My Thoughts on the April 4th 2023 Election

I have had people ask me about my stances on other elections for Bridgeton and Saint Louis County. I wanted to make a post listing my understanding around issues and my opinion on them. It is possibly my opinion on a topic might change between the time I am writing and when I visit the polls.

I highly recommend visiting www.vote411.org to find out about what you will be voting for. You should be able to click on each topic and be taken to the Vote 411 site that discusses that topic.

Bridgeton Mayor

I think both Mayor Briggs and Councilman Hood are respectable men and fully believe they care about our city greatly. I think they both would make a great mayor. I thank both of them for the guidance and advice they have given me over the past 6+ months.

I tend to agree with Mayor Briggs on more topics, especially around 911 dispatch. I also really respect how Mayor Briggs has guided the city financially while in office. Not only are the pensions fully funded, but the city’s financial reserves are in an excellent state. My ideal outcome is to have Mayor Briggs reelected and to give Councilman Hood my vote the next election.

Bridgeton Judge

Only Judge Larrew is running and while I do not know him well, I have enjoyed each and every conversation with him. I appreciate the fact that I have heard he values working with people instead of seeing people as a source of revenue. I should note that Judge Larrew supports Proposition 3.

Pattonville School Board

I do not feel qualified to give an opinion on these people. I will say that Lisa Kickbusch was my 2^nd grade teacher and I remember really liking her back then.

Bridgeton City Council, Ward 1

I plan to vote for myself. I also would really appreciate your support as well. If I did not feel like I was the best candidate for the job I would not be running.

Bridgeton Proposition M

I am for this. I think Bridgeton imposing a 3% tax on recreational marijuana makes sense and will help increase tax revenue.

Bridgeton Proposition 1

This proposition is poorly worded and last-minute changes to it makes it ineffective. Either way you vote the outcome will be the same (more or less). I plan on voting no due to the poor wording and because it won’t be an effective change.

Bridgeton Proposition 2

Campaigning is hard… very hard. I have invested over 100 hours into this campaign and have spent over $500. Not to mention how much you need to learn your first year to be truly effective. It also costs the city money to have these elections added to the ballots. I think letting a councilmember have a 3-year term makes perfect sense.

Bridgeton Proposition 3

Since Judge Larrew supports Proposition 3, I also support it. I think in a perfect world our Municipal Judge would live in Bridgeton, however currently I am told it is very difficult to fill the position with this requirement. I value having a high-quality judge over having one that lives in Bridgeton.

Bridgeton Proposition 4

I understand the arguments from each side on this issue. I have not yet decided which way I will vote.

Saint Louis County Proposition M

I have the same view on this as I do for Bridgeton’s Proposition M. I am for this. I think the county imposing a 3% tax on recreational marijuana makes sense and will help increase tax revenue.

Another Bridgeton resident, Karl Redman, put together a page where he discusses Bridgeton Propositions 1 through 4. If you would like to see how he interprets these propositions you can view his page at https://bridgetonmo.info.

Additional Website Address

While walking around introducing myself to people numerous people have mentioned that the name Wesche is hard to spell. Since Wesche is hard to spell they were having trouble browsing to WescheForBridgeton.com. To make it easier for people to find this website I have registered the URL www.ForBridgeton.com. If you go there, you will be redirected to www.WescheForBridgeton.com. I hope this helps people find this website.

Let’s “Keep Bridgeton on Track”!

Common Questions

Lately I have been trying to reach as many registered voters as possible to hand out my trifold and tell people about myself. While doing so I have been telling people how to get in contact with me and also asking people if they have any questions right then. These questions and providing an avenue to reach me has led to numerous questions. Below are some of the most common questions I have received and my answers.

What do you think about the outsourced 911 dispatch?

At first, I was not a fan of this happening. My kneejerk reaction was that this is a bad idea and service will decrease. After talking to the police, I was embarrassed for this viewpoint because I truly think I was wrong and did not look at the big picture. I have talked to multiple members of the police department and each and every one of them have supported this happening. Generally, calls should be answered faster and our officers will be safer. We are also saving a large amount of money as a city since our Saint Louis County taxes are already paying for a lot of the fees associated with using the county for dispatch.

