News Nearby: Olivette City Leaders Reject Developer Criticism

Olivette Mayor Arthur Merdinian and City Manager Mike McDowell say the city is taking steps to work with developers and update ordinances.

Olivette city officials are brushing off criticism brought on by a pair of developers who told Patch Olivette was "anti-progress" and "stuck in a time warp." Last week, Steve Noles and Bob Elkan vented their frustration over what they contend has been years of effort to develop the corner of Olive Boulevard and Interstate 170. Read: Developer Slams City; Calls Olivette 'Anti-Progress' As Patch previously reported, city officials said the pair have never submitted a formal proposal for the property. In a sit-down interview Monday, Mayor Arthur Merdinian, City Manager Mike McDowell and Carlos Trejo, the city's planning and zoning administrator repeated that contention. The trio also said the city made clear as long as three years ago that …

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News Nearby: Developer Slams Olivette, Calls City 'Anti-Progress'

A Creve Coeur-based developer says he's pulled out of plans to build a gas station and restaurant on Olive at I-170. U City and Olivette are looking to jointly redevelop the I-170/Olive corridor.

Steve Noles says he knows something about dealing with difficult cities on development projects. Noles, the owner of Noles Properties, a Creve Coeur-based firm, has developed shopping centers like the Shoppes at Questover (think La Salsa), Park West Square (home of the new Rothman Mattress outlet), and had a hand in the Walgreens which opened at Olive and Graeser in the spring of 2011. But within the last few months, he's decided he's had enough with the city of Olivette. Noles purchased a parcel of land at the intersection of Olive Boulevard and Interstate 170 from the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT), which together with another parcel there, he and Robert Elkan, a developer with the Westmore Group Realty Group, wanted to …

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