America’s Central Port features a nine-member Board of Commissioners composed of local leadership in the Port Authority’s service area. These local municipalities are given the power to appoint their own representatives to the Board; a responsibility that is shared with the State of Illinois. Several former and current elected officials serve on the Board of Commissioners including the current Mayors of Alton- David Goins; Madison- Jon Hamm III,; Venice- Phillip White Jr.; and Granite City- Mike Parkinson, as well as former Madison County Clerk Debbie Ming-Mendoza and Venice Community School District 3 School Board Member Tisha Glasper.
Recent attendance at America’s Central Port’s Board of Commissioners has highlighted a growing dissatisfaction among area residents with Port Authority business. Several citizens have expressed outrage regarding alleged backroom deals involving the Port’s acquisition of new property for future development.
Mary McCoy, a local resident with property near land that the Port Authority recently leased to Robert Mueller for agricultural use, and her husband Charles McCoy both spoke at the Board of Commissioner’s April 11, 2026 Meeting. They expressed their dismay regarding Board Commissioners and their continued alleged attempts at attracting a data center developer, with particular mention of Granite City Mayor Parkinson. Their concerns were elevated at the meeting because of how close this potential data center could be to their property, an emotional connection to agriculture in the region, and the impact that new builds would have on their peaceful way of life. Heather Groetecke also presented a petition that featured 800 signatures from residents in the 62040 zip code in opposition to the creation of data centers in the region at the April meeting…