By Antonio D. French
Filed Saturday, February 4 at 1:22 PM
Richard King, CEO of the Annie Malone Center, and Aaron Phillips, the chairman of the organization's board of directors, might take some advice from the organizers of Soulard's Mardi Gras.
In an article by Diane Toroian Keaggy in yesterday's Post, Mardi Gras planners say that they get complaints every year from some residents of the southside neighborhood that is home to the large annual event;
Organizers concede Mardi Gras needs room to grow but insist that the event should stay rooted in Soulard. Mardi Gras is the lifeblood of the neighborhood's three dozen bars and restaurants, and it generates millions for the St. Louis economy.
"It is called Soulard Mardi Gras after all," Mardi Gras Inc. spokesman Mack Bradley said. "This is St. Louis' French Quarter."
At a meeting with representatives of the effort to keep the Annie Malone parade in north St. Louis, Richard King, who has been on the job less than eight months, said that the parade was growing too big for Natural Bridge Avenue. He said that residents often called the organization to complain of trash and blocked streets on the day of and following the event.
When asked how the community and its elected officials could help with the logistical challenges facing the organization -- such as necessary route adjustments, police presence, trash pick-up, etc. -- King refused attempts to dialogue about reversing the decision.
Elected officials, including Ald. Bennice Jones King (21st Ward), Ald. Freeman Bosley, Sr. (3rd Ward), and 1st Ward Committeeman Talib El-Amin (who was at the meeting) have expressed their disappointment with the lack of dialogue. Bosley said on the floor of Friday's meeting of the St. Louis Board of Aldermen that his calls to the organization have not even been returned.
Every large event has logistical headaches. Both the May Day parade and Mardi Gras see more than 100,000 people (nearly a third of the City's entire population) converge on a neighborhood. With that comes similar problems and complaints.
But Mr. Phillips said he was "offended" by any comparisions between the logistical constraints of the May Day parade and those encountered by Mardi Gras. "I resent the fact that you compare the Annie Malone parade to the Mardi Gras. That's a raucous parade," he said.
He also declined to dialogue about changing the parades route while keeping it in north St. Louis.
It seems clear now why Mr. Phillips did not wish to compare the Annie Malone parade to Mardi Gras -- at least when it comes to the level of commitment to the communities that have helped make the two events what they are.
You can contact Mr. King at (314) 531-0120 and Mr. Phillips at (314) 709-1723
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