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BY CAROL ARNETT

The Florissant City Council has approved an ordinance naming the Sansone Group as the preferred developer for the Cross Keys Apartment Redevelopment Area, over objections by the apartment owners that the Sansone Group has already been advertising the development on its website.

Stephen Kling, an attorney for the apartment complex’s owners, Intergroup Cross Keys, said the owners found out about Sansone’s website when a real estate agent told them about it. “He said he couldn’t find new tenants because Sansone was marketing the property on their website,” Kling said. No renter wants to go into an apartment in that situation, he said.

“Sansone does not own the property,” Kling said. “We received a contract from Sansone in the last few days offering $3.6 million,” Kling said. “The owner recently refinanced for $10.5 million.”

Councilman Tom Schneider said that the council was not responsible for Sansone’s actions.

City Attorney John Hessel agreed, saying the city could ask Sansone to change what they were doing, but not demand it.

In other matters, the council last week held three public hearings. In the first hearing, Car Hop Inc., requested permission to open a used car lot at 12895 New Halls Ferry Road, the site of the former Steak N Shake. The lot would hold not more than 50 cars.

“We’re considering a moratorium on used car lots,” Schneider said. “But this proposal came in before that happened.” Schneider added that there are many used car lots in his district, on Lindbergh, and they do not cause problems. “I think that’s the best stretch of Lindbergh going all the way down to Highway 40.”

In the second hearing, La Toya Jeffries requested permission to open Studio Z Fitness at 750 North Highway 67. Jeffries plans to offer fitness and dance classes at the studio. The studio will welcome all sizes and abilities, Jeffries said.

In the third hearing, the council heard about a proposal from Mark Behlmann to build a two-story office building at the corner of rue St. Louis and St. Ferdinand Street. The proposal would require that the property be rezoned from residential to commercial.

The proposed building would house offices for Ace Learning Centers. Behlmann said that no students would be in the building; it would house administrative offices.

Several residents from St. Louis Street spoke in opposition to the proposal. Athena Turner said she and her husband recently bought the house next door to the property. “My husband and I did not spend lots of money on a beautiful historic home to live next to a business,” she said.

Mayor Robert Lowery said the proposed business could enhance Turner’s property value, but Turner disagreed. Schneider said that Old Town has always had a mix of residential and low-impact business.

Councilman Andrew Podleski, in whose ward the property is located, said that several years ago, the city hired PGAV, a consultant, to study the city. “Their first recommendation was don’t rezone anymore residential to commercial.” The council held a first reading on the bill.
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