St. Louis County Executive Sam Page used his annual State of the County address to praise employees, unveil a new flag and lambast a proposal that would allow the St. Louis County Council to fire department directors.
The speech Tuesday at the Touhill Performing Arts Center came as Page is facing increasing competition for his job in next year’s election.
“I became a doctor because I knew I could make a difference. I could help people. I can make them better,” Page said. “As a public servant, I lead with equity. I work to fill in the gaps of services that are not always serving everyone, and I want to make the county run more efficiently and make it easier for our residents to do business in St Louis County.”
Most of Page’s nearly hourlong speech highlighted the work of employees who have gone above and beyond serving the state’s largest county. It dovetailed into fierce criticism of the measure known as Proposition B, which would allow the county council to fire department heads and the county counselor with five out of seven votes.
Prop B will be on the April 8 ballot, though it is currently facing a lawsuit that may mean it never goes into effect if passed.
“As those in the community remind me all the time, B is bad,” Page said. “B as a power grab. And B does nothing good for St Louis County.”
Page and other Prop B detractors contend that it will tilt the scales too much toward the council — and dissuade people from wanting to become department directors. Currently, there are six members of the council who are either hostile or skeptical of Page — and only one, Councilwoman Lisa Clancy, D-Maplewood, who is considered an ally.
“We have a lot of work to do in St Louis County, and this is an unfortunate distraction,” Page said. “I appreciate groups such as the St. Louis Labor Council, AFL-CIO and the St. Louis County NAACP coming out against this flawed initiative, which is stoking fear, promoting chaos and doing nothing to make St. Louis County better.”
Several members of the council slammed Page for using the speech to criticize Prop B, with Councilwoman Shalonda Webb, D-St. Louis County, saying that he was mischaracterizing what the measure could do for county government.
“We need accountability and checks and balances. This is not a power grab,” Webb said. “This is to ensure that county council members are able to interact with the department heads and get the information that they need. If you're working well and you're doing your job and all these excellent things, you don't have anything to worry about.”
Election looms in the background
Page will be up for another four-year term next year and told St. Louis Public Radio he’s planning on running. Republican Councilman Dennis Hancock, R-Fenton, announced he would vie for the county’s top spot at Missouri Republican Party Lincoln Days this past weekend.
But Page may have competition in the Democratic primary. State Sen. Brian Williams said he’s “strongly considering” running for county executive next year. And Webb told reporters that she would make an “informed decision” soon about whether she’ll jump into the county executive’s race.
“I'm going to get the data and I'm going to do my due diligence, but I am not going to get rope-a-doped into campaigning 18 months before the election, there's too much work to be done,” Webb said. “Employees still haven't gotten their pay rate increases. Jamestown Mall is still down. All of those things need to be worked through.”
“So let me give you a direct answer. I'm going to make an informed decision, and at the right time, I'm going to let everybody know properly,” Webb said.
Asked if her decision would be influenced if others, like Williams, get into the race, Webb responded: “This seat doesn't belong to anybody.”
“I don't want to tamper anybody's ambition by saying: ‘Oh, we need to be collective against Sam Page,'” Webb said. “What I want is for the people to have somebody they want to vote for and not against. We do that too often in this area.”
While Hancock said he thinks he can run a competitive campaign as a Republican, the person who comes out of the Democratic primary will likely be the favorite to win in November 2026 since the county has shifted away from the GOP over the past several decades.
Page unveils new flag
Page spent other parts of his speech lauding major projects in St. Louis County, particularly the construction of new police precinct buildings in south and north St. Louis County.
He also signed a bill in the middle of his speech allocating $10 million in county funds to help refurbish the University of Missouri-St. Louis campus.
“This is a transformational project for UMSL in north St Louis County, and we are excited to be a part of it,” Page said.
Perhaps the splashiest part of the speech came near the end, when Page unveiled St. Louis County’s new flag.
The navy, white and rose red flag features a partial image of the fleur-de-lis. It replaces the old flag, which featured a nondescript plow in the midst of yellowish buildings.
Page said he had no idea where the old flag came from but added that he liked the new one designed by Jose Garza and Hayveyah McGowan — artists in residency with the Kranzberg Art Foundation.
“This reimagined fleur-de-lis boldly points forward, signifying a commitment to progress and opportunity as we chart the future for St. Louis County,” Page said. “The strong identity helps us build credibility, foster community pride, and improve the delivery of services our residents have come to expect.”
Some council members said they were somewhat underwhelmed by the new flag. It comes roughly a year after the county unveiled a new logo and a new tagline, Opportunity Central.
“I thought it would maybe be something tied to our current imaging,” said Councilman Mark Harder, R-Ballwin. “It does have a kind of a nod to that.”
Added Councilwoman Rita Days, D-Bel Nor: “The flag is very interesting. I have to really look at it. I'm still digesting what it looks like and how it represents St. Louis County.”
