MoDOT: Manchester Rd. in Maplewood and Brentwood to be completed in July

Missouri Department of Transportation communications specialist, Andrew Gates, has sent a June 2023 update on the department’s work on Manchester Road. Maplewood and Brentwood should be wrapped up by the second week of July, with a few exceptions, he says. Over the next month, crews will be wrapping up resurfacing and striping Route 100 (Manchester Road)  in Brentwood and Kirkwood. Most of the work is finished in Brentwood, and then the resurfacing crews will move to the Kirkwood area. This work is happening at night, and although crews do limit extra noise, residents along the corridor may hear truck noises, or back-up alerts as crews work to get this portion of the roadway finished by the end of the month.

In the news: Immaculate Conception and St. Luke the Evangelist slated to close

A sweeping reorganization of the Catholic church in St. Louis, announced last week, includes the closing of Immaculate Conception in Maplewood and St. Luke the Evangelist in Richmond Heights. Catholic News Agency — St. Louis Archdiocese reorganization will cut parishes from 178 to 134

Courier Tribune — Here are the Catholic parishes that will close or merge in the Archdiocese of St.

Maplewood business announces closing brick & mortar, says shopping hasn’t returned

Owner of The Roughneck Grooming & Beard, Brad Jackson, says it’s time for a change, which includes closing his brick and mortar shop, at 7282 Manchester Road, after this weekend. Hey, Maplewood! After 7 amazing years, we’re making the hard decision to evolve and close The Roughneck Grooming & Beard Store in downtown Maplewood. This may come as a surprise to some of you (and not to alot of you), but the reality is that physical retail shopping just hasn’t come back to pre-pandemic levels like we’d hoped. We endured the pandemic closures and a couple years of holding our breath to see how the world would look on the other side, and here we are.

Chiropractor Dr. Madosky announces future retirement

Area chiropractor, Dr. William Madosky, announced through a recent email to clients and on social media that he plans to retire at the end of June. His message is below. There are those moments when it becomes clear that a change needs to happen.  For me, today is one of those moments.  After conversations with Sharon about our future, I have decided retire on June 28, 2023. For the past 20 months I have been searching for another chiropractic physician to take over the daily operations of the office allowing me to work part time. Unfortunately that has not happened and I am saddened by this fact.

Taste of Maplewood coming — in its 15th year

The 15th annual Mid County Taste of Maplewood is May 19 and 20. The info below is from the chamber’s website. See more here. The festival is a culmination of Maplewood and Richmond Heights’ most renowned restaurants, beloved boutiques, and unique specialty stores. In its 15th year the event’s vibe is distinct and unmistakable, radiating the culture and character of the businesses in the area.

Prioritized Pastries to open Saturday, say folks in line

There was a line on the sidewalk outside Prioritized Pastries Saturday morning. Those in line said it was due to open, but they weren’t sure when. The new bakery is at 2719 Sutton, the former location of Pie Oh My. The bakery is a dedicated vegan, gluten- and peanut-free facility, according to its website.

Maplewood mayor says she running again

Maplewood Mayor Nikylan Knapper posted on Facebook on Friday that it’s been two years since she became mayor of Maplewood, and said she’s running for re-election in April 2024. She said, “I have done a lot of work for our community, but not all of my work is complete. Due to this, I will seek another term as your Mayor.” The 40 South post of her swearing in: Nikylan Knapper makes history becoming 1st Black mayor of Maplewood

Brentwood, MRH school districts ranked among best in Missouri

Fox 2 News reports that Brentwood High School and Maplewood Richmond Heights are in a ranking of the top 20 public school districts in Missouri. The ranking comes from Stacker, which compiled the list of the best school districts in Missouri using rankings from Niche. Niche ranks school districts based on criteria including academics, teacher salaries, expenses per student, and access to extracurricular activities. Niche ranks Brentwood at fifth in the state and MRH at #11. Clayton was ranked at #1.

New York Times, others, report city of Maplewood to pay $3.25 million to settle lawsuit

The New York Times, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, and others have reported that the city of Maplewood will pay $3.25 million to settle a federal lawsuit that accuses Maplewood of: “wrongfully jailing at least 7,000 people in a so-called debtors’ prison scheme, in which people arrested over minor infractions were forced to pay exorbitant fines or face more time in jail, court records show,” the New York Times reported. Missouri Lawyers Media — Judge OKs ‘debtor prison’ settlement with Maplewood

New York Times — Missouri City to Pay $3.25 Million to Settle ‘Debtors’ Prison’ Lawsuit

Riverfront Times — Maplewood to Pay $3.25M to Settle Suit Alleging ‘Debtors’ Prison’

St. Louis Post-Dispatch — Maplewood settles debtor’s prison suit for $3.25 million. ‘We got treated bad.’

Steve Rye, Sole Survivor owner, dies at 70

The Mid County Chamber of Commerce has reported that Steve Rye, former owner of Sole Survivor, has passed on. His wife Kay said the cause was a heart attack. She reported his passing on April 5 on the Sole Survivor Facebook page. She said that the business will go on, “of course.” She added that their next event is this weekend: Annual Small Scrap & Hide Sale + the return of: A Back Alley Clearance Sale

Kay also posted on Facebook:
If you had not heard, Steve had a major heart attack and sadly is no longer with us.

