Wade wins more than 61 percent of votes

Jerry Wade emerged as the winner in a race for the Fourth Ward city council seat that pitted two members of the Columbia Planning and Zoning Commission against each other.

Wade defeated commission colleague Mike Holden, garnering 2,455 votes, or 61.22 percent, to Holden’s 1,552 votes, or 38.7 percent.

He’ll replace Jim Loveless, who did not seek re-election after serving a total of nine years on the council, three as a representative of the Second Ward from 1989 to 1991 and the past six as the Fourth Ward representative.

Wade’s campaign focused on the role of the council, development policy and economic expansion. Wade said the council should function as a policy-making body, leaving operations and project planning details to city staff and professionals while allowing citizen input. He also called for an overhaul of the city’s zoning codes and said the city needs to set and follow development policies that are clear, fair and proactive.

Wade, a 66-year-old retired University Extension specialist, said during an election party at the House of Chow on Tuesday night that he was not surprised by the margin by which he won. However, he was reluctant to celebrate too early.

When the final results came in around 10:45 p.m., about two dozen supporters remained to congratulate Wade. After a call confirming his victory, Wade’s wife, Edge, presented him with a scrapbook compiled of news articles and campaign paraphernalia to commemorate the campaign.

As they looked through the book, Wade had an expression of awe.

“Wow,” he said.

Wade breathed a deep sigh of relief after learning he won. “I’m glad it’s over,” he said.

Holden, 36, who has been president of Guaranty Land Title Insurance since 1997, watched election returns with supporters at Truman’s Bar and Grill. He left around 10 p.m. with about 50 percent of the precincts reporting and his candidacy trailing by a 20 percent margin.

“I hope to wake up to a narrow victory,” he said. But even without a win, he said, he would continue to serve the city through the Imagine Columbia’s Future visioning process and the Planning and Zoning Commission.

Holden took some heat during his campaign for what some called a negative campaign. He criticized Wade’s vote in favor of a rezoning request that allowed the construction of a Wal-Mart Supercenter on west Broadway. But he eschewed accusations of negativity.

Another major issue in the Fourth Ward dealt with pending changes along historic west Broadway.

Wade supports a proposal from west Broadway residents that calls for three lanes, a curbed and guttered street, a new water line, underground power lines, a 5-foot sidewalk on one side and an 8-foot pedway on the other.

Holden agreed with most of that but said an 8-foot pedway was too much.

In the end, it was Wade’s message that carried the majority.

Steve Spellman, a 32-year-old banker who cast his ballot at Trinity Presbyterian Church, said he liked Wade’s stances on planned growth.

“Most of the time a developer goes in, pushes the right buttons, and projects get approved,” Spellman said. “That’s how we got Scott Boulevard and Clark Lane.”