Infrastructure

Highway 109/100

In the view of many, the MODOT Hwy 100 resurfacing project is a spectacular success. Federal & MODOT funds combined to cover most project costs; we paid the leftover fractions. 

•  Hwy 100 west of Hwy 109 was literally among the worst stretches in Missouri, some parts of It hadn't been surfaced in over half a century. 
• Work started AND finished in 2025; City cost-sharing moved the timeline forward two years and helped fund vital safety improvements at a number of intersections. 
• MODOT wouldn't consider stoplights on this arterial highway due to traffic flow.
• J-turns, like roundabouts, "take some getting used to", but well-planned ones are proven to improve safety, traffic flow, and efficiency, and I've found them better looking and more convenient than stoplights.

Other infrastructure 

• We implemented very cost-effective safety enhancements on Old State Road. 
• We converted 100 streetlights along Manchester Road to LED lighting using a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy.

Village Green 

More than any other St. Louis suburb, our green spaces make Wildwood a great place to live. 

• The new Village Green will cost-effectively accommodate City events of all kinds.
• The all-inclusive "Unlimited Play" playground will be a focal point for many local families.

Internet Access 

 Poor-to-nonexistent Internet access was an unacceptable drain on rural folks Quality of Life.

• I began diligent, time-consuming volunteer work on the problem in ~2008. 
• There was strong evidence of bad effects on property values, as buyers looked elsewhere.
• Now, kids can do homework, adults can work from home, and stream video, and so on. 

Unfortunately, there's still more work to be done.

• We have worked with MO State Office of Broadband Development to expand access.
• 400 more Wildwood addresses have been accepted for AT&T fiber installation.
• Our Satellite Internet Rebate Program allows eligible households to receive up to $349 to offset equipment costs for satellite internet service.

City Website and Internet use

• We completed a full redesign of the City website to improve usability and access to critical information, including the creation of a centralized FAQ page.
• Implemented GIS-based Master Asset Tracking software, allowing City staff to track repairs and work orders in real time through the MyGov citizen reporting system.

Erosion and Flooding  

I’ve participated in Wildwood Watershed Erosion Task Force (WETF) since it began.

• Some Ward 6 horses and cars made the national news floating past TV cameras in 2019, but every Ward has flooding and erosion problems. 
• Flooding and erosion in all of our local watersheds is causing property damage, topsoil loss, and danger to livestock, wildlife, and human life. 
• The WETF decided on 3 pilot projects that are now underway.  
• Fixing the problems won’t be cheap, but inaction will cost much more in the end. 
• I’m hopeful that the City can find workable, affordable solutions for all 9 watersheds. 

Residents including myself refuse to sacrifice future quality of life to promote development.

No City Council Member has worked harder to reduce aesthetic and environmental impacts. 

• Increased visual screening of any new construction, in all Wards.
• Enhanced environmental protections, erosion control, and tree preservation standards.

Town Center represents less than 2% of Wildwood area.

• That's where development has always been intended to occur. 
• I've worked to hold the line on development elsewhere.
• Issues of law, fairness, convenience, and City economic health make this harder.   
• Rights of particular property owners often conflict with those of nearby residents.

IN WARD 6, THERE HAS ONLY BEEN ONE SIGNIFICANT DEVELOPMENT SINCE 2020.

• 12 homes (6+ ac./home) were built in a treeless field on the 68-acre "Theiss place".
• Over 40 acres of the original mature forest screens the site on all sides. 
• Great care was taken to "over-engineer" well and septic systems and manage runoff.
• When finished, mandated plantings at the entrance will reduce visual impact to near-zero.  

I currently participate in the 3rd Wildwood Master Plan 10-year Revision Committee.

• I hope to increase but streamline development scrutiny via this Committee and elsewhere.
• I’ve opposed increasing physical, visual, or light pollution, or congestion on rural byways. 

I also participate in the development of the City’s first Historic Preservation Master Plan. 

• A draft was produced in November 2025, with work continuing in 2026.

