Community Corner
Tom Besselman Wins St. Charles Ward 2 City Council Seat
Besselman tops incumbent Muench who was second-highest vote-getter.
Tom Besselman, a self-employed business owner, beat incumbent Larry Muench and two other candidates to win the Ward 2 city council seat for the next four years.
Besselman, 54, won 262 votes or 36.29 percent. He said late Tuesday that his feet had finally returned to the ground.
"People want change," he said. "For sure. They want to be heard. It's amazing what has happened."
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Muench, 55, was the second-highest vote getter with 244 votes or 33.8 percent of the vote. He supported the Lindenwood Town Center project, which is a development planned in middle of the city that could include the Post Office and a grocery store.
Both Besselmann and candidate Bill Conrey raised concerns about the project and the amount of land Lindenwood has purchased in the city. Conrey is a former city councilman who won 112 votes or 15.51 percent.
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Venetia McEntire, 43, owner of Boone's Colonial Inn and part-owner of Boone's Lick Trail Inn won 101 votes, or 13.99 percent. In her campaign she highlighted a need for better communication between the city and ward residents.
McEntire said after the election results came in that she's concerned about the direction that the city of St. Charles is going.
"I think it's a big wake-up call for our citizens," she said.
Besselman said the first thing he plans to do when he is sworn in is to organize a Ward 2 community meeting. He said the most important thing is to get the people together to find out what their neighborhood needs are.
He said he'd like to serve on the Planning and Zoning Board, but said he would rather not say what he'd like to do in his first month on the city council.
"I think with the new mayor and two new city council people that there can be a lot of good, quality changes for the city," he said.
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