Rothman Furniture Owner Jay Steinback Seeking Ward 2 Council Seat

When Jay Steinback went in front of Creve Coeur's City Council last fall to present the concerns his family business had about the city's new sign code, he had no idea that a few months later he'd be a candidate for the panel himself.

Last Monday, Steinback, the 34 year-old owner of Rothman Furniture, filed to run for the Ward 2 council seat up for election in April.

"I felt that there wasn't any good representation for businesses obviously on city council not from any lack of them wanting to be pro-business but from just lack of experience of what a business owner deals with on a day-to-day basis," Steinback told Patch.

Like many before him, Steinback points to the lack of a hardware store in the city, and says there are too many commercial vacancies in the city. While careful to point out that he wasn't privvy to all the discussion which took place when Chick-fil-A's proposal failed to pass muster, he did bemoan the fact that the business that will instead end up on part of the former Walgreens site is one that will not generate tax revenue.

Having said all that, Steinback says he would not approve just any business that comes in seeking an application. "The last thing I want is to turn it into Manchester Road," he said of the debate over Chick-fil-A. He said he wants businesses which fit the city's profile and do more than generate traffic on city streets.

On the residential side, Steinback says he supports keeping residential lots with acreage and space that they have, from becoming compacted with many homes on "tiny spaces."

The one thing that would get more crowded if he gets elected, is his schedule. In addition to what Steinback calls a seven day a week job with Rothman, he's involved in philanthropic and venture capital groups, is married and has 2 young children.

But Steinback said he would look forward to using the skills he uses on the business side--finding efficiencies and areas to cut costs when it comes to city affairs.

Tuesday, we'll share our interview with the other declared candidate for the race, Ellen Lawrence. The deadline to file for the April election is Tuesday at 5 p.m.