Tony Becker, Ward 2

06/29/2023

Please keep this mind as you are having fun during the upcoming long weekend.

A message from Fire Chief, Tony Bova regarding the use of fireworks in the City of Crystal City during this extremely dry time.

06/29/2023

It has been my pleasure to serve our city as a member of the city council since 2011. I am proud of many of the things we've been able to accomplish in that time:

- Building a new water treatment plant to ensure clean, safe drinking water for our residents.
- With the support of our citizens and our council, passing a use tax that will fund meaningful road improvements in the future.
- Securing a commitment from James Hardie to locate a new manufacturing plant here, representing the largest investment in Jefferson County in at least my lifetime
- Most recently, implementing our salary study so that the city can support its employees with market-competitive wages and retain experienced and talented people.

But, it is my duty to inform you that I will be stepping down from the council in July. My wife, my sons and I will be moving to Webster Groves (which I like to think of as the Crystal City of St Louis County) so that she can be much closer to work. A 45-minute commute before and after a 12-hour nursing shift was not fair to her when I could walk next door to go to work.

I will continue, of course, at Custom Insurance Services. With my partner Grant Bowen, we purchased the agency in 2020 from my father Don Becker, who started it in 1975. However, I may be at the office five days a week instead of six.

The city is moving in a very positive direction, but there is a lot more work to do. I will continue to make myself available to the Mayor, the council, and the staff in whatever capacity I can to continue improving Crystal City. But, since I will no longer have my residence here, I will not be able to continue in the office of councilperson.

Mayor Mike Osher will be taking applications for the open position and it will be filled by appointment, subject to council approval.

04/14/2023

This can result in low pressure and temporary brown water (due to rust coming loose in the pipes during abnormally high flow during flushing) but is important for the system overall. I put in a cartridge filter about 10 years ago and I haven’t had any problems with water quality due to flushing since, although I do sometimes need to change the filter after they flush. Something like this:

https://www.homedepot.com/p/GE-Whole-House-Water-Filtration-System-GXWH40L/100669051 does the trick.

04/05/2023

Thanks again to all who voted today. Crystal City has great positive momentum with James Hardie coming, several new stores opening and nearly a million dollars of street and stormwater work planned for this summer and fall.

There’s always plenty more to do, though. I’m looking forward to working, together with the Mayor and the rest of the council, on “building our future together.”

04/04/2023

Thanks to everybody who came out and voted today, here and elsewhere. Your participation is critically important.

04/04/2023

Out at the polls today. What a great day to stand outside!

I’ll be around to pick up signs this evening, but if I happen to miss one in your yard (or you put it away before it blew away!) please drop it off at my house.

04/04/2023

Don’t forget to come out and vote on Tuesday at the Mississippi River Eagles in Crystal City.

03/28/2023

When Tony ran for City Council in 2011, he put a lot of thought into his campaign slogan: Building Our Future Together. That is still the hallmark of how he approaches his service on the council. In this video, learn how those four words apply to issues facing Crystal City today.

Re-elect Tony Becker for Crystal City Concil, Ward 2. Please vote on April 4th!

03/23/2023

The City's use tax ("Amazon tax") funds have been coming in since October and will be dedicated to roads. Crystal City won't be able to go out for a large bonded project until that tax has been collected for a full year. (We need to be able to project what funds will be available in future years.) Next April, my hope is that we'll be asking Crystal City voters for permission to do a LOT of road work, across the entire town, all at once.

In the meantime, I'd encourage Crystal City residents to comment here in favor of our Bailey Road repaving project. The "Surface Transportation Program" (STP) grant process, adminsitered by East-West Gateway for the St Louis metro area, is how we access federal funds for road improvements.

https://www.ewgateway.org/transportation-planning/transportation-improvement-program/local-pgm-app-public-comment-2023/

Bailey Road was resurfaced in 2014 using a new type of pavement that was approved by MODOT, but that hasn't held up as expected. It is badly in need of repaving. This allows us to stretch the city's road budget considerably so we'll have more to spend on side streets and alleys, which don't qualify for federal funds because they don't carry as much traffic.

03/16/2023

The Leader published its candidate interviews for Crystal City Ward 2. Look for it in today’s paper!

https://www.myleaderpaper.com/eedition/jefferson_county_leader/page-23/page_a25d2dfe-1e2d-52c3-964e-5073f03e873b.html

View the Jefferson County Leader for Wednesday, March 15, 2023

03/13/2023

From Spectrum. This has been incredibly frustrating for anyone trying to get things done over the last couple of days… I sympathize.

UPDATE FROM SPECTRUM: The lines were cut by vandals. Repairs are underway. Services should be restored by noon. Further updates will be made if necessary.

03/09/2023

This is good news. The deal to land James Hardie in Crystal City would not have happened without EDC's help in coordinating things between the city, the county, and the state of Missouri.

Congratulations to Arnold Rotarian Donna Litton on her recent appointment as the CEO of the Economic Development Corporation of Jefferson County.

https://www.facebook.com/EDCJeffersonCountyMO/