Developer Paul McKee knows how to build things – his planned community, WingHaven, is proof of that. But those homes and office buildings went up on vacant farmland in a suburban hot spot – a much different setting than the two square miles of north St. Louis he plans to rebuild. As St. Louis Public Radio’s Rachel Lippmann reports, even McKee supporters admit he’ll face major challenges translating his experience from the suburbs to the city.

The language of urban development can be kind of confusing but when you get right down to it, it's not so hard to grasp. Developer Paul McKee wants to spend $8 billion to rebuild part of north St. Louis. A key part of his plan relies on something called "Tax Increment Financing," commonly referred to as TIF.

In 1972 the first of the buildings was imploded. They were all brought down by 1976 and much of the site is now covered by weeds and trees. Developer Paul McKee has said he wants to building a “community hub” on the former site, including housing, entertainment, and retail.

Developer Paul McKee wants to spend $8 billion to revitalize two square miles of north St. Louis near downtown. He's already spent millions buying up property. Still, he controls just a fraction of the land he needs, and he wants the city to grant him the right to redevelop the rest. That has some people who live and work in the area concerned about their future, and the possibility of eminent domain.