Firm News

John S. Meyer, Jr., chair of the Business & Real Estate practice group at law firm Capes Sokol has been elected Chairman of the Board of Loop Media Hub and Member of the Board of The Loop Trolley Company. Both are non-profit corporations devoted to improving the segment of the St. Louis community known as The Loop.

Loop Media Hub’s mission is to oversee installation and operation of a super-high speed fiber optic “Data Rail” under the route of the Loop Trolley now under construction from the St. Louis History Museum in Forest Park along DeBaliviere and Delmar Boulevards to University City City Hall. That area is known as The Delmar Loop because westbound streetcars once turned around there to take passengers to St. Louis.

“I am honored to assume the chairman’s role, and I look forward to working with fellow board members and Loop Media Hub supporters and collaborators, which include Joe Edwards, University City, St. Louis City, Loop Trolley TDD, Delmar Loop Data Rail LLC and David Sandel, who has long advocated for high speed internet service along the trolley route. The combination of a retro trolley and high-speed, publicly accessible internet service will add additional luster to our region’s most diverse and dynamic residential, business, cultural and entertainment district,” said Meyer, a volunteer board member for Loop Media Hub since January 2014.

“High-speed fiber and public Wi-Fi will connect people in and around The Delmar Loop to promote innovation in culture, education, and economic development,” Meyer said.

Gigabit fiber service is 100 times faster than the average Internet link. Installation of the high speed fiber optic “Data Rail” under the Loop Trolley route is expected to begin this summer.

“Thanks to the vision and tenacity of Joe Edwards, the $43 million Loop Trolley project will run along a two-mile electrified route with ten stops linking The Delmar Loop and Forest Park,” Meyer said.

It is funded by federal grants; a one-cent sales tax within the trolley district; tax credits; tax-increment financing; private contributions; and the Great Rivers Greenway organization. The Loop Trolley is expected to open in late 2016 and will be operated by The Loop Trolley Company.

A St. Louis native, Meyer also serves on the boards of Beyond Housing, St. Louis County Library Foundation and has served on the boards of Forsyth School, John Burroughs School, the City Museum, the Grace Hill Presidents’ Council and Facilities Advisory Committee, and Planned Parenthood of the St. Louis Region. He is a member of the National Council and former Chair of the Eliot Society and Annual Giving Campaign for Washington University School of Law, which recently honored Meyer as a Distinguished Alumnus.