Houston Lake is a fourth class city, as are most cities in Missouri. There are fourth class cities with just a few hundred residents, and then there is St. Peters, with more than 59,000 residents and staff that is an organization unto itself.
By Missouri state law, specifically RSMO 79.060, a fourth class city is divided into two or more wards, and aldermen are elected from each ward by the the voters of that particular ward.
The image at right illustrates the North and the South political subdivisions as implemented in the city Houston Lake. It looks like a pretty even split. Likely about half of the residents on each side so that seems fair.
According to the US Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 0.14 square miles, including 0.03 square miles of water.
When we consider the small number of residents on each side of the city, we begin to understand how this splitting further divides our already tiny pool of candidates by half.
Advocates for abandoning the ward system believe that in a small community like ours, it unnecessarily confines voter choices and restricts eligibility for council service. They stress the significance of competence and commitment over geographical factors in council member selection and believe that prioritizing a dedicated, skilled workforce capable of addressing community needs should be the foremost criterion for choosing council members, especially given the limited range of options available.
There is another option.
RSMO 79.060 also indicates that cities of less than 1000 residents can abandon the ward system and choose to elect aldermen at large.
How would abandoning the ward system affect Houston Lake?
- The city would have four aldermen at large in service of the whole city
- Aldermen at large could be residents of any part of the city
- Ballots would present all city council candidates to all city residents
- Any resident will be able to vote for any city council member candidate(s)
In June of 2023, with two open seats on the Board of Aldermen and no announced candidates, the City Council began to explore the advantages of abandoning the ward system. The idea was first introduced to our constituents in an article published on HoustonLake.gov entitled Advantages of Abandoning the Ward System in 4th Class Cities. After a 90 day awareness campaign, several articles and an opinion poll that resulted in 78.8% of respondents indicating approval, the matter did not come to a vote in time to effect the April 2024 ballot.
The complete Missouri state statute:
RSMO 79.060 – City to be divided into wards — aldermen elected — aldermen at large permitted for certain cities. — 1. The board of aldermen shall, by ordinance, divide the city into not less than two wards, and two aldermen shall be elected from each ward by the qualified voters thereof, at the first election for aldermen in cities adopting the provisions of this chapter. At such election for aldermen, the person receiving the highest number of votes in each ward shall hold his office for two years, and the person receiving the next highest number of votes shall hold his office for one year; but thereafter each ward shall elect annually one alderman, who shall hold his office for two years.
2. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection 1 of this section, cities with a population of one thousand or less in the most recent census may, by ordinance, choose to elect aldermen at large instead of by the method outlined in subsection 1 of this section. Under this option, the seats of aldermen shall be filled at large as soon as the current terms expire. Each year thereafter, one-half of the board of aldermen shall stand for election at large for a two-year term.
Key up the reboot. An ordinance to abandon the ward system and have all four aldermen serve at large will be presented to the City Council for debate and approval in the upcoming April 12, 2024 Houston Lake City Council meeting.
Please reach out to your representatives if you have any comments.