aesthetics of the proposed building. I think that citizens of Maplewood could perhaps draw a more objective conclusion about my aesthetic sensibilities based on my design work on the Schlafly Bottleworks and Saint Louis Closet Company projects.It disappoints me that more than one of the comments advocates not voting for a public official based upon incomplete or inaccurate information and subsequent conclusions. Let's continue to have this discussion in an open forum so that everyone's voice can be heard.

Thanks Barry for giving a city council perspective. I was wondering what part of QT being built can te city be involved in? Can they block it from happening? If not, what type of input does the city have on design? I, for one, am clueless as to what role the city may have in a private transaction like this.

Thank you for providing a description of the process and where things are and for responding to the concerns. My reading of the article lead me to believe that Mr. Lesseg was praising the design. If it appeared that any of my comments were criticizing you or your firm I apologize. The St. Louis Closet Co. is a great example of a design that fits our community.

I think what I find most disturbing is that only two weeks ago the mayor was at my daughter's softball game with his clipboard asking for families to sign his petition so he could run for mayor again. However, when confronted with concerns regarding QT he told them the deal was dead in the water and they didn't have a thing to worry about - just sign this petition so he could run again. I find it impossible to believe that the deal went from dead in the water to signed in ten days time. I'm thinking many of those young families would like to take their signatures back so they can support a candiate who is more forthcoming with information.

I have lived in Maplewood my entire life, and I currently frequent the existing QT. On that note I am for the move to the corner of Big Bend and Manchester. I would love to know why the school board is even opposed to this. What do they think is going to happen? The comments I hear above makes it seem like QT is a bar or a strip club or something, this is a gas station convenience store what does that mean, when the kids get out of MRH they are going to have to simply cross the street to get to Quick Trip instead of walking two blocks up Big Bend which they already do. I see a stream of kids heading up there from MRH every time I go there around the time the schools let out. In my eyes it would seem like having the QT across the street would be safer for the students since they don't have to cross both Manchester and Big Bend to get to the QT and if they aren't going to go there now then the kids aren't going to go there when it moves, so what is the school board so worried about. I would simply like to know their reasons for opposing this.

As a Maplewood resident, I was uncertain about QT moving to the Manchester intersection because it's going to be busier with CVS going in there. But frankly, I haven't heard anything from MRH School District as to why they don't want QT to go in there? As for the design of the building, it's all brick and glass, just like the Closet Company and I think the design is a whole lot better than the existing building. I don't want to see the Scooter Co lose their lease, but when you lease from a private owner, you don't have a choice if the owner wants you out. If that happens and QT does get the ok to move, let the Scooter Co move into the old QT building. It will still be on a main street and the building will be bigger than the store they're in now. The building that houses the Scooter Co is not and has never been a nice looking building and never will be. If they tear it down for the QT, good, that alone will improve that corner. If someone knows where I can read why the MRH School District is so opposed to this, then please let me know. As far as walkability to the Metrolink station being "ugly" after you pass City Hall, what the hell are you looking at? Except for Steak N'Shake & Aldi, the businesses along that way are small businesses and a car dealership. Do you think all of those businesses should close just for your walk? The QT being at the new intersection might even bring more new people & business to our community.

I would also like to address the attacks on the design of this building. I will grant the building picture with this article is no great piece of architecture, but it looks a lot better than the current QT and looks a hell of a lot better than the Shell or White Castle currently on this corner. The building that is currently in place there is ugly and I personally would be happy to see it go. The buildings in downtown Maplewood are beautiful buildings that eyesore on the corner of Big Bend and Manchester is horrible and I will be glad to see it go. I mean for god sake they had to paint it grey to make it look somewhat decent. They could tear that building down and replace it with a steel warehouse and it would make that corner look better than it does now. Losing the scooter store will be a lose for the city of Maplewood but nothing says they have to leave Maplewood just that corner. The one legitimate comment I have read above is that the old QT will be left abandoned, but in answer to that why doesn't the scooter store move up to the current QT or the old Quizno's for that matter. This is a good idea and I would really like to hear a reasonable excuse for why people are opposed to this because this opposition doesn't make sense to me.

I can summarize some the reasons why I am against this development:

Adding a QT to this intersection will increase traffic in an already overly congested area is a recipe for disaster. Morning drivers at Manchester and Big Bend are already too busy trying to beat the traffic lights to pay attention to pedestrians like the kids walking to school. The QT parking lot is even worse. Adding a QT to this intersection all but guarantees a tragic accident.

I am also incredibly concerned about the abundance of delivery trucks cutting through the school campus and, for that matter, regular drivers, cutting through the school grounds as they try to bypass traffic lights or get around the incredible amount of traffic at the (again) already congested intersection.

It's not that I'm against kids going to QT. I'm against them taking their lives in their own hands when they walk to school. I'm a huge fan of QT and go there quite often. But I don't think having one at Maplewood's busiest intersection is a good idea.

Has anyone given any thought to the exhaust fumes created from such a busy gas station.

Until I read about the lease signing....which by the way Mrs. Lessig is having her son, a lawyer, represent her....I had not read anything about the addition of one or two right turn lanes south bound on Big Bend, onto west bound Manchester. That alone would be an improvement. Most of the early talk was about the congested traffic. That alone would help the traffic on that corner. My concern now is why do they want to move two blocks north, from where they now are? Don't they have enough room, since within the last few years, they have enlarged their station?? I object to the same type of businesses going into the same area. I feel that seems to eventually have one of them put out of business. The small business owner has worries enough about staying in business these days, without a larger station moving next door. These stations are leased to people like you and I.....Shell, BP (British Petroleum), Conoco, Phillips etc. QT is a large corporation, who make their money on all the extras that they can sell......thus the bigger the store, the bigger their profits. These smaller businesses make their money on the gasoline..(which by the way, prices are dictated by the oil companies, every day.) and so QT can lower their prices to whatever they want. The differences in prices usually runs .02 to .04 cents. Times that by 10 or 12 gallons, amounts to .24 or 28 cents a tankful. I will gladly pay up to .28 cents or so, to keep our long time business in Maplewood.

By the way Diane, there is a place to go where you can read Maria Langston's letter to Maplewood citizens....it is in the article above.....just click on "opposing Quik Trip moving to the corner"........