I was shocked to find out that it was not uncommon for us to have a single 911 operator on call the majority of the time. If they had to go to the bathroom during their shift nobody would pick up the phone. The software we were using was very outdated as well, and now we have access to a state-of-the-art system.

Is this new system perfect? I doubt it is. However, it seems to be a step in the right direction. If our Chief of Police, Mark Mossotti, is for this than so am I. He is the expert in my eyes. If you have any questions for him, I implore you to reach out to him. He is incredibly nice. His phone number is 314.739.7557 or you can Email him at chief@bridgetonmo.com.

Who is your opponent and why should I not vote for them?

My opponent is Ron Dirks. I will gladly tell you why I want to run however I am not a fan of the whole bad mouthing your opposition thing that is so common in politics today. I think that while the two of us might have different priorities and different views on some topics I do not hold any animosity against him. Truthfully, if I win this election, I hope Ron continues to be involved with local politics and holds me accountable.

Ron and I both value attracting new families and businesses to Bridgeton. We both want to make sure our Police Department is fully staffed. We both think we should try and find uses for the Carrolton land that is not currently being used. We both also would like to see parking issues addressed around Ward 1.

Instead of saying something bad about Ron I will take this opportunity to say something positive. (Crazy, right?!) At our Ward 1 Meeting on March 29th Commander Wooten and Chief Mossotti gave really impassioned talks about 911 dispatch and why they support having Saint Louis County running it. Towards the end of the night Ron and I were able to quickly address the people in attendance. Ron said he understood why we made the change to Saint Louis County. I think it takes a mature person to change their views when presented with new information. I think it shows good character to admit to changing your views in front of a crowd of people.

What this all boils down to is just because I am running against Ron does not mean I think he is a bad guy. I hope he feels the same way about me.

I have heard you are going to be just like Bob Saettele / Scott Zimmer. I want change.

First of all, just because Bob and Scott are helping me run does not mean I will be a carbon copy of them. In fact, there have been numerous votes they have made I have not agreed with and I have told them so.

Secondly, I do not find this to be an insult. Both Bob and Scott are/were very successful business men and wonderful family men. I have known both for many years. Bob and my dad have known each other since kindergarten. I have known Scott since I was in High School through his daughter Angela. I can honestly say that they have never pushed their political opinions on me, other than their belief that it is important to attend City Council meetings prior to running and that it is best to be a committee before running. At first, I did not fully understand why that is true however after attending 6+ months of meetings and joining the planning and zoning commission I fully understand how much is involved that I had no idea about.

Finally, I am 25+ years younger than Bob and Scott. My life experiences are going to be drastically different than theirs. That is one of the coolest parts about the idea of having a year (or more) of a Ward 1 where Bob and I are Councilmen though, we will be able to try and represent all of our constituents regardless of age.

I would like to host a neighborhood get together. Would you be willing to meet with us?

Sure! Please let me know the when and where and I will let you know my availability.

Are you a Democrat or Republican?

I do not identify with either party because they have both let me down at different times in my life. I am very middle of the road. Many of my conservative friends call me a crazy liberal while my liberal friends call me a crazy conservative. Truthfully, if it were up to me, we would not have a two-party system and people would run on their own merit instead of on the coat tails of a political party. Luckily this position is nonpartisan and that is part of the reason I really enjoy local government.

Why do we not have more police officers?

We have been hiring officers left and right lately. The new compensation plan really seems to be attracting new officers to the area. It also sounds like moving to Saint Louis County Dispatch has made it so officers feel safer. It is my understanding that we currently have 2 patrol positions open, down from 6. One of those 2 positions is about ready to be filled. The Police Department is waiting for paperwork and background checks to come back. We also have 1 clerk position open.

Are you related to <Insert first name here> Wesche?

Likely, yes. As far as I know there is only one person in the Saint Louis area with the last name of Wesche that I am not related to. He used to live in the Saint Peters area. This is the same Wesche family that is associated with Overland Hardware and the old Wesche Pharmacy.

Where can I find more information about the election?

The League of Women Voters has a great website to help inform you about the election and what you will be voting on. I highly recommend checking it out by going to www.vote411.org and entering your address. If you do not feel comfortable giving them your address enter your neighbors, assuming your neighbor is in the same ward as you. Not only did both Ron Dirks and I answer their questions, but you can also find additional information out about other topics.

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I hope some of these common questions might help you as you decide who to vote for. Please feel free to Call, Email, or Text me with additional questions.

