Jefferson National Expansion Administrative History

"A Gift or a Desecration?"

Although the park was praised for its handling of the VP Fair in a 1982 operations evaluation by the Midwest Regional Office, it was noted that within the park staff there was "a definite dichotomy or cleavage regarding the VP Fair. There are significant numbers of personnel who oppose this type of activity on either philosophical grounds or because of the impact that the activity has on operations and operating problems." It was suggested that park management solicit a grassroots staff input and response regarding the 1982 VP Fair. [21]

The orderly, carefully planned and managed fairs of the late 1980s and early 1990s give little indication of the troubled early years of the VP Fair event. A closer look at one of the earlier fairs, that of 1982, stands as a good indication of some of the massive problems presented by such a large event, and of the destructive impact of the early fairs to the resource, which disturbed the staff of the memorial as well as the general public.

The 1982 VP Fair was fraught with problems from the start. It was only the second year of the fair, and the first time that it had been conducted as a large-scale event. The fair was extended from the grounds of the Gateway Arch to the Old Courthouse, where cultural organizations set up exhibits. Attractions were located at Laclede's Landing, north of the park grounds, and beyond, to a field where athletic events were staged.

"We hope we will be able to spread the people out," said the fair's administrator, Charles H. Wallace. "With the number of events we'll have going on, we hope people will feel they can wander around the grounds and not have to park themselves just in front of the main stage like they did last year." There were eight satellite stages to help discourage visitors from clumping in one area. The 1982 VP Fair had an operating budget of $3 million. [22]

Enormous crowds at the 1982 VP Fair brought their own liquor and waded illegally in the park's reflecting ponds. Photo courtesy John Weddle.

William E. Maritz of the VP Fair Foundation Inc., quipped in February, "We have decided that there will be no rain. . . . Therefore, there will be no need for contingency plans in the event of rain." [23] However, rain fell intermittently throughout the event, and combined with another weather problem, extreme heat, to afflict several fairgoers with heat exhaustion.

Immediately after the fair, which drew an estimated 3.75 million people, hundreds of workers from the National Cleaning Company began fanning out over the grounds, picking up trash. City fathers were pleased by the huge turnout, [24] but the grounds were a mess, which upset JEFF Facility Manager Bob Kelly. Tom Adams, Vice President of National Cleaning, was quoted as saying that "the place is going to look like it used to." Bob Kelly felt otherwise, and told the newspaper that it would take at least a year for the site to return to normal. "And there is some damage that may not show up for several years. . . . I saw the lights shaking, day after day, in the visitors center under the Arch. It wasn't built to take that kind of pressure. I don't know what the long-range result will be." In 1981, the VP Fair Foundation was charged only $18,000 for repairs, with the Park Service performing two-thirds of the work themselves. Although the VP officials pledged to return the park to "the way it was," concerns among members of the park staff ran deep.

All the goldfish in the reflecting ponds on the grounds were killed over the weekend of the fair. The grounds were trampled to the point of killing all the vegetation over large areas. Bob Kelly continued, "The main thing is that they are trying to make a fairgrounds out of a place designed as a people park. . . . Sure, some of the parks in Washington are used that way, but they have access roads on either side and they were designed for that sort of pressure.

"There is only one service road for trucks in the whole Jefferson National Expansion Memorial. And what we have seen is 40-foot over-the-road semis being driven over what are sidewalks, pedestrian passageways. We told the VP people not to bring in these big trucks, but they didn't listen." Over 50 of the new Rosehill Ash trees were severely damaged by the big trucks, and deep ruts edged many of the walks. A pool of mud marked the area in front of the main stage. "The area is very delicately graded, sort of corrugated with drainage tile under the lower areas. That is going to have to be completely regraded, and it is going to be a lot harder than it was in the beginning because there is an irrigation system 14 inches underground," said Kelly. [25]

Executive Director Charles Wallace of the VP Fair Foundation responded by hiring a consulting engineer to assist the Park Service in restoring the grounds. Plans were made to further spread out activities for the 1983 fair, even to the extent of considering nearby Busch Stadium for some of the more popular music events. "Take the Elton John concert," Wallace said. "I'm not a bit sorry we did it. We had to experiment with things like that. But the people who came to see Elton John brought their own food and beverages, kept other people away and created a big mess." [26]

JEFF Superintendent Jerry Schober expressed doubts about the future of the fair on the Gateway Arch grounds. "I don't think by any fashion could this be an annual event," he told the media. Schober suggested shortening the event, or scattering the activities throughout the city and county to take the burden off the park. Concerns were voiced especially over the national character of the site; that the event was fine for St. Louisans, but that other Americans who came to see the site a few weeks after the event would view an eyesore, not a national park. [27]

The destruction to the grounds was not the only concern. Fights broke out in scattered places on the grounds, and two people were killed in a shooting incident near the wharfside McDonald's restaurant east of the park. [28]

St. Louis citizens suggested, in letters to the editors of the local newspapers and to Superintendent Schober, that the venue of the VP Fair be switched to St. Louis' enormous Forest Park. Especially galling to senior citizens was the lack of shade trees on the Arch grounds in the early 1980s. One letter noted that "people hoisted makeshift tents" on the grounds. [29]

"The reflecting pools were not meant to be used as swimming pools."

"A beautiful green lawn is a quagmire of mud, trees are dead, an expensive irrigation system is ruined — so the VP Fair can rival Mardi Gras. Is all of this damage to a national park acceptable because the VP Fair Committee is willing to pay for it? Do we allow our children to vandalize or destroy property as long as their parents are willing to pay for it? What a waste of time and money — and what a horrible lesson in values!"

