I feel compelled to take exception to several opinions by Tonya Powell and by Beverly Tronicek that are stated as “facts”. All of the voters that signed the petition are against the Quick Trip relocation. I would have signed the petition if it was presented to me for the same reason that I would sign a petition allowing any qualified citizen to run for public office. That doesn’t mean I would vote for them, especially if they ran a disingenuous campaign. The insinuation that the ordinance was rushed through the Council, when in reality the vote was postponed on several occasions for the …

Two recent articles in Maplewood-Brentwood Patch on QuikTrip, and the Maplewood ordinance which would allow it to move to the northwest corner of Manchester and Big Bend, have generated comments and questions. Those articles are: QuikTrip Ordinance May Be Revised, But Referendum to Stop it Goes On Maplewood Resident With View of Scooter Shop, Martini Avenue Speaks on QuikTrip The ordinance is the subject of a referendum (Proposition Q) that Maplewood residents will vote on in the April 2 general election. The Prop Q question on the ballot reads: Shall Ordinance No. 5689 (Ordinance), …

The Maplewood QuikTrip may be moving. The relocation was passed by city council, but may now go to a referendum if enough signatures are collected by a group that opposes the move. Maplewood Ward 3 Councilman Barry Greenberg submitted a letter to the editor about why he voted for a QuikTrip move to the corner of Manchester Road and Big Bend Boulevard. The following are Greenberg's words: The factors to consider when determining whether QuikTrip should be allowed to relocate to the corner of Big Bend and Manchester are:1. Safety of StudentsIt has already been established by all parties that …

  Greenwood neighborhood resident, Luke Havel, submitted the following Letter to the Editor. As a Maplewood resident, I have often wondered why there is no official Historic Group or Society for the more than a century old city. If you are like me and love history, old homes and architecture or are just a curious mind, you have probably wondered the same thing.  Maybe you would like to know more about your home, when was it built?  Who lived there?  Did it always look this way?  What stories are these walls waiting to tell? My own quest to learn more about the history of my home has led me to…

Maplewood Ward 3 Councilman, business owner and resident Barry Greenberg submitted the following Letter to the Editor on Thursday in response to the recent food truck debate in Maplewood. There are many issues to consider here. On the plus side, it adds to the eclectic fabric of the community. It might offer some food choices not currently available from existing restaurants. On the down side, food trucks can cause traffic problems not only from the trucks themselves, but motorists trying to get a parking space close by. There are few viable options for open areas that can be designated for …

The Brentwood Board of Education submitted the following letter to the editor following the recent events surrounding the ouster of Kathleen Behrmann as principal of McGrath Elementary School. Want to submit your own Letter to the Editor? E-mail editor Ryan Martin at ryan.martin@patch.com. Dear members of the Brentwood community, The Brentwood Public School District is dedicated to providing the best education possible to the children of our community. The district is a vibrant and high-quality learning environment committed to preparing our students to function as solid citizens as they move…

Brentwood resident Cheryl Emery submitted the following letter to U.S. District Judge Catherine D. Perry last Tuesday, and shared it as a Letter to the Editor with Maplewood-Brentwood Patch over the weekend. Perry is the judge assigned to former Brentwood city administrator Chris Seemayer's case. Seemayer is scheduled for sentencing on Wednesday afternoon. Want to submit your own Letter to the Editor? E-mail editor Ryan Martin at ryan.martin@patch.com. Catherine D. PerryHonorable District Court Judge Dear Honorable Judge Perry, I would like to express my thoughts regarding Mr. Chris Seemayer…

Former Brentwood alderman and resident Betty Rick Dilthey submitted the following Letter to the Editor on Sunday. Want to submit your own Letter to the Editor? E-mail editor Ryan Martin at ryan.martin@patch.com. I just returned from a beautiful retirement party given for the former Brentwood fire chief by those that truly know and love him. In the past few months, Bob Niemeyer has been crucified by some of the people living in the “City of Warmth." What a shame as this shows their lack of knowledge. Yes, some firemen were paid overtime for more hours than they worked, and yes, this was wrong…

The following Letter to the Editor was submitted by Mark Ryan, a Maplewood resident and father of a Maplewood Richmond Heights kindergarten student.  While adult members of the Maplewood community would show their support for the Maplewood Post Office on Tuesday, children from the Maplewood Richmond Heights Early Childhood Center expressed their enthusiasm for their post office earlier. Last week, members of Stephanie Sauselle's kindergarten class wrote letters and drew pictures illustrating their support of the local post office. On Tuesday, the class walked from the classroom at the ECC to …

The following Letter to the Editor was submitted by David Wrone, public information manager for St. Louis County Departments of Highways and Traffic and Public Works, following Patch's publication of Brentwood Boulevard Discussed at County Council on Thursday morning. Jason Rosenbaum recently wrote an article regarding the City of Brentwood's desire that St. Louis County repave Brentwood Boulevard from Manchester Road north to roughly I-64/40. In the article, Jason quotes a resolution recently approved by the City of Brentwood in which it is alleged that St. Louis County had previously "…

The following Letter to the Editor was submitted by Ward 3 Alderman Andrew Leahy. It was originally shared with the Brentwood Board of Aldermen. The board is scheduled to vote on this bill during a special meeting at 6 p.m. on Monday at the Brentwood Recreation Complex. The board previously voted to send term extensions to the voters. Leahy voted against the measure. Elected officials, Yesterday I requested that the City Administrator draft a bill to return the length of term of office for ALL elected officials back to two years. I wish to offer the Board the opportunity to allow the voters …

Citizens for MRH is creating a permanent standing committee. The idea is to harness our “pro-MRH” energy that we discovered during the recent Y&S campaign, and continue that spirit year-round with concerted efforts toward community improvement. Instead of organizing groups only sporadically in response to election efforts or other events, we decided to become proactive and mobilize the local masses in grassroots efforts to strengthen the Maplewood and Richmond Heights communities and further enrich the MRH public schools. You may already know about Citizens for MRH, because invitations to the…

The Brentwood School District will host a community informational meeting at 7 p.m. on Monday, April 18 in the Brentwood School District Conference Center. The event will focus on the implications of the Jane Turner v. School District of Clayton decision by the Missouri Supreme Court and the variety of legislative responses offered as a “Turner fix.” Citizens of St. Louis County and patrons of public schools have strong reasons to be well-informed on this situation. Although the Turner case started as the concern of two districts, the court’s ruling last summer caught the attention of school …

During a recent Brentwood Board of Education meeting, Superintendent Dr. Charles Penberthy said school facilities were designed 50-to-60-plus years ago and “our spaces don't fit the program needs." So the school board approved a plan to begin researching facility upgrades with a potential price tag of $15 million. Why did renovation and classroom upgrade needs not take precedence over the construction of new administrative offices and facilities in the Hanley Industrial Park? Voters passed a $6.78 million dollar bond in November 2008. A need for school building renovations existed and …

We're finishing our eighth week of delivering news and community features to the Maplewood-Brentwood area, and we're very happy about what we've accomplished in that time. But if there's one thing we've learned: We can't do this alone. And we don't want to. Your e-mails, story comments, events postings and announcements are what make this news website thrive. It's this interactivity and engagement that drives dialogue around the dinner table with family, over the fence between neighbors and in the office with your coworkers. We want to take this dialogue a step further. We're launching a new…