In his eighth and final state of the city address, Springfield Mayor Ken McClure delivered a retrospective and a prospective. He celebrated some accomplishments, highlighted some opportunities and acknowledged challenges facing the city.
McClure is term-limited by the Springfield City Charter in 2025 and is unable to seek election to another term. He referred to his tenure as mayor and a city council member as “the honor of my lifetime,” crediting the trust of Springfield voters and the support of his family.
“I would not trade the experiences, both good and bad, for anything,” McClure said. “I have done my best and am so grateful for the opportunity.”
Mayor McClure pitches charter changes
McClure, who was elected to his fourth two-year term in 2023, said the recent charter change extending the mayoral term to four years — while maintaining the limit of eight consecutive years in office — was a “wise move and will aid my successors in better carrying out their leadership role,” and suggested another change to the mayor’s role in Springfield.
He proposed the mayor be removed as a voting member of the City Council, except in the case of a tie vote of its eight members. McClure proposed the mayor would have veto authority that can be overridden by a supermajority of council members, citing the commonality of the structure in other Missouri cities.
McClure also advocated for a change to the Springfield City Charter to increase the mayor’s current pay of $200 a month to $10,000 a year, and provide council members, who are currently unpaid, $7,500 annually.
“While these are volunteer positions, they are increasingly time consuming and personally expensive,” McClure said. “This limits the ability of less resourced individuals to run for office.”
Mayor calls on legislature to outlaw minors from owning handguns
In highlighting the overall reduction of crime in Springfield, McClure expressed grave concern with continued gun violence, particularly in how it affects the city’s youth.
“We cannot just rely on the police department to solve this problem,” McClure said. “Any effort to decrease gun violence needs to be community-wide, involving community leaders, faith leaders, business leaders, academic leaders, mental health leaders, parents and family members.”
While praising the efforts of the newly-formed Gun Safety and Violence Reduction Collaborative and the passage of a state law — Senate Bill 754 — prohibiting celebratory gunfire and the reckless, unlawful discharge of a firearm within the limits of a municipality, McClure called on the Missouri General Assembly to make state law consistent with federal law by outlawing juveniles from possessing a handgun.
“This is a common sense measure,” McClure said. “It does not violate the Second Amendment, but, like Senate Bill 754, it puts reasoned controls in place to prevent those who should not have guns from having them.”
McClure touts projects, economic development potential
Pointing to the recent completion of a comprehensive housing study and programs offered by Restore SGF, McClure emphasized that the city is committed to improving Springfield’s housing stock, partly through proactive code enforcement and engaging stakeholders in the enforcement process.
“We are serious about addressing properties that are considered chronic nuisances, that bring trouble to neighborhoods,” McClure said. “The city’s Building and Development Services is taking a proactive approach in addressing these properties, transitioning from a complaint-based approach to a proactive one that puts code enforcement inspectors into the field where the most problems are occurring and not waiting for complaints.”
McClure also highlighted the city government’s focus on quality of place, citing ongoing and upcoming projects like Renew Jordan Creek, renovations to the Springfield Art Museum and the Grant Avenue Avenue Parkway project.
He lauded public and private investments in the local economy, pointing to a slate of recent developments including Buc-ee’s and the soon-to-open Moxy Hotel, and the workforce and economic development potential of the Lake Springfield plan, the Alliance for Healthcare Education and improvements to LeCompte Road.
Mayor encourages continued focus on mental health
Acknowledging mental health challenges facing the community, particularly the above-average suicide mortality rate in Springfield, McClure encouraged listeners “really get to know one another” and embrace the importance of being a good neighbor.
In his conclusion, McClure emphasized the need to help children develop a strong sense of self-worth by encouraging their dreams, demonstrating empathy and providing them with love. Surrounded by current and former Springfield City Council members, McClure emotionally closed his final state of the city by quoting President Theodore Roosevelt:
“It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”
The full State of the City speech, which was delivered at Evangel University's Spence Chapel on June 6 for the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce's monthly “Good Morning, Springfield!” event, can be viewed here.