Veteran Recognition

• The City hosted the second annual Salute to Our Veterans Ceremony in November, with more than 30 veterans in attendance.
• The City continued the Hometown Heroes Program, with banners honoring veterans prominently displayed along Manchester Road.

Sign regulations, including LED signage: I OPPOSE visual and light pollution. Period. 

• I have introduced and strongly supported Night Sky-friendly light reduction regulations.
• I'd be reluctant to relax lighting regulations, but I’m warily open-minded. 
• Some residents support limited use; others oppose an LED signage “approval precedent”. 
• LED signage might have a place IF it's shown to increase safety and reduce light pollution. 

Wildwood Economic Development 

• Wildwood's low population density presents a challenging environment for businesses.
• Economic Development is one of the pillars of our Master Plan. 
• I believe the City should support local businesses and actively promote Town Center.
• Properly managed, such efforts can cost-effectively attract and retain desired businesses.

"Wildwood Luxury Living" in Town Center, Real Estate Tax relief

• This project is not in our Ward. Town Center, 2% of City area, is planned for such projects.
• Both Ward CM's supported the project, as did our Economic Development Committee. 
• I was extremely reluctant to approve but after diligent homework, the decision made sense.
• Rockwood Superintendent Dr. Cain was generally supportive, despite budget concerns if this becomes the norm. The other 9 affected Tax Districts took no position. 
• There are complex legal reasons that the zoning couldn't be changed to enhance revenue from bare ground. Without this development, RE taxes would remain a few bucks a year.
• Given PILOT funds, 50% RE Tax rate after 5 years and full rate after 10, this projects' tax revenues will be greater than the 3-30 estimated new students that might live there. 
• All such taxes support County services & schools; they provide no revenue to Wildwood.
• Importantly to Ward 6 residents, it's in Dierbergs Plaza - nowhere near any rural area.

Budget Priorities 

• We're among the very few STLCO cities with NO local property tax OR sales tax. 
  •  Sales tax rates in surrounding communities range from 0.5% to 3% higher than ours. 
• Nevertheless, our City has always enacted balanced budgets during my tenure. 
• City revenues are rapidly declining due to reduced utility tax and "Pool Tax" revenues.
• Many City projects in prior years drew on our reserves, but there have been no withdrawals from our very large reserves during my Council Service.
• In theory, I would support well justified one-time reserve expenditures to benefit our City.  

St. Louis Community College 

• The new 142,000 square foot Health Sciences and Technology Center opened for classes this fall and is expected to significantly increase enrollment by up to 800 students.

Government Finance Officers Association awards to Wildwood:

• 2024 Distinguished Budget Presentation Award.
• 2023 Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting.
• These awards recognize the City’s commitment to excellent financial reporting and accountability.

Email privacy, “open records” requests, and Council Member communication with residents

• This is an area of personal interest to me. I've published peer-reviewed research on online identity privacy and security. I highly recommend reading it if you have trouble sleeping.
• I supported the initiative to change the MO State law that required municipalities to reveal private citizens’ private information in response to Sunshine requests. 

Tree City USA 

We earned this designation from the Arbor Day Foundation, recognizing the City’s ongoing commitment to urban forestry, environmental stewardship, and sustainable community practices. 

Community and Veteran Recognition

• Wildwood hosted the second annual Salute to Our Veterans Ceremony in November, with more than 30 veterans in attendance.
• We continued the Hometown Heroes Program, with banners honoring veterans.   

Public Safety

The City launched the Safe Speeds, Safe Streets Initiative. 

• This was in response to resident concerns about speeding and vehicle noise. 
• Our Police Precinct secured state funding to help offset the costs.  
• The effort included a citywide public safe, courteous driving awareness campaign. 

First, to be clear, I treasure whitetail deer. I actually “name” random local deer, and I fret about them in bad weather. 

MY OATH DEMANDS that I consider all residents, not just folks who think like me. 

As a conservationist, I strongly support healthy herd density, but I share that common ground with informed hunters, gardeners, nature lovers, health officials, and others alike.  

