ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. – County Executive Sam Page vetoed a bill intended to fund a small farm, citing legal restrictions on direct funding.

Instead of the direct funding proposed in the bill, Page suggested a $4.5 million public bidding plan to address the issue.

Councilwoman Shalonda Webb, who sponsored the bill, criticized the veto as a failure in leadership.

Dail Chambers is the founder of Coahoma Orchards and pleaded with the council to treat each other with human respect.

She dropped out of the project less than a week after it passed.

She spoke at the meeting stating,

“It’s unfortunate that there was no protection for me, as it is that I’ve been dragged into a situation that I stepped away from. For just $35,000 to create a raspberry field,” the farmer continued, “It’s silly; I had the smallest part of the budget, but I care more about being on the right side of history.”

Webb has been vocal in her support for the farmers involved, including the owner of Rustic Roots, who is a personal acquaintance of her former assistant.

Some speakers are even challenging if the grant should go toward food insecurity at all due to the council’s lack of research on this bill.

Tom Sullivan claimed, “One of the most critical things to know in the matter was the number of grocery stores in the Spanish Lake area—there are several and they almost all carry fresh produce all year round. I could identify 7 but the council didn’t bother to check.”

Many questioned why there wasn’t more planning and begged the council to figure out a solution for the sake of the community.

All facts from this article were gathered by KTVI journalists. This article was converted into this format with assistance from artificial intelligence.  It has been edited and approved by KTVI staff.