Maplewood’s library proposition passes with almost 90 percent yes votes

Proposition L, the bond issue for the library, passed on Tuesday with 87.1  percent of voters voting yes for the proposition. Library board member, Charlie Hinderliter, told supporters of Maplewood’s Proposition L on Tuesday night, that the campaign was well funded, with generous in-kind donations as well. He said 44 percent of the donations came from city council members (new member Matt Coriel donated almost $800 left over from his first campaign for council)  and all but one council member had a sign in their yard. Running unopposed for city council, Krista Garcia won Ward 1, and Shawn Faulkingham won Ward 3. In Ward 2 it was a write-in contest, with Chastity Mattox winning with 19 votes (22.6%) over a total of 39 write-in candidates.

MRH Open House planned April 15: first since 2018

Maplewood Richmond Heights School District is planning an open house for Saturday, April 15 from 10 a.m. to noon at all of the district’s buildings. It’s the first open house the district has held since 2018. The flyer below is from MRH.

Pot holes on Manchester Road set to be repaired in April; Updated info: work to begin on Wednesday

The pot holes and piles of gravel at the Manchester Road intersections in Maplewood due to the installation of brick crosswalks is set to be repaired—pending on the weather—according to Maplewood city manager, Michael Reese. He said the mill process (removing asphalt) and new overlay on Manchester in downtown Maplewood will take a total of about five days to complete. It was supposed to happen the first week of March but didn’t happen due to cold and wet weather. It’s been rescheduled multiple times as the result of the weather. Weather pending, the asphalt removal and new overlay of downtown Manchester is planned for for first week in April.

New Rock Hill Aldi coming, Maplewood’s is staying, hopefully

The Webster-Kirkwood Times has reported that a new Aldi is scheduled to open on March 30 in the location that was originally Lucky’s Market, which closed in 2020. A ribbon-cutting is set for 8:45 a.m. that morning. The Maplewood Aldi will be unaffected by the opening of the new store, according to an employee there. Hopefully they’re right.

In the news: New restaurants opening; obituaries

Several magazines report that a burger restaurant will be opening in the former Elmwood location. The Business Journals — Burger Champ to open in former Elmwood space – St. Louis Business Journal

Feast Magazine — Team behind Pizza Champ and Elmwood announces new fast-casual concept, Burger Champ

KMOV — Mother asks for public’s help after car stolen with baby’s medical equipment inside

Sauce — Tapped will reopen as Tapped Social House in late March in Maplewood

Sauce — Burger Champ will open in former Elmwood space in Maplewood this summer

St. Louis Magazine – Burger Champ to move into former Elmwood space in Maplewood

St. Louis Post-Dispatch —  Laura Dashke (obituary)

St.

Maplewood residents to vote on public library improvement proposition

Maplewood voters will vote on Tuesday, April 4, on Proposition L, for “renovating, improving, expanding and furnishing the District’s library facilities,” from the wording on the proposition. Library director, Ashley Bryant, sent out a letter to residents with information on the proposition, also community members are invited to a town hall regarding Proposition L to be held in the library’s meeting room on Wednesday, March 15 at 6pm. The letter from the director:
Dear Maplewood Resident,

I am writing to inform you of Proposition L, which will be on the April 4, 2023 ballot. The proposition reads as follows:

Shall the Municipal Library District of Maplewood, Missouri, issue its general obligation bonds in an amount not to exceed Three Million Dollars ($3,000,000) for the purpose of renovating, improving, expanding and furnishing the District’s library facilities? If passed, the funds will be used by the Library to improve our historic building in the following ways:

Preserve, repair, and maintain the existing structure, with an emphasis on waterproofing.

In the news: House fire; Mizzou recruits MRH wheelchair hoops player

Maple firefighter put down a house fire, a Maplewood Richmond Heights wheelchair basketball player signs with Mizzou, and more in the news. Fox 2 News — First responders called to Maplewood house fire

Fox 2 News Youtube — Maplewood house fire update – YouTube

KMOV — Maplewood-Richmond Heights senior recruited to play wheelchair basketball at Mizzou – KMOV

KSDK — Home catches fire Friday morning in Maplewood

Legacy.com — Anna Baskett Obituary (1928 – 2023)

St. Louis Post-Dispatch — Recap: KIPP St. Louis downs Maplewood-RH

St. Louis Post-Dispatch — Recap: Maplewood-RH topples McKinley – St.

Elmwood location pivoting to burgers, according to notice

Maplewood City Council will hold a public hearing on a request for a business to be called Burger Champ at the current location of the Elmwood restaurant — 2704 Sutton Boulevard in Maplewood. Michael Fischer is making the request for approval for a full and Sunday liquor license at the location according to a public hearing notice sent to homes nearby the restaurant. The Elmwood owners, early in the Covid pandemic, started making pizza to go, then opened Pizza Champ, at 2657 Lyle Avenue. The hearing is scheduled for March 14 at 7:30pm at City Hall.