Voting Information

The last City Council election was held on April 5^th, 2022. Bridgeton Ward 1 only had 276 votes cast. In 2021, we only had 234 votes cast. We can do better than that! However, I know voting can be tough. I am not a lawyer but I wanted to share some research I have done around the Missouri laws that might apply to you if you want to vote but do not know how to fit it into your schedule. I am a huge fan of democracy so even if you are voting for somebody else, I hope the information here can assist you.

Registering to Vote:

Please visit this website to see if you are able to register to vote. https://www.sos.mo.gov/elections/goVoteMissouri/votingrights

If you meet the qualification to register to vote you can go many places to register. The easiest place in Bridgeton might be the Bridgeton Trails County Library. You can also submit your registration online by going to this website https://www.sos.mo.gov/elections/goVoteMissouri/register. For more information, please go to this website to see a detailed FAQ https://www.sos.mo.gov/elections/goVoteMissouri/votereg.

Voting Early

Did you know that you can vote up to two weeks early in Missouri for any reason? As long as you have an ID you can vote up to two weeks early with a “no-excuse absentee ballot in person at a location designated by your local election authority.” We are extremely lucky that the St. Louis County local election authority is at Northwest Plaza. If you want to vote early you just need to go to 725 Northwest Plaza Drive, St. Ann MO 63074 weekdays between 8AM and 4:30PM or on Saturday between 9AM and 1PM. Remember, early voting starts March 21^st. For more information please go to this website https://stlouiscovotes.maps.arcgis.com/apps/instant/nearby/index.html?appid=cff24c85a5824d9cb42a333671066cf7.

Checking Your Voter Registration

To check your voter registration, please go to this website and enter your information https://s1.sos.mo.gov/elections/voterlookup.

Where Can You Vote?

You can vote at any poll location in Saint Louis County! Personally, I like going to the Bridgeton Community Center! If you would like to see polling places around you this website will show them as it gets closer to the election. https://voteroutreach.sos.mo.gov/PRD/VoterOutreach/VOSearch.aspx.

Does Your Employer Need to Provide Time Off to Vote?

This one is a bit hard, and I am not a lawyer. I will provide links and my understanding of the law.

The current Missouri Election Laws can be found here in a PDF https://www.sos.mo.gov/CMSImages/ElectionGoVoteMissouri/CurrentElectionLawBook.pdf.

If you scroll down to section 115.639 you will see text saying

“1. Any person entitled to vote at any election held within this state shall, on the day of such elec-
tion, be entitled to absent himself from any services or employment in which he is then engaged
or employed, for a period of three hours between the time of opening and the time of closing the
polls for the purpose of voting, and any such absence for such purpose shall not be reason for the
discharge of or the threat to discharge any such person from such services or employment; and
such employee, if he votes, shall not, because of so absenting himself, be liable to any penalty or
discipline, nor shall any deduction be made on account of such absence from his usual salary or
wages; provided, however, that request shall be made for such leave of absence prior to the day
of election, and provided further, that this section shall not apply to a voter on the day of election
if there are three successive hours while the polls are open in which he is not in the service of
149 ELECTION OFFENSES §115.639

his employer. The employer may specify any three hours between the time of opening and the
time of closing the polls during which such employee may absent himself.
2. Any employer violating this section shall be deemed guilty of a class four election offense”

My understanding of this law is that as long as you request time off to vote from your employer prior to the election they must give you three paid consecutive hours off to vote. This law will only apply if you do not already have 3 consecutive hours off to vote. Since polls open at 6AM and close at 7PM if you work 8AM to 5PM, like I do, your employer will legally be obligated to allow you time off to vote. This is true for anyone who starts before 9AM AND is off after 4PM.

Please remember that this is not legal advice, and I am not a lawyer. I do love democracy, though, and I think it is important that Americans know their rights! Section 115.642 explains how to file a complaint against your employer if they deny you your right to vote.

It should also be noted that you can only vote during this time window. If it only takes you ten minutes to drive to the polling place, ten minutes to vote, and ten minutes to drive back to your place of work, that is all you are allowed to do. You cannot just run the clock for the additional 2.5 hours.

Helping With the Campaign

How Can You Help?

