The St. Louis County Council voted Aug. 15 to advance a tax incentive proposal for Boeing’s $1.8 billion expansion project, called “Project Voyager.”

The council took the first steps to advance Boeing’s request for a tax abatement which would stop Boeing from paying $155 million in taxes over 10 years. The proposal is now going through the council’s regular procedure for bills. Final approval may take weeks.

The Boeing expansion in North County would create 500 new jobs over the next several years. The plan includes new buildings in Berkeley and areas of unincorporated North County around St. Louis Lambert International Airport.

The initial approval came from both sides of the aisle, as 1st District Councilwoman Rita Heard Day, D-Bel-Nor; 3rd District Councilman Dennis Hancock, R-Fenton; 5th District Councilwoman Lisa Clancy, D-Maplewood; 6th District Councilman Ernie Trakas, R-Oakville; and 7th District Councilman Mark Harder, R-Ballwin; voting to advance the proposal. Second District Councilwoman Kelli Dunaway, D-Chesterfield, was the only dissenting vote. Council Chairwoman Shalonda Webb, D-4th District, abstained from voting since she is Boeing employee.

Several members of the public have spoken against the tax incentives at prior council meetings and Committee of the Whole meetings, including government watchdog Tom Sullivan, who questioned why the council would advance the tax breaks after recently rejecting legislation that would have frozen property taxes for eligible seniors, under the concern that it would benefit those who didn’t need it;

“One of the arguments against … the tax freeze was that it would also benefit millionaires. Another argument against the senior tax freeze is that it would take money from public schools,” Sullivan said at the July 25 council meeting. “Chapter 100 subsidies do exactly the same thing but not a peep out of anyone.”

At the Aug. 15 meeting, Sullivan said that a lot more information was needed about the project.

“Hardly anyone opposes the Boeing expansion. The only question is if Boeing really needs the estimated $155 million subsidy from St. Louis County. It seems the company does not, or at least it hasn’t made the case that it does,” Sullivan said. “Boeing is no equal when it comes to shaking down governments at all levels.”

An official ground lease and development agreement with Boeing was signed earlier in August ahead of the council’s initial steps toward approval. The agreement allow Boeing to lease and redevelop certain portions of the airport property adjacent to the airfield, about 158 acres called the “Phase 1 Development Area.”