ST. LOUIS—Joe Vollmer, who has represented the area around The Hill neighborhood on the St. Louis Board of Aldermen for more than 20 years, will not seek a new term in 2025.

Filing for the March primary opened Monday. Vollmer said he’s endorsing Matt Devoti, an attorney who filed for the race on the first day. The two talked months ago as rumors started to spill out that Vollmer was thinking about stepping away.

Vollmer will look to spend more time with his wife Susie and looking after his restaurant, Bocce Garden, also located in The Hill. First elected in 2003, Vollmer found himself in a critical role in 2022, when he “woke up” one day and found that he was President of the Board, when then-President Lewis Reed, and Vice President Jeffrey Boyd resigned after they, along with fellow aldermen John Collins Muhammad, were indicted on federal corruption charges.

Vollmer became acting president of the board and opted against running for the permanent position. He nearly decided against running for his own seat two years ago, but after talking with his wife, he said Tuesday it was important to stay on as the board prepared to transition from 28 to 14 wards. 

A young progressive base has grown on the board in recent years. Vollmer joked that some of them were in grade school when he was first elected. That base, led by Board President Megan Green, is expected to put forward a bill next week to outline what to do with the city’s share $250 million and growing with interest) of the NFL settlement, with attention paid to results of public surveys that have cited infrastructure, childcare needs and improved city employee salaries, among other areas. 

A competing bill backed by Greater St. Louis Inc. would spend $100 million on downtown infrastructure and $130 million in areas of north and southeast St. Louis.

Vollmer says both sides have merit but that it’s time to find a compromise. 

“You can’t deny Greater St. Louis is putting its money where its mouth is,” Vollmer, said citing GSL’s pledge that the business community would match the $100 million investment in downtown.

He sees a path that would include keeping something in the pot for future needs, noting at the very least the annual interest that’s earned. The fruits of any decision will come long after Vollmer is done with city politics. 

The last day of his aldermanic career will be April 21, the last day of the 2024-2025 session.