Charter commission member Colleen Wasinger, who sponsored the measure, said she was “disappointed that the majority of commission members did not advance professional management to be considered by the voters. I feel that is a decision on a material issue that the charter commission should not make. The voters of St. Louis County should be given the opportunity to decide their form of government.”

But commission member Tony Weaver Sr. said, “I don’t see a major problem with the current structure that we have in place today. Everyone is always trying to fight the Stenger era and what he did. … I think we need to regroup and focus on policies and procedures in place that aren’t working and fix those.”

Weaver said the county needs to address economic disparity in St. Louis County and problems that some perceive in the police department.

“A city manager is not going to be able to fix that,” Weaver said.

Under the charter, the commission has until Dec. 31 to come up with changes to the charter. If at least nine members agree on revisions, those would go to county voters in 2020.

Editor’s note: This item has been updated to correct the name of Tony Weaver Sr.

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