The Gateway

After months of anticipation, St. Louis is officially a Major League Soccer city. But there's still a lot of details to work out before the team takes the pitch in 2022.

Main Street in St. Charles is seeing less crime after incidents in recent years led to a new liquor ordinance. But the drop in crime corresponds with a big drop in business. Bar owners want the city to change the law - again.

Illinois' expansion of gambling across the state means slots and table games can now be played at racetracks. How will this expansion of gaming impact Fairmount Track and the horse racing industry in the Metro East?

A popular bakery in the Metro East marks its 100th year in business this weekend. Kruta's Bakery in Collinsville has become a staple in the region serving traditional Eastern European baked goods.

Filmmaker Jane Gillooly documents her experience as a child growing up in Ferguson and how she realized it was segregated. Her film, 'Where the Pavement Ends', closes the Arch City Defenders Racial Justice Film Series.

Three musicians who combine their classical training in Indian musical styles with Western influences are working on a new project that will blend musical cultures. All three studied with Ustad Imrat Khan, the internationally renowned sitar player who also taught at Washington University and died in November.

Feral hogs are damaging farmland and the Mark Twain National Forest. But attempts to allow hunting in the national forest to control the population are meeting resistance from the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.

There have been more than 400 drug overdoses and at least five drug-related deaths in Missouri state prisons since May 2017, according to internal data from the Department of Corrections. In many cases, inmates have overdosed on controlled substances, including heroin and fentanyl. There are a number of ways drugs can be smuggled into prisons, but institutional corruption appears to play a role. Current and past DOC employees say staff members are bringing contraband into the prisons and selling it to inmates -- often without consequences.

Today marks five years since the death of Michael Brown in Ferguson. St. Louis Public Radio asked dozens of people to reflect on the past five years and to tell us their hopes for the future. The conversations are part of our special project, livingferguson.org.

In this special edition of The Gateway, St. Louis Public Radio brings you an extended interview that profiles Michael Brown Sr. It's part of a larger project that explores what's changed and what hasn't since Michael Brown Jr. was killed five years ago. Find it at livingferguson.org

Five years after a white Ferguson police officer shot and killed Michael Brown, Jr., a black man, artists in the St. Louis region continue to explore the movement that emerged after his death. Some incorporated political concerns into their work for the first time. Others intensified their focus on social justice.

Former National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency leader Robert Cardillo stepped down in February after playing a major role in selecting St. Louis as the site for a new headquarters. On June 1, he started at St. Louis University as a distinguished geospatial fellow, where he will serve as a liaison for the N-G-A, industry leaders and the university.

In the aftermath of Ferguson, the municipal court system came under scrutiny for a variety of unfair practices. Some reforms have been implemented over the last five years, but we examine whether real change has occurred.

Jonathan Tremaine Thomas moved to Ferguson from Indianapolis five years ago to be part of the healing process after the death of Michael Brown. The pastor is planning to reopen the Corner Coffee House to help downtown Ferguson thrive again, which will benefit the entire community.

Two vacant St. Louis County Council seats will be filled in a special election August 6. We review the election, which will decide what party controls the council going forward. Both seats are expected to stay Democratic although one of the races could be competitive.

What has changed in the region politically five years after Ferguson? The past 12 months have showcased big policy gains in St. Louis County government, and some modest advances in Jefferson City.

Science Fiction writers have long warned us about the dangers of modifying organisms. But new technologies are becoming a reality and researchers are trying to figure out how to present gene-editing technology to a skeptical public.

The cannabis industry is predominantly white, and Missouri has said it won’t consider racial equity in its selection process for medical marijuana licenses. A St. Louis minority-owned business is focusing on community impact in its application. REAL Cannabis Co. wants to counteract the negative effects of marijuana in communities of color.

After homes in flood-prone areas have been bought through the FEMA buyout program, the federal agency allows local governments to use the land as long as they don’t build any developments on the properties. Some have been turned into parks and others have been leased very inexpensively to residents who have gardened or allowed people to use them for camping.

St. Louisan Alana Marie is exploring local history and her family’s roots in a film project about the city of Kinloch, where her father grew up. Missouri’s oldest incorporated African-American community now has fewer than 300 residents but was once a vibrant and flourishing place.