It was said there was a full house at the last board meeting  and for good reason. Residents of Cottleville Trails showed up, spoke out, and made one simple request: honor the commitments that had already been made. The neighborhood pool, promised for over a year and a half, had cleared every hurdle. Developers met the requirements. The city had the plan in hand. All that was left was final approval.

So why, just mere weeks before, did Mayor Steven Manoj Thompson suddenly throw a wrench into the process?

This wasn’t a misunderstanding or some minor oversight. The timing was too precise, too deliberate. Was it a power play? A misguided attempt to reassert authority? Whatever the motive, the consequences are clear: Thompson stalled a long-awaited project that residents had every right to expect. In the end, it didn’t stop progress it just exposed how far the mayor is willing to go to create unnecessary drama. If a lawsuit had come from this fiasco, it would’ve been entirely of his own making. Let’s call it what it is “Shady Steven” fell off his high horse.

But Thompson’s meddling didn’t end there.

Which brings me to last week when Shady Stephen proudly posted the when and where of the “No Kings” protest on his Facebook page, like it was the social event of the season. Now, why would a mayor endorse something like “No Kings”? Simple. He just can’t help himself. It’s in his nature to bend over backwards to please the loudest crowd in the room unless, of course, that crowd includes conservatives or anyone who dares to admire President Trump. It’s almost impressive how he manages to virtue-signal and alienate half the city in one post. At this point, hiding his woke agenda isn’t even on the agenda.

And the concerns keep mounting.

Reports have surfaced that Mayor Thompson has been using his personal email account to conduct official city business. That’s not just a red flag , it’s a flashing siren. In an era where public trust hinges on transparency, this behavior is deeply unethical. Using personal channels for public matters creates a convenient escape from scrutiny ,a digital backdoor for hiding inconvenient truths or shielding political allies. For someone who campaigned on openness and accountability, the hypocrisy is staggering.

Let’s not forget the issue of public access. Residents have long asked for board meetings and work sessions to be live-streamed , and the equipment is already in place. So why the continued delay?

The answer may be simple, and unsettling: Mayor Thompson doesn’t want to be seen at least not unfiltered. He doesn’t want a livestream showing him fumbling through procedures, asking confused questions, or losing control of the agenda. It’s not about policy. It’s about ego. And transparency is easy to promise until it threatens that ego.

Cottleville deserves better. It deserves leadership that listens, not lectures. That follows through, not folds under pressure. That puts residents first, not personal image.

Mayor Thompson ran on change. Unfortunately, the only thing he’s changed is how obvious it is when someone lets power go to their head.