I have been stunned at the number of people who have encouraged me and offered to help once they heard I am running for City Council. The response has been truly humbling. If you would like to help by putting a yard sign up in your front yard or by helping me knock on doors to spread the word please Email me at Campaign@WescheForBridgeton.com. You can also help by helping me spread the word around Ward 1. Every vote counts and in these local elections your vote REALLY makes a difference.

Donations

I have had a few people ask about helping with the campaign. Unfortunately, I am not set up to receive donations so I must decline them. The laws/rules around campaign donations are a bit complicated and to make sure I play by the rules I decided to just not accept donations. If you would like to donate in my name to a local charity or organization that would be cool of you though!

My Goals For Bridgeton

It would be easy to lie to you and list a bunch of goals I have for Bridgeton if elected. Truth be told though, the first year I think I am going to spend learning the system and not deviating too far from our current course. “Why?” you might ask. I feel like we are on a great track for improving our city. In fact, I do not think I would be running if Scott Zimmer was seeking reelection. I feel both Bob Saettele and Scott Zimmer have done a fantastic job and while I might not agree with each and every decision and vote they have made, I truly respect both of them and feel like they continue to make moves that prove they have Bridgeton’s best interests at heart.

There are some people who live in Bridgeton that love to paint our city in a bad light. I am by no means saying this is the perfect area without problems, however, I think it is easy to ignore many of the positives and focus on the negatives. I wanted to take a minute to list some of the positive improvements we have see over the past couple years.

We have built numerous new neighborhoods to help expand our population.
We have brought new businesses into the city.
The city was able to bring back free* recycling, trash, and yard waste pickup service. I put an asterisk here because we pay for this with taxes.
We have torn down many of the old abandoned hotels. The old Capitol Inn on Pennridge being the most recent.
We have passed ordinances to help with roadside soliciting.
There have been numerous improvements to how stormwater is handled.
BMAC is adding Pickleball courts.
We have repainted the fire hydrants. – It should be noted that this was not an action performed by the Bridgeton City Council, but an action performed by Missouri American Water.

While walking door to door collecting signatures from my neighbors I heard quite a few suggestions for things that we could improve in our community. Many people have asked about a dog park. I had a few ask about the playground equipment at Hellebusch Park and Matthews Park. I had over 10 people ask about Pickleball Courts. I even had two people talk to me about how steep the incline is on the walking path that connects Westhaven subdivision to Matthews Park. It would be irresponsible of me to make any promises around these topics, however, I think these are all great opportunities for improvement and I have already asked questions about these topics. For the people who asked about Pickleball Courts you’ll be getting them soon!

I have said numerous times I am going to run a positive campaign. I feel like any political campaign I have seen the past few years has been negative. Because of this, I do not want to focus on the bad in my postings. I do think it is important to include in this post though, that the Bridgeton Police department is continuing to add new police officers to their staff to help combat crime numbers. Unfortunately, crime is an issue across the country currently. I had a call last week with a coworker of mine that lives in Hartford, Connecticut. He told me about numerous catalytic converters being stolen from their condo complex overnight. We also have issues where many of the people committing these crimes are minors, and therefore, harder to prosecute as they fall under the Saint Louis County Juvenile System. I have had many great conversations with the Bridgeton Chief of Police, Mark Mossotti, and I feel like Bridgeton is doing everything they can to keep our area as safe as possible. If you have concerns about safety in your area, I urge you to reach out to Chief Mossotti. If you are uncomfortable doing so and would like me to introduce you two, please let me know.

Why do I love Bridgeton?

Bridgeton was a fantastic place to grow up and continues to be a wonderful place to live. Why do I like it here? Well, there are many reasons. Here are my top 5!

4^th of July

One of my favorite Bridgeton traditions is going to the 4^th of July Parade. I love how we are able to pull in people from neighboring cities and have them join as well. We are able to see how incredibly diverse our community is. My wife and I have not been blessed with children yet, however, seeing how happy our friends children are seeing the floats and giant trucks is always a magical experience. Grabbing breakfast at Lehmann’s Landing before the parade and lunch at La Gloria afterwards are both fantastic add-ons to the experience as well.

We cannot forget about the evening. Attending fireworks at BMAC is a tradition I have practiced as long as I can remember. The fireworks are cool, but it is the sense of community that really brings me to this event every year. I see so many people I have known my entire life. Whether it be talking to an old neighbor, checking up with friends from elementary school, or checking in with my old Elementary school PE teacher (looking at you Mr. G), there is something special about putting a blanket on the field and just relaxing with your community.

