St. Louis Museum District and the Suburbs
St. Louis has a fabulous set of museums parks and public institutions. They include the zoo, history museum, planetarium, art museum, and botanical gardens. Most of these attractions are world class and they are free. For some reason the Botanical Gardens charge admission. They are paid for from property taxes on St. Louis City and county residents.
The rub in the whole thing is that people outside the city and county pay nothing in taxes and get to visit for free. When this board was originally established, there was not much population outside the city and county, and not many visitors from around the country and world. Now there is a need for additional funding.
I would recommend that the remainder of the region either pay through taxes or pay admission fees. This is only fair.
Written by Paul Dribin
The St Louis Contrarian 