Elmore announcing run for Belleville mayor today; Eckert defends record, says he'll run, too

Belleville alderman Phil Elmore will formally announce today that he plans to run for Belleville mayor.

Elmore will make his announcement at 5:30 p.m. Monday at Ever and Anon Park in downtown Belleville.

A first-time alderman elected in 2009 as an independent candidate, Elmore is an insurance agent for Harnist Insurance Agency in Belleville. He is 48, a lifelong resident of the city, and he and his wife, Barb, have three children.

Mayor Mark Eckert said he's not surprised Elmore will run; he had heard rumors. He was, however, taken aback that Elmore decided to announce this early.

Eckert said he plans to run for re-election.

"There's been an awful lot accomplished in Belleville, and there's a lot more to do," he said.

No one else has announced a candidacy for the April 2013 mayoral election.

Elmore said he had been contemplating a run for office for several months. He said he wants to upgrade the city's housing ordinances and redefine the technological aspects of the way the city does business.

"So much of my campaign will be related to bringing the city as a whole to the year 2013, building growth, technology and code enforcement, and so many of my issues fall back to the simple fact that we operate this city like it's 1979," Elmore said. "It's time to be ready for 2013."

Eckert said that while he is in favor of upgrading the city technologically, a lack of funding during the Great Recession has stood in the way. The state fell behind more and more each month with its reimbursements of certain taxes to the city, and city leaders never could predict exactly how much money they'd have to work with. In that scenario, he said, he'd rather spend what the city does have on public safety.

"I can defend any of the choices we've made," he said.

As signs of progress under his leadership, Eckert pointed to two new shopping centers, Belleville Crossing and Greenmount Commons; the city's first new firehouse since the 1930s; downtown streetscape improvements; growth at Lindenwood University-Belleville; and the groundbreaking on a new state police crime lab.

He also pointed out that Elmore in most instances has voted along Eckert's party's lines.

Elmore said he is assembling candidates to run alongside him for the offices of treasurer and city clerk and that he plans to "run a campaign like Belleville has never seen before."

He thinks that, too often, the focus during an election is pitting one group of candidates against another group.

"I think a lot of times the focus is lost on what the citizens want and need, and it's all about trying to.... make each other look foolish, and that's one of our issues right now on the City Council. The focus seems to be lost. My focus is going to be back on building a better Belleville together with the citizens."

Eckert said he thinks it's too early to get into "all the nit-pickiness of the campaign."

"We've got a city to run. I've got a lot to do. Every day, my plate is full. I will continue to work hard as mayor of the city each and every day."

Elmore is one of six independent aldermen on the City Council; the other 10 aldermen, the city clerk and the treasurer are part of the mayor's Citizens for Good Government party.

A Belleville alderman from 1997 to 2004, Eckert and his wife, Rita, own Eckert Florist and used to own a chimney sweep business.

He was appointed mayor in 2004 to replace the outgoing mayor Mark Kern, who moved to the office of St. Clair County Board chairman. Eckert then won re-election in 2005 with 75 percent of the vote against challenger Robert O'Rear, and again in 2009 in an uncontested race.

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