Waste Pickup

This is a privilege that I do not think gets enough credit in Bridgeton. We have Trash, Recycling, and Yard Waste pickup weekly. Instead of paying for it every few weeks it is covered by taxes. That is incredible to me! I have friends that live around the area who are constantly complaining about their providers and how much it costs. Luckily that is something we do not need to worry about living here. We also have limb pickup which is extremely helpful after storms. With how busy life is, I am very thankful that this is all handled for me. I just need to remember to put my bin out for pickup weekly.

Parks and Rec

The Bridgeton Park Department is fantastic. We have so many parks and I thoroughly enjoy visiting them. We also have a fantastic public outdoor pool and an extremely nice indoor pool WITH A WATERSLIDE! Eight year old Stephen is super jealous of that indoor pool! The recreation center is wonderful as well. Providing an affordable place to rent a room for a party and a gym to exercise at. I might be a bit biased because I have known some them most of my life, but the staff up there are pretty cool as well.

Street Department

The Bridgeton Street Department is one of the best performing street departments in the Saint Louis area when it comes to dealing with ice and snow. I have driven up to Schnucks on the Rock Road numerous times while friends of mine living in Saint Charles are stuck at home because their roads were not cleared nearly as well. One thing I hope to do if elected is arrange a ride along with the street department during a snow storm to learn about what all goes into the job and see first hand what we can do to continually support our their work.

Pattonville School District

Going to Pattonville really shaped me into the person I am today and I am hoping to send children of my own there some day. Not only is the quality of education extremely high, but the district truly represents the community around us. Pattonville is also a district teachers WANT to work in. Getting a job there is no easy task, and because of that, you know they are able to keep and attract the best our area can offer.

Who am I?

Thank you for visiting my campaign page. My name is Stephen Wesche, and I am running for Bridgeton City Council. I have lived in Bridgeton my entire life and purchased a house here in 2011.

I am running for City Council, not because I am dissatisfied with where we are, but because I want to do everything I can to make sure we continue to grow as a city.

I grew up in Spanish Village subdivision and went to Carrollton Elementary, Holman Middle School, and graduated from Pattonville High School in 2007. I must have been an okay kid because many of these teachers still give me a hug when our paths cross.

I have worked all around the IT industry over the years. I started in sales and moved to a Helpdesk roll quickly thereafter. After working Helpdesk, I moved to a role as a Telecommunications Engineer where I traveled across the country configuring computer networks and phone systems. In 2020 I changed roles to my current position as a Systems Engineer with a focus on Cyber Security. November 2022 marked 10 years with the company I work for, and I have been able to watch it grow from 700 employees to over 3500 employees.

My experience in the IT industry has taught me many things that I feel will be useful on the city council. It has taught me how to work together with strong personalities to get things done. My career has also taught me that is okay to not know everything and that sometimes you need to put pride aside and listen to the expert in the room. Due to my work travels, I learned how to be a project manager and to manage multiple teams of people in the field at multiple locations. Dealing with Cyber Security I have learned how to act fast and constantly learn new skills. Most of all, my career has taught me how to listen to a problem and devise a solution.

I have talked to many sitting members of the current City Council to ask them their advice about what makes a good councilperson. Mayor Briggs also was kind enough to sit down with me and discuss the job responsibilities. I am actively working with the current Ward 1 council members; Bob Saettele, and Scott Zimmer, to prepare myself for this responsibility. I am also talking with other local community leaders. Additionally, I have been attending our bimonthly council meetings and am on the Bridgeton Planning and Zoning Committee.

Bridgeton is growing and changing rapidly. The number of new businesses that have opened here over the past few years is staggering. We have also had numerous new neighborhoods built. If I am voted onto the council, I would like to work with city planners to ensure businesses continue to open here. I would also like to make our city a more desirable place for restaurants. Additionally, I want to make sure we continue to grow and maintain our fantastic park system. I am not running for me though; I am running for the community. As I travel house to house to introduce myself to you, I plan on also asking what you would like to see from Bridgeton leadership. I invite you to send me an Email at reachout@wescheforbridgeton.com letting me know what you are looking for.