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"The Missourian does a lot of great things," remarked Councilman John Rhodes, who led the charge to block the project. "I think they blew this one."
Rhodes referenced three articles that he called "distressing" which ran in the Nov. 11 edition.
The lead article on the front page was a report of a discussion at the Nov. 10 meeting of the city planning and zoning commission where Mayor Dick Stratman told the board that it appeared the project would be canceled because of council opposition. The article included comments from other members of the commission which previously approved a rezoning of the property and a development plan for a 48-unit apartment complex that would have included units for lower income tenants.
The story also reported that Stone Crest residents were called to a meeting the previous Saturday which was attended by Rhodes and state Rep. Brian Nieves. The subdivision is not in Nieves' district.
Stratman told the commission the issue had become a "political football" and predicted a council vote opposing it at Monday's meeting.
A second front page article reported statements by state Sen. John Griesheimer who noted that council members now opposed to the project previously had approved the zoning and development plan. Griesheimer contacted The Missourian to rebut what he called "accusations and falsehoods" being circulated.
Rhodes criticized Griesheimer, who submitted a letter endorsing the project, as "part of the process." He then called Griesheimer a "great citizen" who would not do anything to harm the community.
Both articles were written by Managing Editor Ed Pruneau.
A third article in that issue was a statement issued by Councilman Jeff Mohesky who previously endorsed the project but later changed his position and opposed it.
While council members did approve the R-4 rezoning and development plan, they not informed of the plan, endorsed by Griesheimer, Stratman and Mohesky, for tax credits or subsidized housing until later, Rhodes stated.
Rhodes later read an opinion blog posted on the Internet by Councilman Guy Midkiff who awarded the articles a Pulitzer Prize for "best fiction" that demonstrated "spin control."
In his blog, Midkiff described how local politicians - Griesheimer, Stratman and Mohesky - took on themselves to endorse the project without telling the council or the public and then found themselves "spinning headlong and out of control, destined for custom-fitted tar and feather pits.
"And then, out of nowhere, stuperduck, a.k.a. Captain Missourian, swoops in with a single bound, clutching them tightly to his mighty front page bosom, saving them from a date with the political grim reaper," the blog reads.
Midkiff said the articles failed to carry dissenting opinions.
For the last couple of months, The Missourian reported on the rezoning process and the plan to build "upscale" apartments on the property.
When the plan to seek tax credits to finance the project was disclosed at the Nov. 2 council meeting, The Missourian reported that in a front page article.
In e-mails to council members and the mayor, some residents of Stone Crest mentioned they learned of the proposed subsidized housing project in The Missourian.
