Great Moments In Free-Market Theory at the St. Louis Board of Aldermen

Economy | March 21, 2008

By David Stokes | Read Time 1 minute

This category may well be as small as an Airplane-style leaflet, but we had an example last week with the defeat of the proposed Segway ordinance by the City Board of Aldermen’s Parks Committee. The West End Word has the story here and here. Alderman Kacie Starr Triplett lays it out very nicely:

"Alderman Krewson’s bill is extremely protectionist, and that’s not a good precedent to set in the city," said Sixth Ward Alderman Kacie Starr Triplett.

Unfortunately, I think the precedent for protectionism in the city is well established in the code, but that’s not Alderman Triplett’s fault. If this statement and the defeat of the Segway bill are an indication of the views of Alderman Triplett and other young members of the board, politics in the City of St. Louis may well have a very bright future.

About the Author

David Stokes

David Stokes is a St. Louis native and a graduate of Saint Louis University High School and Fairfield (Conn.) University. He spent six years as a political aide at the St. Louis County Council before joining the Show-Me Institute in 2007. Stokes was a policy analyst at the Show-Me Institute from 2007 to 2016. From 2016 through 2020 he was Executive Director of Great Rivers Habitat Alliance, where he led efforts to oppose harmful floodplain developments done with abusive tax subsidies. Stokes rejoined the Institute in early 2021 as the Director of Municipal Policy. He is a past president of the University City Library Board. He served on the St. Louis County 2010 Council Redistricting Commission and was the 2012 representative to the Electoral College from Missouri’s First Congressional District. He lives in University City with his wife and their three children.

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