SULLIVAN – Sullivan Mayor J.T. Hardy has been appointed to a bi-state board that prioritizes road and bridge projects and makes decisions about how much state and federal funding those projects get. The East-West Gateway Council of Governments (East-West Gateway) is made up of elected officials from local governments in Missouri and Illinois. Some of those officials include St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay and St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley. The council consists of 24 voting members, 12 of which are from Missouri and 12 from Illinois. Ed Hillhouse, who serves as chair of East-West Gateway and is also the presiding commissioner of Franklin County, said he appointed Hardy to the council because he wanted the Sullivan area to have representation on the board. “It’s an important group,” he said. “It has the authority to vote and plan for the future of our roads and bridges, and we need a voice in our area. He will have a voice just like the other 11 representatives from Missouri. The resources are always limited and the money’s going to go somewhere else if we don’t speak up.”
Hardy will be voting on projects (such as) the new bridge from Interstate 270 across the Mississippi River, which is a multi-billion dollar project.
“There are some big names on the board, and it’s a big honor and responsibility to have a vote on a billion-dollar budget,” Hardy said. “I think it’s great for Franklin County and the Sullivan area to have that kind of input in the decision-making process. We’ll have a seat at the table when the dollars are being divided up and spent.”
East-West Gateway votes on federal and state monies that go toward road and bridge projects in the region. The federal money deals with appropriations, stimulus money and special monies that are given to Missouri and Illinois, Hillhouse explained. Most of the state money comes from the Missouri and Illinois departments of transportation. Not too long ago, the council voted on the Elmont Road overpass in Sullivan. “The people of Sullivan voted to pay for half of it and MoDOT paid for the other half, so that’s one of those things we voted on,” he said.
Hillhouse said he also appointed Hardy because of his role in local government, and the experience he’ll get on the council will be valuable not only for him, but the Sullivan area. “It gives our representatives throughout the county an opportunity to see what East-West Gateway is all about and puts them in contact with various people that are in charge of making this all come together.”
That’s beneficial for the communities of the representatives, Hillhouse said, which is why he tries to appoint officials from different areas every other year. “It can make communities stronger, and my goal has always been to appoint someone from a different county each time,” he said.
(Jaime Baranyai can be reached at 860-NEWS or by e-mail at
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