ST. LOUIS COUNTY (KMOX) - Mark Mantovani says it would be "appropriate" for there to be an investigation into the deal that placed St. Louis County employees at Northwest Plaza.
Speaking on the Charlie Brennan Show, the Democrat hoping to unseat County Executive Steve Stenger says for one thing, the terms of the lease are "questionable."
“For example, a 20-year lease. Who signs a 20-year lease? I was a CEO. If somebody asked me to sign a 10-year lease, I would have thrown them out of my office,” he says.
The County Council this week called for the FBI and the Missouri Attorney General to investigate the Northwest Plaza deal, and the record-breaking contribution made to Stenger by the project's developer.
Mantovani says he would have backed the effort to land an MLS team in St. Louis, and blames Stenger’s lack of support for the deal falling through.
“If we persist in these parochial divisions between city and county, we will continue to be passed by those communities who have gotten their act together - places like Nashville, which, by the way, now will have our MLS franchise,” he says.
Mantovani is trailing Stenger in polls for the August primary. In the meantime, Mantovani is swearing off campaign contributions from anyone doing business with the county should he become county executive.