Here’s why two Belleville community leaders say they are running for mayor in 2021

Two people familiar to Belleville residents say they intend to run for mayor in the April 6 municipal election: Mark Eckert, the current mayor, and Patty Gregory, the executive director and founder of Art on the Square.

The official filing period for candidates who want to be on the April ballot is Dec. 14-21.

Eckert, 64, has served as mayor since 2004 after previously serving on the City Council. In the last mayoral election, he defeated former City Clerk Dallas Cook with about 67% of the vote.

Gregory, 66, is a former teacher who established the Art on Square organization, which will celebrate its 20th anniversary in 2021 and the show previously been ranked No. 1 nationally in terms of artwork sold. The art show is traditionally scheduled in May on the Public Square in downtown Belleville.

Gregory said if she is elected mayor, she would ask the show’s board of directors to name a new executive director.

In interviews with the BND, Eckert and Gregory each outlined their reasons for seeking an office that offers an annual salary of about $88,000.

Here are highlights of their plans, with the candidates’ responses listed in alphabetical order:

Mark Eckert

“I am running for mayor this next term because I believe that I have the experience to lead the city of Belleville through a very difficult time,” Eckert said. “COVID-19 is causing extreme pressure on our staff, our city revenues, our businesses, not to mention and not to forget how it’s hurting our citizens.”

Eckert said he looks forward to upcoming road projects in the city, including the city’s agreement to work with the Illinois Department of Transportation on a new roundabout at South Belt East and Freeburg Avenue. Other projects include the extension of the West Main Street streetscape from 12th Street to 17th Street and work on Lebanon and Centreville avenues.

“I think my record shows a substantial amount of accomplishments,” Eckert said. “That’s not just mine, that’s a team of people, the aldermen, the staff. But in many cases I helped pick those people. I’m proud of what we’ve been able to do together.”

Eckert cited the renovation of City Hall, the new headquarters for the police department at 720 W. Main St. and a new firehouse off Illinois 15 as projects completed during his tenure as mayor.

The new police station “was long, long overdue.”

“It was a mess in there,” he said of the previous station at City Hall.

“The facilities that we put together at 720 W. Main, I think was something that not only the men and women deserved, to have a state of the art facility,” he said. “I think it’s paying benefits.

“And that garage is keeping a lot more vehicles out of the extreme weather.”’

He noted that police officers don’t have to walk prisoners up stairs to a jail cell and that has reduced injuries.

Eckert said the new firehouse helped improve the city rating for fire protection. The city has an Insurance Services Office Inc., or ISO, rating of 2 on a 10-point scale with 1 being the best rating.

“We certainly would not have lowered our ISO rating to a 2 — which is excellent, it’s a fabulous rating — had we not made that addition so that we could cover all of Belleville in a very great, shorter time period,” Eckert said.

He also noted the opening of two major shopping centers and the streetscape projects completed on Main Street and North Illinois Street during his tenure as mayor.

Eckert praised the city’s department heads.

“The Belleville’s mayor position is full time. The job is 24-7,” he said. “It’s not that you get time off ever but you’ve got to be available to support your department heads and your staff.

“I’m a firm believer that I have always tried to lead with balance and with facts and we must have qualified staff who work to grow Belleville.”

Eckert said he supported the renovation of homes in the city.

“We’ve looked at different ways to shore up our neighborhoods,” he said. “I’ve worked diligently with the historic preservation commission and with the historic districts. I believe greatly in our history. I think we have a wonderful history in Belleville.”

Eckert said he has served as president of the Southwestern Illinois Council of Mayors and was president of the Illinois Municipal League in the 2017-18 term.

“There was a lot of experiences I’ve learned from working with other mayors across the state,” he said. “We’ve learned that we’ve all got the same challenges. We’ve worked hard on the pension situation that still isn’t totally fixed by any means but we worked on a host of problems that all cities around are experiencing.”

Eckert also said he serves on the Greater Belleville Chamber of Commerce board of directors and works with area churches and charities to assist the homeless.

“I would just feel like right now, if I didn’t try to go another term, I would be bowing out during a very difficult year,” he said. “I can hold my head up and say we’ve accomplished a lot ... I get out and answer to everyone as best I can and try to help solve the problems that are important to the residents.

“Many of them we’ve able to solve and some of them we’re still working on because it’s about money, it’s about time, it’s about trying to find the right amount of funds available to do different things.”

As far as running against Gregory, Eckert said, “I think the world of Patty and what she’s done with Art on the Square. The city has partnered, I feel, in a very outstanding way. My staff and I have done nothing but always support that fabulous event and we will continue.”

Patty Gregory

“I think one of the most important things of why I do want to be mayor is I like to facilitate change in a positive direction and I think we need a new energy, a new positive sense of pride and attitude,” Gregory said. “And also a new look at what is the perception of our beautiful city called Belleville.

“I actually have been doing this from my heart for the last 20 years, trying to facilitate change with a unbelievable group of committee members and volunteers because I do believe that no one does everything by themselves.”

Gregory said she would bring her organizational skills honed during her tenure as director of Art on the Square to the job of being the mayor of Belleville.

She said Art on the Square produces an estimated economic impact of $2.5 million each year. The show set for last May was canceled because of coronavirus restrictions.

“For many years, I’ve been reflecting on what I would do if I was ever mayor and how would I run the city, what changes I would make, what initiatives I would put into effect that I believe would be helpful to continue on moving in the right direction for the city,” Gregory said.

Gregory said one of her priorities would be increasing economic development.

“You say economic development and some people immediately think in terms, ‘Well it’s going to cost the city more money,’” she said. “It’s going to cost maybe putting in sewers and infrastructure but with infrastructure follows business and housing growth. So I view economic development as an investment, not a cost.

“We need to have a collaboration between businesses that actually provide financial and physical support and then that, in turn, produces goods and service which generates a profit for the city. The city, I believe, needs to work on infrastructure, collaboration, incentives, just to support the local businesses, support new businesses coming in and to keep a great business climate.

“I believe that in local government, that leadership starts at the top to produce a positive business culture in the city,” she said. “And I will make it known that economic development is my priority, retention of businesses and expansion of businesses is our goal and objective.”

Gregory said “health and safety” of residents is another top concern for hers, as is working with other cities to proactively address common issues.

“In a sense, even though we may be separate cities, we’re all in this together especially when we think about some of the safety issues that we are faced with at this present time,” Gregory said. “I think it is still important to have collaboration between the mayors and St. Clair County.”

Gregory said she would work to market and promote the city.

“Belleville has many positive things to offer, things that we are well known for. I think we need to expand on those,” she said. “We need to build up East St. Louis, also in ways that we can work with people because that is not only going to help their city but it also is going to help every city in the metro-east.”

Gregory said she wants to see development throughout the city.

“I think we need to think of the city as a whole and not just downtown is one thing, the west end is one thing, the east end is one thing,” she said. “I think we need to work on all of Belleville, not just one end or the other end or the middle.”

Gregory said she wants to work with groups such as the West End Redevelopment Corp., Neighbors for Renewal, Habitat for Humanity and high school trades classes to improve housing. Also, she said she would like to see a marketing campaign about young people staying in the community.

Gregory sums up her ideas for the the city like this: “The strategy is go, engage, collaborate and commit.”

“I do want to make one thing very clear,” she said. “I am running a very positive campaign. I am a person that wants to build up a city and not tear people down.”

This story was originally published November 17, 2020 at 5:00 AM.

Mike Koziatek

Belleville News-Democrat

Mike Koziatek is a former journalist for the Belleville News-Democrat