We all thought 2021 would be less stressful than 2020. Spoiler alert: It was not.
Here are five stories I will not forget. I hope they helped readers understand the crazy, constantly-changing pandemic world we're living in.
1. Trash-related complaints to St. Louis peaked in 2020, after the city struggled for years to stay on top of the mess with limited staffing and equipment. Of course, the COVID-19 pandemic added a new wrinkle. Read the story.
2. When vaccinations became available, we heard reports of people from St. Louis driving hours to get a shot. Reporter Jack Suntrup and I tracked down and analyzed vaccine distribution in Missouri, and were able to explain why some rural clinics were flush with doses, while the St. Louis metro area didn't have enough. Read the story.
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3. The 2020 Census data came out. Telling the story of how our population has changed in 10 years was a joy to report and write.ÌýRead the story.Ìý
4. Courts reporter Joel Currier and I obtained and analyzed several years of St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kimberly M. Gardner's staff rosters showing a marked decline in the number of staff attorneys and their years of experience in the office.ÌýRead the story.Ìý
5. After nearly a year of a federal eviction moratorium, landlords and property managers — many times, fed up with the rental aid process — began putting people out again. Data from local sheriff offices show evictions have begun to rise.ÌýRead the story.
In this Series
News staffers’ most memorable St. Louis area stories of 2021
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Joel Currier's memorable stories from 2021: NFL/Rams settlement, gun-waving lawyers and dropped murder cases
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Michele Munz’s memorable stories from 2021: The fight against COVID and the price paid by health care workers
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Mark Schlinkmann's memorable stories from 2021: A new voting process and historic redistricting
- 19 updates