St Louis is doing ok? I live near there and I don't think so. The local economy has been hit hard with loss of major industries such as steel, auto industry, and several corporate buyouts by foreign corps. The aerospace industry used to be major here, but now it's a shell. Same with brewing. Walmart is now the largest employer in the region.

St Louis has lost over half its population since the 60s. Has the highest crime rate in US (more than East St Louis, IL now). I have been to Detroit, and STL started looking like Detroit decades ago.