BRENTWOOD > City gets overview of planned state audit — An overflow crowd turned out for a special meeting Tuesday meeting of the Brentwood Board of Aldermen, where an overview of a pending state audit of the city was discussed.

Chris Vetter, senior auditor with the state of Missouri, said the audit would take up to six months to complete, including up to four months of field work. The cost to the city would be $50,000 to $70,000, he said.

More than 15 people spoke at the meeting. One was Barry Williams, who has lived in Brentwood since 1960 and was involved with the initiative petition drive that called for the audit.

Williams said gathering signatures for the petition drive was a challenge, not because residents didn't want to sign, but because they wanted to bend his ear about issues facing the city. "People really wanted to vent," he said.

In recent months, Brentwood has been in the news for its charitable giving, the resignation of a city administrator and his later admission to embezzling $30,000, and the payment of unwarranted overtime compensation to firefighters. (Special to the Post-Dispatch)

ST. LOUIS > Fat Tuesday parade moves to Washington Avenue — The Light Up the Night Fat Tuesday Parade will move yet again, this time to Washington Avenue. Scheduled for 7 p.m. Feb. 21, the route will start at Broadway and Washington Avenue and travel west to 14th Street. Organizers hope the Washington Avenue route, which travels past several restaurants and bars, will attract more spectators.

"It's always been a challenge for the Fat Tuesday to find its audience, partly because it's the region's only nighttime parade and partly because it's February," said Mack Bradley, spokesman of Mardi Gras organizer Mardi Gras Inc. "Washington Avenue was recently recognized as one of the greatest streets in the world and, in the evening, it's really beautiful. Why wouldn't you want a parade there?"

During its seven years downtown, the Fat Tuesday Parade has taken a variety of routes, most recently traveling south on Broadway. Bradley hopes this is the last route change for the event. St. Louis officials and Washington Avenue property owners have signed off on the new course.

For a complete schedule of Mardi Gras events, visit mardigrasinc.com. (Diane Toroian Keaggy)

ST. LOUIS > 44 dogs, 1 cat seized from breeder — Forty-four dogs and a cat were seized Tuesday from an unlicensed breeder southwest of Springfield, Mo., the Missouri Humane Society said today.

The 44 pugs, chihuahuas, pit bulls, Shih-Tzu mixes and other breeds as well as one cat were taken from a trailer and outbuilding on the property of a breeder near Crane, Mo., about 250 miles southwest of St. Louis, the Humane Society said. The animals were living in unsanitary conditions, some without access to water.

The animals were being brought to the Humane Society's shelter in St. Louis. The group worked with the state's Department of Agriculture and the Stone County Sheriff's Department to get a warrant to remove the dogs and cats from the property.

The breeder initially agreed to voluntarily surrender the animals but changed her mind Monday night, the Humane Society said. A hearing is set for later this month to determine whether the group will keep the animals and put them up for adoption.

It was not clear Tuesday if the breeder could face fines or criminal charges. (Joel Currier)

ROCK HILL > Group urges moving historic buildings to park — A group is suggesting that a historic Rock Hill church and a historic house the city owns be moved to Rock Hill Park.

U-Gas now owns the church and the land where it stands. The company plans to raze the building to construct a gas station this spring. U-Gas has offered to give the church to the city if the city moves it away. The company had earlier agreed to move the Fairfax House, the other historic building on the site, to the rear of the tract.

Chris Musial, who heads up Citizens to Save the Rock Hill Church, told the Board of Aldermen on Tuesday that his group considered three sites and decided to recommend Rock Hill Park as a permanent home for both the church and the Fairfax House.

As the demolition day nears for the church, residents have rallied and urged officials to save the church, built in the 1800s by slave labor. Officials said they are sympathetic but lack funds to move the church. Mayor Daniel DiPlacido has said if the church is to be saved, it has to be done through a community effort. The city said it would take ownership of the building if a site was found for it, the funds to move it secured and a plan to cover maintenance costs were in place.

Musial said his group is trying to raise funds and is working on a plan to cover maintenance costs. He said the group, which has raised about $1,200 so far, is hoping to attract some major donors but first needs a business plan and a show of community support. His group is working on the plan, and early donations will prove there is community support to save the church.

Alderman Philip Scherry said in an interview after the meeting that it was too early to say if he would support the suggestion to move the buildings to Rock Hill Park. "It's a new idea," he said. "I'm still digesting it." (Special to the Post-Dispatch)

ST. LOUIS > Theater is being demolished — Demolition has begun on the Avalon Theater, a long-shuttered cinema on South Kingshighway.

On Tuesday, heavy equipment was at the site and a portion of the building had been torn down. City officials and Greg Tsevis, owner of the property at 4225 South Kingshighway, could not be reached for comment.

The theater was closed in January 1999 after several decades of screenings and quickly became dilapidated. It was condemned in 2006. City officials built a barricade on the sidewalk in front of the building to keep people away.

The 8,500-square-foot building, on a 25,000-square-foot lot, was listed for several years at nearly $1 million. That was drastically cut last year to $249,900. (Marlon A. Walker)