Candidates Contend for Ward 6 City Council Seat

With City Councilman running for mayor, Ward 6 will gain a new face and representative on the council after April 5, and there are three candidates vying for the spot. 

On , Ward 6 constituents will choose between Pat Stinnett, Ben Eye and Steve Purgahn for their next representative. Each of the candidates hopes their unique qualifications will give them the edge on election day.

Previously, the ward had four candidates, Gerard Henke was the fourth person who had filed for the position. However, during the Feb. 14 City Council meeting, Ward 4 City Councilman and council president Keith English read a letter from Henke stating that he had resigned from the race due to a new promotion at work. 

We're giving constituents an opportunity here to learn more about each candidate and what they hope to bring to the Ward 6 council spot. 

Pat Stinnett

Stinnett retired from a career of working for AT&T two years ago, where he managed more than 200 employees across three states. The 63-year-old Kentucky native and Vietnam veteran has lived in Florissant since 1978. Since then, he has presided over the , and he is currently a block captain for the and a member of the Florissant Emergency Management Commission.

Stinnett is campaigning on a platform of financial responsibility.

"I think when you talk about Ward 6, you can almost start at the upper echelons of the federal level," Stinnett said. "People want fiscal conservatism. People want simple, efficient government."

Having handled customer complaints while at AT&T, Stinnett said he would be skilled at receiving and acting on feedback or suggestions from people in the ward.

Even before election season kicked in, Stinnett found himself fielding complaints and concerns from neighbors about the nursing home development on Parker Road.

Stinnett said if he was elected, he plans to have established office hours in a city hall conference room once or twice a week where consitutents can come and voice concerns. 

Ben Eye

At age 29, Eye is the youngest of the three candidates, but the  graduate has his fair share of knowledge about how city government operates. He has 13 years of combined public work experience, teaching technology at Ferguson Middle School and helping to manage the city's aquatics program.

"I got a good view from the inside of how things run and where we could shore some things up," Eye said. "I know where money could be better used."

For example, Eye knows of a some public positions that could be merged into one.

"We have places where we could reorganize departments, and who people report to, and that would save us some money," Eye said. "We spend money on memos and hard copies, and we need to look at going green."

One of Eye's goals would be to help attract more young families back to Florissant with appealing new businesses, balancing a mixture of chain businesses and small, local businesses.

"We need to be very conscious of what kind of businesses we attract," Eye said. "We don’t want to just have a place that’s great for the younger generation. We also need a place that’s equipped for seniors."

Steve Purgahn

Purgahn, 46, has been a licensed certified public accountant since 1988. Having established a practice in Old Town Florissant in 2004, he has also served on the finance committee for Sacred Heart parish for more than 20 years.

Filling vacant buildings among St. Francois remains a top issue for Purgahn among issues facing the ward. 

"Attracting the right mix of businesses to help establish it as our 'main street' is a related issue," Purgahn wrote in an e-mail. "I would like to see the City consider an ordinance variance for the Bank of America building allowing them, if they are interested, to sell the two parking lots across from City Hall. These could be used for additional development along St Francois Street."

Purgahn also recognizes the importance of improving the school district, stabilizing housing prices and increasing governmental accountability.

"I think the operations of the City need to be streamlined and budgets scrutinized at the department level," he wrote. "The days of spend it or lose it need to be eliminated from the City's operations."

Purgahn believes the skills developed through his background in managing a business -- specifically in the aspects of budgeting, hiring and marketing -- will translate to public office.

An Incumbent's Word on the Issues

As the outgoing Ward 6 Councilman, Podleski offered his own thoughts on improvements to be made in Florissant's local government. One of the major problems, he said, is cooperation between the mayor and council members.

"It's all about communication, and we don’t have it right now," Podleski said. "It's not just Ward 6, it’s the whole city. (Council members) have not been kept in the loop about a lot of stuff."

One example is the Parker Road nursing home development. Although the facility is technically on Ward 8, the western edge of the property abuts Ward 6.

"There wasn’t any up front planning or talking to the neighbors," Podleski said. "The property was sold, and the pitch was in to build the nursing home. Now all these people are having to deal with a three-story building built right next to their properties, and it's going to blot out the sun."

Increased traffic along Parker Road, which runs through Ward 6, could become a problem in the future, Podleski added.

"If you want to talk about cooperation, cooperation’s a two-way street," Podleski said. "If you get the council person to buy into (a project), you have a little more clout."