ST. LOUIS — Jack Coatar announced Monday he will not seek reelection as the alderman of St. Louis' 7th Ward or any other positions in the upcoming municipal elections.
Coatar has served as the 7th Ward's alderman for the last seven years. The ward contains parts or all of 11 of the city's neighborhoods, including Downtown, Downtown West, Fox Park, Lafayette Square and Soulard.
In November, Coatar lost the race to determine who would fill the remainder of the former board president Lewis Reed’s term.
Coatar's announcement comes as the city prepares to cut the number of aldermen in half. The reduction will take effect after the municipal elections this spring.
"In the coming months, I look forward to finishing my term as 7th Ward Alderman," he said in the statement. "There is still a lot of work to be done to improve our community, and I look forward to finding new ways to serve the City and region."
In a Tweet, President of the Board of Aldermen Megan Green provided a response to Coatar's announcement:
Much of the current 7th Ward was put into the new 8th Ward under the new map. Cara Spencer, who represents the 20th Ward and narrowly lost the race for mayor in 2021, announced she would run in the new 8th Ward on Monday.
The 14-ward map is based on the 2020 Census. Each ward in the final version of the map has about 21,500 residents. There are seven minority preference wards and seven white preference wards. A city spokesperson said more than 85% of neighborhoods were kept intact in a single ward.
You can see each ward in the final version of the map below, or by clicking here.
