Resident Miles Yeary discussed the “Happy the Troll,” a city revitalization idea, on July 20 with the Steelville aldermen after he read comments made by Mayor Duane DeRennaux in the Steelville Star-Crawford Mirror article covering the July 7 Steelville Forward meeting.

Steelville Forward, a local revitalization group for the city, first pitched Happy the Troll to aldermen at the June 16 meeting. The vision is a troll statue that would live in Hoppe Spring Park and help draw tourists to the city.

During the July 7 Steelville Forward meeting, DeRennaux said that they shouldn’t count on the troll happening, and that it is a long process to put their plan into effect.

Yeary said that the article indicated that there was some skepticism about the troll, but DeRennaux said that “unnecessary” was a better word for the situation.

After viewing comments made about the idea, Yeary said that about 80 percent were positive, and some gave their own ideas for Happy the Troll.

“I’ve spent time with the idea of Happy. I see her as a young woman, and this is young in troll years, she may be 100 years old, but this is her first adult assignment to go out and be a protector and a defender of the spring,” Yeary said. “Very friendly, she loves kids, she loves pets, she loves ducks….She’s a very friendly, kind, young woman of a troll.”

Alderman Ward 1 Curtis Crouch said that, to try to bring Happy into existence, Steelville Forward needs to follow procedure and present the idea to the Steelville Parks and Recreation Board, as they are the ones who direct the budget for these kinds of projects and decide whether to recommend it to the aldermen.

Kurt Merseal, Parks and Rec board member, said that he would add Yeary to the Aug. 11 meeting agenda.

Emerald Pitts, Steelville High School art teacher, also shared her support for Happy the Troll.

“Steelville is the center of my professional life, my service and my hopes for the future. When Steelville thrives, our entire community flourishes,” Pitts said. “Upon graduating from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, I had many opportunities to stay in a city where art and culture were already thriving. Instead, after much prayer and discernment, I chose to come home because I believe this community is worth investing in.”

As someone who works with a lot of the community’s youth, she has heard many express that they don’t see a future for themselves in Steelville. Pitts wants her students to see a community that truly values creativity. She asked the aldermen what change the citizens of Steelville are willing to help create instead of letting it happen.

“The visitors are already coming. What gives them a reason to stop?” Pitts asked. “Every year we encourage our students to pursue higher education. What gives them a reason to bring what they learn back home, to a place they’re proud to call home? Our greatest resource is not our buildings or our rivers, it is our young people.”

While she is aware that not everyone loves the troll statue idea, she said that supporting it is “a vote for imagination. It’s a vote for believing that Steelville’s future is worth building.”

Yeary also addressed the part of the article where DeRennaux discussed plans for the Spring Street bridge.

At the July 6 aldermen meeting, they had talked about possibly widening the bridge slightly to make it both a driving and pedestrian bridge, which would qualify the project for a grant.

Crouch said that they are pursuing the project as a slightly wider traffic bridge with a separate pedestrian walkway, down the eastern side of it.

Yeary suggested that the new bridge possibly have two lanes with a completely separate pedestrian bridge to keep them safe and away from traffic.

Later in the meeting, the aldermen discussed placing signs saying that it is safe for pedestrians to walk on the bridge.

Alderman Ward 2 Jason Ward announced that the Meramec Regional Planning Commission is sponsoring a walk and bike audit in Steelville. The event starts at 5 p.m. on Aug. 6 at the Perkins Pavilion.

“It’s an opportunity for people to get out in the community and see things that you know might need to be taken note of,” Ward said.

While on the audit, participants will experience the streets and trails and discuss active transportation in Steelville.

They encourage participants to wear comfortable shoes and clothing, bring plenty of water and bring a helmet if biking. Extra water, snacks, safety vests and helmets will be provided.

Any questions can be directed to Orin Pogue at opogue@meramecregion.org, or sign up at tinyurl.com/steelvilleaudit.

In other business, while an official plan hasn’t been made, Merseal said that they have been thinking of a new extended route for the Greenway Trail.

He will work with Patterson and Crouch to come up with a more defined route.