Renown mother-daughter librettist team to visit STL
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St. Louis American See page C1
The
Serving, empowering and advocating for equity in St. Louis since 1928
CAC Audited FEBRUARY 20 – 26, 2025
stlamerican.com
Maryville U. president retires after 18 years
Maryville University announces it’s new president as Dr. Daniel Shipp
See LOMBARDI, A6
COMPLIMENTARY
City, GSL announce Millennium Hotel plan Cordish Companies to lead $670 M redo
By Namratha Prasad The St. Louis American Maryville University announced Wednesday that Dr. Daniel Shipp will assume the role as president of Maryville University in June, 2025. The St. Louis American had the opportunity to speak with former President, Dr. Mark Lombardi, Maryville University’s longest standing president, in recent months. Lombardi prides himself on the number of first-generation graduates who have graduated under his leadership. Over 30,000 students have graduated in the 18 years Lombardi has held the position.
Vol. 96 No. 46
By Alvin A. Reid The St. Louis American
Photo by Taylor Marrie / St. Louis American
Dr. Mark Lombardi, president of Maryville University in his office on the Maryville University campus.
Calling it “an exciting plan,” St. Louis Mayor Tishaura O. Jones is joining city leaders in heralding the selection of the Cordish Companies to redevelop the vacant Millennium Hotel at 200 S. 4th St. adjacent to the grounds of St. Louis Gateway Arch Foundation. According to Cordish, the nearly $670 million preliminary plan includes 1.3 million square feet of residential, office, commercial, cultural, and public spaces “to create a vibrant, multifunctional destination.” The proposal includes upscale residential, Class A office space, public spaces, an amphitheater, a food Neal hall, event space, a Richardson potential home for the Gateway Arch National Park’s archives, enhanced streetscapes, pedestrian-friendly spaces, landscaping, and art installations. “Back in May of 2024, I asked St. Louis Development Corporation and Greater St. Louis Inc. to bring me a plan to address the Railway Exchange and the Millennium Hotel within 120 days. In September, they established a path forward to address both buildings,” Jones said in a release. As a result of a successful pub-
See MILLENNIUM, A6
Kehoe joins GOP attacks on DEI
Photo courtesy of Show Me Skiers Club
Snow Day!
NAACP: ‘We will not sit quietly’
Black youths gather with a Hidden Valley resort snowboarding instructor for some tips before heading to the slope for practice. Show Me Skiers welcomed 70 young Black skiers and snowboarders for four lessons that closed on Sunday Feb. 9, 2025. For more coverage, see Sports.
Annual Annie Malone May Day Parade Postponed this Year By Sylvester Brown, Jr. The St. Louis American It was perhaps an unplanned but still disheartening visual commentary. During a Thursday press conference, representatives of Annie Malone Children & Family Services stood behind a podium with a poster of an adorable Black child holding a brown, fuzzy teddy bear. Beside the child were the words: “Making Lives Better.”
Apparently, that mission has been compromised due to diminished funds. The situation is so dire that the nonprofit announced it was postponing its annual Annie Malone May Day Parade originally scheduled for May 18 this year- a St. Louis tradition for more than a century. Annie Malone is a long-standing social service agency that provides crisis programming for the St. Louis region. Its mission is to “Improve the
BUSINESS
HSSU Vendor Fair an affirmation of Blackness
Harris-Stowe State University (HSSU) in partnership with the A-B School of Business (CIE) and the African Chamber of Commerce St. Louis hosted a Black History Vendor Fair on February 15, 2025.
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quality of life for children, families, older adults, and the community by providing social services, educational programs and advocacy.” Funds raised from the parade support the agency’s programs that provide shelter, mental health services, and economic mobility opportunities for children and families facing crisis in St. Louis, according to its website.
See PARADE, A7
By Alvin A. Reid St. Louis American Gov. Mike Kehoe insulted African Americans and halted civil rights progress throughout Missouri when he signed an executive order the barring the use of state funds for DEI and prevents agencies from considering DEI in their hiring decisions on Tuesday. He twisted the knife in the egregious wound by acting in February -Black History Month. In announcing his Trump-inspired action that ignores past racial practices, Kehoe also used words often spoken by civil rights leaders of the past who sometimes gave their lives for the right to employment opportunities. “Missourians deserve a government
See KEHOE, A7
SPORTS
Who says things move slowly in the winter?
What a week it was for many athletes from the area, ranging from high school to college to the pros. Jayson Tatum scored a game-high 15 points in the NBA All-Star game.
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