"Is the death of two young men and the need for police to remove a bridge walker success? Would the fair have been a lesser success had four died and the bridge walker drowned?" [30]

"It seems totally inconsistent to me to spend literally years of work landscaping the Arch grounds and then destroy it in three days!" [31]

"Realistically it would not be to St. Louis' advantage to use the Arch area for an annual binge at the expense of ruining it as a tourist attraction for the rest of the year." [32]

The Arch grounds, 1982 VP Fair. NPS photo.

Perhaps the most effective letter came from a woman who worked as a volunteer on the grounds:

There are things disturbing to my soul. One is a question of whether creating the largest 4th of July celebration in the nation was a gift or a desecration. For three days the VP organization gave St. Louisans what they wanted; but they were all so young or young at heart. Did they know what was good for them?

I was helping a church that was on the brink of financial disaster that was given an opportunity to earn a 15 percent commission selling VP Beer. The second day I sold beer all day. The crowd grew until it was a sea of humanity, flowing past not knowing where it was going or why.

Millions came to see Bob Hope. They saw him but they didn't laugh. They were preoccupied with themselves and their beer. By nightfall I was terrified to leave the sanctuary of our booth; so I stayed until the people were gone. I walked out over a sea of trash at midnight.

On the third day I had to go back. I couldn't leave my friends alone with Elton John and the heat. It was a rare opportunity to have a cold beer concession in Hell and live to tell about it. It was beyond description: The trash, the heat, the mud, the broken glass, the broken trees, the constant press of exhausted humans.

After Elton John the crowd dissipated and we could see the desecration of our national park. [33]

Arch grounds, 1982 VP Fair. NPS photo.

The overall impression on the part of the VP Fair's backers, however, was one of success. The fair made a profit of $150,000, even after reimbursing the Park Service with $120,000 for damage to the grounds. It was felt that the fair was experiencing growing pains, but that problems could be brought under control with some adjustments. Committee members even began to look toward 2004, and a repeat of the 1904 Louisiana Purchase Exposition, to be held in Forest Park, site of the original fair. The annual VP Fairs could serve as "test runs" for a world's fair. [34]

After the passage of years and some distance from the 1982 Fair, especially considering the subsequent success of fairs on the park grounds, it is difficult to assess the tough management decision which faced Superintendent Schober in the latter part of 1982.

Aftermath of the 1982 VP Fair; foot of the Gateway Arch. NPS photo, Midwest Regional Office.

Although he decided to issue another two-year special use permit to the VP Fair Foundation, he forbade the use of trucks on the grounds, and requested that alternatives be considered to the set-up of the main stage directly under the Gateway Arch. He also forced the arts and crafts booths off the grounds and onto the city streets on three sides of the memorial. Busch Stadium was used for the big-name music acts in 1983. Security was beefed up, to prevent the violent incidents of the year before. A better system of trash storage, pickup and recycling was worked out, to handle the huge amounts of refuse; more than sixty tons of bottles, cans, napkins, popped balloons and other trash were recovered from the site in 1982. [35]

In 1983, Superintendent Schober said, "We want the park this year to be a backdrop for the fair, not the postage stamp everybody has to stand on." VP President Charles Wallace said, "We want to get back to 1.5 million [people]. We want to spread the fair out, and on the Arch grounds themselves have more umbrella tables and picnic tables for families to sit down and relax." [36] The evolution of the fair from a Woodstock-type rock concert to a family educational outing had begun.

The Importance of the VP Fair

The VP Fair has helped to promote commercial development and investment throughout metropolitan St. Louis, estimated at $2 billion between 1981 and 1990. During that same decade, the fair generated more than $2 million for 93 non-profit organizations, which averaged $220,000 per year raised at food and beverage booths run by local charities. The fair generated worldwide publicity for St. Louis which one source estimated conservatively at $5 million per year, focusing attention on the city as a travel destination and healthy economic center. A study released in June 1990 claimed that the VP Fair generated a regional economic impact of about $26 million annually. This included money spent for hotels, restaurants, parking, entertainment, fairgrounds activities and taxes. The VP Fair became the big annual event for the St. Louis community, an integral part of life in the city. [37]

Originally, the VP Fair Foundation donated a portion of the profit from each year's fair to the community, in the form of a gift to be enjoyed by all. The first gift, a result of the 1981 fair, was the lighting for the historic Eads Bridge. Donations also created the Mississippi River Overlook (1982) and the mile-long Riverfront Promenade, constructed between 1983 and 1985, and co-sponsored by the City of St. Louis. The value of VP Fair donations to the city and people of St. Louis totaled more than $1 million during the early 1980s. [38]

Hosting the fair was not without its problems, however. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the VP Fair Foundation fell into debt by as much as $800,000, which curtailed its benevolent activities and gifts to the city. Because of financial difficulties, the fair was sometimes slow to fulfil its obligation to restore the grounds to their pre-fair appearance. In one instance (1987), the committee reneged on its obligation in this regard altogether. The VP Fair Foundation remained hopeful that profits from fairs which were successful from the standpoint of attendance and good weather would reduce their deficit. By 1990, the VP Fair Foundation's debt reached an apogee of $875,000. By 1992, the debt was reduced to $172,510. [39]

Crowd watching fireworks in the evening, with the Old Courthouse and the St. Louis skyline in the background. NPS photo.