Susan Gibson faces a challenge in her bid to serve as Byrnes Mill’s mayor for the fourth straight two-year term in the April 4 election.
The mayoral race is the only contested race in the city, as all three incumbents running for the city’s Board of Aldermen are running unopposed: Robert Prado in Ward 1, Jerry Klipsch in Ward 2 and Mary Scheble in Ward 3.
The mayoral job is unpaid.
SULLIVAN, who declined to give her age, lives at 3720 Narragansett Drive. She and her husband, Lonnie, have two sons.
Sullivan is a senior information technology project manager for Magellan Health, and previously worked for IBM. She has a degree in applied science and is certified in various information technology specialties. She has been a member of the city’s Planning and Zoning Committee, has written grants for the city and participates in the annual citywide cleanup day. She has led a push for the city to be designated as a Tree City USA by the Missouri Department of Conservation.
GIBSON, 68, lives at 351 South Lakeshore Drive. She has one child and one grandchild. She is a retired special education teacher who taught for 32 years, mostly with the St. Louis County Special School District. She received an associate degree from Christian College in 1969, a bachelor’s degree in elementary and special education from the University of Missouri in Columbia in 1971, and a master’s degree in counseling from University of Missouri-St. Louis in 1981.
She has been a member of the Byrnes Mill Improvement Committee and the High Ridge Rotary Club and has been market master of the Byrnes Mill Farmers Market.
What are the biggest problems facing the city and how would you address them?
Sullivan: Resource shortages. Over the years, the city took over the maintenance of more than 40 percent of the streets in the city. This was done without a cost-and-risk analysis, which resulted in not enough money allocated for maintenance. Also, the city lost revenues with the passage of Senate Bill 5 (which limits revenue from municipal courts), resulting in the overall current budget being 9 percent lower than last year. I will address these challenges by helping the city with its planning. I have skills that will help improve the risk-and-cost analysis for all current and future city endeavors.
Gibson: The city is in good shape and running smoothly. Our near-term problem is infrastructure. Our roads need improvements and we need bridge, culvert and ditch repair, better signage and guard rails. Our city attorney has informed us that in its current shape they are a liability. Our Police Department is understaffed and underpaid.
Why should voters elect you to this position? List your goals.
Sullivan: Tasks I would work on immediately include:
■ Developing a communication plan. I would ask for permission to attend all subdivision homeowners association meetings. I would keep the city website current and publish the city budget.
■ Working with the Northwest R-1 School District to form a ‘youth city council’ of high school students who would work on various city projects for credit.
■ Identifying resources to apply for additional grant money.
■ Working with aldermen to identify ways to bring in more revenue and cut waste.
Gibson: Over the last six years, the city has come a long way. We modernized policies, procedures and codes, stabilized sewers, reformed the Police Department and moved from a rented basement to a modern and modest city hall. We revised our employee benefit package to make it fair. We added a playground to the park. We completed a 20-year plan that, in addition to being a guide to the future, will enable us to seek grants. My goal is to maintain these improvements and move through future challenges with the same level of professionalism.
The city has three tax issues on the April ballot. How do you stand on them?
Sullivan: Asking residents to pass three tax increases in one election is a lot to ask.
Gibson: After 30 years without any tax increases, we have reached a point where we now need increases to maintain city services at a level our residents have indicated they enjoy. In our recent survey that accompanied the public opinion portion of our 20-year plan, our residents indicated that they want our roads and neighborhoods maintained, appreciate the great job the Public Works Department does with snow removal and value having our own Police Department.