I've hunted, fished, gathered and roamed this area my whole life. I took my first deer, an Ozark rite of passage, in 1968 when Missouri "only" had 300,000 deer. Mom took her first deer in 1946 when there were only 15,000 in the whole state, and she took her last of a great many - a 12-pointer - in her 80’s. Dad's remarkable half-century of success was locally well-known. 

Now, MO has 1.8 million deer. Local densities are up to TEN TIMES the MO Dept of Conservation (MDC) maximum recommended density of 10-20 deer/sq. mile. 

Nature, in balance, is sparse. We shouldn't expect to see deer every day. If we do, there is something very wrong that is bad for society and bad for deer. 

Unsustainable deer numbers have led to the following problems:

• DVC's are increasingly common and dangerous to public safety.
• Only the worst are recorded, but MO-AAA estimates AVERAGE cost at $6,500.  
• Overpopulation depletes desirable native species, damages gardens and lawns, degrades fields and forests, and favors invasive and non-native plant species.
• Deer are major hosts for many serious tick-borne diseases (St. Louis Co. Health Dept.) 
  • My local DVM said these "are going around like cake at a birthday party."
  • People and pets suffer from such maladies despite costly preventives.
• Overpopulation concentrates wildlife diseases: Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) is fatal to EVERY infected deer and it has decimated herds in neighboring states (IL, AR, WI).

Board of Public Safety (BPS) called this problem a top priority, and a city-wide survey revealed that nearly 3/4 of residents support action.

The City carefully studied every known control option for several years, seeking the least-cost solution that can solve the problem in a way that most residents could accept. 

MDC, WPD, STLCO Public Health, Wildlife Biologists and other sources provided guidance. 

Decision parameters were:

• Cost and ROI of available options.
• Effectiveness and efficiency.
• Visibility and local impact "Footprint". 
• Quality of Life concerns for residents.
• Decision data are publicly and readily available.

The City Administration and Public Works Committee determined that a professional cull was the only feasible option. Wildwood was fortunate to engage a world-class, scientist-led wildlife management nonprofit.

In the first two years of this fully funded five-year program:

• The contractor has performed exactly to scope, and results are tracking as expected. 
• Operations have remained largely invisible to residents, with no other negative impacts. 
• City staff and agency burden has been minimal.
• Post-cull counts by specially trained WPD officers line up exactly with predictions.

Also noteworthy:

• The program is American Veterinary Medical Ass'n-sanctioned humane euthanasia. 
• Over 25,000 pounds of venison have been donated to local charities. 
• Over 100 whole carcasses have been provided to the Zoo. 
• Deer-vehicle collisions declined by approximately 10% in the first year. 

Note that the most strongly considered alternative was hunting. From the very beginning, I have advocated for asking local hunters to help. Having been in that community for seven decades, I have also urged caution because the unfortunate reality is that the skill levels vary widely. Success rates for MDC Managed Archery Hunts with full participation averages below 15%. (per MDC)

But this is not a question of intent or individual skill—it is a question of scale, structure, and what actually works in a suburban environment.

No suburban program has demonstrated, in comparable circumstances, the ability to achieve and sustain anything approaching the level of population reduction required here.

Even with the most skilled hunters, all-in costs would be much less predictable and likely very close to the professionally contracted rate, even before considering the added liabilities the City would be compelled to take on. 

More importantly for resident quality of life, the operational footprint would be enormous

• A 3-man team of scientists for 28 nights in February, with NO deer leaving the cull site.

 versus

• Dozens of local and non-local hunters dawn-to-dusk for 121 days of Autumn, with struck deer bleed-out distances spanning a MINIMUM of 9 lots (hosting lot + the next lot in any unpredictable direction), up to 100-plus lots for a less-than-perfect shot. (per MDC) 
• Many residents will not tolerate this (unavoidable) visibility.

Please trust that there's much more to this difficult issue. As a scientist, conservationist, wildlife lover & local hunter who works for everyone, this is among the most analyzed, scientifically and socially sound decisions I've seen.