PROPOSED VALLEY PARK ANNEXATION FACT SHEET

PROPOSED VALLEY PARK ANNEXATION FACT SHEET

Prepared by St Louis County for the 9/20/04 Boundary Cmsn Public Hearing on BCO411

The County is an experienced & efficient service provider. The County can continue to provide services more effectively & in a more cost efficient manner than Valley Park.

>	The Police Dept is the largest accredited local law enforcement agency in the state with 756 commissioned officers & 247 civilian support employees.
>	The Dept of Highways & Traffic provides road maintenance including pothole repair, resurfacing, striping, traffic signal control & snow removal.
>	The Public Works Dept provides all permits & inspections in this area to insure compliance with building & zoning regulations.
>	The Dept of Parks & Recreation operates a total of 69 parks & sites throughout the county. One of which, Buder Park, is part of the proposed annexation area.
>	The Dept of Planning administers zoning & subdivision regulations, prepares community plans & studies, develops maps & data & provides technical assistance to community groups.

Many services would remain the same or decline if the area is annexed.

>	Services would not be dramatically different, as Valley Park's Plan of Intent admits: "Residents will not see any changes in the Public or Private Services Sectors, including fire protection, as the area will continue to have services from Fenton & Valley Park Fire Protection Districts & St Louis County Police & Public Works currently & will continue to service the area." Valley Park contracts with St Louis County for Police & Public Works services.
>	The Plan of Intent also indicates "no new capital improvements are currently being planned in the proposed annexation area, nor are any presently anticipated by the City of Valley Park after the effective date of the annexation."
>	St Louis County already has capital improvement projects underway, including a $98,000 study to determine ways to correct existing deficiencies & provide better access to properties along the Route 141 corridor between the Meramec River & I-44. This project alone represents nearly $30,000 more than Valley Park intends to invest in the area in 2004, if annexed.

-over-

Taxes would increase significantly under the proposed annexation.

>	Sales tax would increase by one percent. Valley Park would add a municipal property tax of $0.57 per $100 Assessed Valuation.
>	According to the plan of intent, Valley Park stands to gain approximately $248,387 in the first year alone, while investing only $68,422 into the area.
>	The plan states, "The annexation area would benefit from the revenues available from the larger tax base associated with Valley Park." This is simply untrue. St Louis County has a much larger tax base.
>	This proposal would not be a "revenue-neutral position for St Louis County" as the plan suggests.
>	The proposed annexation simply amounts to a tax grab by the City of Valley Park.

The proposed boundaries would be an illogical extension of the Valey Park City Limits.

>	No other municipal boundaries extend over the Meramec River.
>	The Annexation area would be physically isolated from Valley Park.
>	While Highway 141 does provide access it is the only point of connection & does not eliminate the natural boundary of the Meramec River.
>	The existence of a bridge (or even multiple bridges) does not prevent the river from being a natural boundary.
>	Highways & rail lines also provide boundaries isolating parts of the annexation area.
>	The proposed annexation will not result in compact city boundaries.

The Plan of Intent contain numerous inconsistencies & erroneous information.

>	Much of the data, such as street maintenance costs, are based on information provided by the former city of Peerless Park. This data is outdated or inaccurate.
>	County estimates of the utility taxes generated are nearly twice as high as those of Valley Park.
>	The plan contains numerous contradictions as to who would provide which services after the proposed annexation. For example, the chart on page 7 & the accompanying text provide conflicting information on who would provide building code enforcement, planning & zoning, & street lighting services.

St Louis County opposes this request & recommends that it be denied

without a vote.

9/9/04 UNICOM ARC $20K INVOICE

UNICOM ARC			UNICOM GROUP	Attitude Research Co.
Integrated Research, Engagement, and			505 South Ewing Ave., St Louis, MO 63103-2901 Office: 314-535-4900 - Fax: 314-535-(9?)013
Communications Solutions		INVOICE

ATTN: Eric Martin City of Valley Park 300 Benton Valley Park, MO 63088	[ck # 22142 Pd. 9/22/04]		INVOICE NO. 090_ DATE: Sept 9, 2004

JOB 0148-001 Public Relations	[Fed#430952373]
	Professional Svcs Consulting Fee		$20,000.00
	Please Remit		$20,000.00
	[01-1000-6143]
		Client Copy

MM LETTER

Notes: As of 4/28/05 I have had no response but noticed on EM's 2/28/05 city bill: Call from Patti on request from Morris & Valley Days.

2/23/05 To: Ms Patricia Laufer, City of Valley Park, 320 Benton, Valley Park, MO 63088

Dear Ms Laufer: Enclosed is a copy of Unicom Arc's Invoice to Eric Martin's attention, dated 9/9/04 for

$20,000.00. I believe that the invoice is solely for preparing the City of Valley Park's presentation at the St Louis County Boundary Commission's 9/20/04 Public Hearing re the City of Valley Park's Plan of Intent to annex a portion of the former City of Peerless Park.

If that is correct, I would appreciate it if you would simply but precisely note the above bold text on the invoice, clarify the illegible invoice & job numbers, clarify whether it was paid in full or what amount was paid, sign it & return a copy to me ASAP.

Thank you, ((so signed)), Ms Maureen Morris, Property Rights Activist, ((address & phone)), Enclosure

INFO RE UNICOM

3 Listings per the MO Secretary of State website on 1/13/05:

Name	UNICOM ARC, INC	UNICOM	THE UNICOM GROUP, INC
Name Type	Legal	Legal	Legal
Name	--------	--------	UNION COMMUNICATIONS CORP.
Name Type	--------	--------	Prev Legal
Biz Entity Type	General Biz-Domestic-Info	General Biz-Domestic-Info	General Biz-Domestic-Info
Charter #	00482249	X00072158	00142066
Status	Good Standing	Active	Good Standing
Entity Creation Date	4/11/2000	5/28/1970	5/25/1970
State of Biz	MO	MO	MO
Expiration Date	Perpetual	8/28/2009	Perpetual
Last Ann Report Filed	4/10/2004	-------	3/25/2004
Annual Report Month	Jan	-------	Jan
Owner	---------	EDWARD M FINKELSTEIN	---------
Address	---------	869 Oakbrook Lane St Louis, MO 63132	---------
Registered Agent	EDWARD M FINKELSTEIN	---------	EDWARD FINKELSTEIN
Office Address	505 South Ewing St Louis, MO 63103	---------	505 South Ewing St Louis, MO 63103