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The Kings of Kingshighway

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At the center of the historic neighborhood are a beautiful, multitiered fountain and an eleven-foot bronze statue of Martin Luther King Jr. Most of the huge homes surrounding the park are well-kept, but the surrounding area, like much of north St. Louis, is a hodgepodge of multi- and single-family homes that are either in need of repair or boarded up.

"The Central West End is two minutes from here. But it's twenty years away, from a psychological point of view," Steve says.

Missouri State Senator Patrick Dougherty is standing on a box, pounding his fist on the bar at King Louie's restaurant on Chouteau. "We've got a chance this year to take back the senate!" he shouts. "That's why you're here. That's why you are supporting the Democratic Party!"

Victory cries ring out and Steve Roberts smiles. Even though he and Mike no longer serve in public office, they are still players because of their financial contributions to local, state and national campaigns. This February happy hour, devoted to raising funds for state Democratic senate candidates, is being partially financed by the Robertses.

In 1999 Mike formed the Black PAC, a political action committee devoted to the "silver rights movement," which he says will create economic opportunities for African Americans. "We found there was a dearth of leadership, particularly in the African-American community, because many who had been there for many years were retiring or passing away, and we needed to encourage bright, committed, honest, credible people to run for office, not just folks who are part of a political organization," Steve explains.

The Robertses and the Black PAC have raised thousands for Mayor Slay, Governor Bob Holden, Senator John Kerry and Al Sharpton, plus scores of candidates for state, local and federal office. Mike was onstage with Kerry as he wowed voters at Forest Park Community College before Missouri's February 3 Democratic primary. He also hosted a fundraiser at his home for Sharpton because he believes the fringe candidate keeps civil-rights and economic-equality issues on the radar.

Not all of the candidates the Roberts brothers support are as popular as Sharpton in the black community. Mayor Slay has been lambasted for his efforts to reform St. Louis public schools by helping to elect a slate of four candidates to take over the school board's majority.

"If you have a school system that is discouraging home ownership, business relocation to the community, or impacting the quality of the future workforce, then what does the mayor of the city do?" Steve counters. "The mayor took a very bold step to say we've got a significant problem here and we've got to address it."

The new board's decision to close sixteen schools (twelve of which were in north St. Louis), to lay off more than 1,000 employees and to outsource scores of other menial jobs to private firms has triggered a tidal wave of resentment in the black community. Now the board is trying to decide whether to close more schools and eliminate gifted programs or force across-the-board pay cuts, which would almost certainly lead to a strike by the Local 420 teachers' union.

Jamilah Nasheed, co-chair of the activist group Concerned Citizens Coalition, questions how the Roberts brothers will lure new residents to the city when so much turmoil surrounds the school board's decisions. "When people move into a neighborhood, the first thing they look at is the schools," she says. "If the Robertses want people to move into the neighborhood, they need to make the schools better." The board's actions so far have done the opposite, she claims.

Nasheed lays the blame at the feet of the Black Leadership Roundtable, a group of successful African Americans, including Steve Roberts, who worked with the mayor's office and other business executives to spur the school-board takeover. "The Black Leadership Roundtable are puppets and they move in the interest of the powers that be," she asserts. "In the 1950s and 1960s, individuals of their caliber would have come out to fight this."

Civil-rights activist Percy Green applauds the Roberts brothers for their decision to invest in north St. Louis neighborhoods but cautions that development for middle- and upper-income families should not come at the expense of low-income blacks living in those neighborhoods now.

"We want to see young families of all ethnicities and religions," Steve responds. "We want to see seniors in the area get help preserving their properties."

"We've put our money, our experience, our expertise, our life into this neighborhood," his brother Mike picks up. "We have to be a part of this renaissance of inner-city hard-core areas. If we don't do it, then who will?"

Correction published 3/31/04: In the original version of this story, we erroneously attributed the vacant Enright School to architect William B. Ittner. According to Carolyn Toft, executive director of the Landmarks Association, the Enright School was originally Washington University's Smith Academy and Manual Training School, and was built in 1905 for $275,000 from plans by the St. Louis firm of Mauran, Russell & Garden. The above version reflects this correction.

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