All DuPage forest preserve seats are up Tuesday
Editor’s note: Story being republished Friday, March 16 to correct comments incorrectly attributed to District 5 candidate Carl Schultz.
By Elisabeth Mistretta
emistretta@dailyherald.com
It only happens once every 10 years, but this year every seat on the DuPage Forest Preserve District is up for election. And in Tuesday’s primary, three races have several Republicans competing for their party’s nomination, while all Democrats are running unopposed. Here is a rundown:
District 1: Incumbent Marsha Murphy of Addison is unopposed for the Republican nomination Tuesday, and she will face Democrat Michael Braun, also of Addison, in the November general election. District 1 includes all or parts of Addison, Bensenville, Elmhurst, Itasca, Lombard, Roselle, Villa Park and Wood Dale.
District 2: Republican incumbent Joe Cantore of Oakbrook Terrace will run unchallenged; no one has filed to run on the Democratic side. District 2 includes all or parts of Clarendon Hills, Downers Grove, Elmhurst, Hinsdale, Lisle, Lombard, Oak Brook, Oakbrook Terrace, Villa Park, Westmont and Woodridge.
District 3: Both the Republican and Democratic candidates are unopposed. Incumbent Republican Linda Painter of Hinsdale will face Democratic challenger Steve Leopoldo of Westmont in the fall. The district includes all or parts of Bolingbrook, Burr Ridge, Clarendon Hills, Darien, Downers Grove, Hinsdale, Lemont, Naperville, Westmont, Willowbrook and Woodridge.
District 4: Longtime Republican incumbent Michael Formento of Glen Ellyn faces a challenge from Tim Whelan of Wheaton.
Both say changes should be made to district salaries and pension packages, but neither directly advocates cutting commissioners’ $57,000 annual salaries and neither indicated they would necessarily refuse a pension for themselves. Tuesday’s winner will face Democrat Robert “Bob” Flesvig in November.
District 4 includes all or parts of Addison, Carol Stream, Downers Grove, Glen Ellyn, Glendale Heights, Lombard, Winfield and Wheaton.
District 5: Three are vying for the Republican nomination: Mary Lou Wehrli and Charles Schneider, both of Naperville, are challenging incumbent Carl Schultz of Aurora. Democrat Dennis Clark is unopposed.
The three Republicans disagree on land acquisition policies. Schneider said there is no more land to be had, and tax money gained for this purpose through a referendum should be returned to taxpayers. Wehrli said there are still small parcels available, but she worries about taking land off the tax rolls and said balance is key in making such decisions. Schultz said he agrees with the district’s current policy, especially since voters gave it a nod with the recent referendum. He added now is the time to look to land purchases, while land prices are low.
District 5 includes all or parts of Aurora, Lisle, Naperville and Warrenville.
District 6: Republican Commissioner Roger Kotecki is stepping down after 20 years. Now four new candidates are vying for the Republican nomination: Kory Atkinson of Roselle, Peter Connolly of Wayne, Al Murphy of West Chicago and Arthur Pierscionek of Bartlett. All say commissioner pensions and salaries should be reformed, but they disagree on how much.
Atkinson is the only candidate who supports keeping salaries at their current $57,000 for a job that requires 1,000 hours of annual service. He says the pay is an incentive for qualified leaders. But he also said it would be wrong to accept a pension.
Murphy takes a stronger stance on pensions, saying his goal in his first year in office would be to eliminate the benefit. He also wants to eliminate health insurance benefits for commissioners and reduce their salaries by 20 percent.
Connolly said salaries need to be brought more in line with the pay for DuPage County Board members, which is currently about $50,000 a year. He said he would also forego a pension.
Pierscionek joined the others in saying he would not take a pension for what amounts to a part-time job. Regarding salaries, he said commissioners are making more than county board members, and said a salary of $45,000 would be adequate.
Democrat Shannon Burns is unopposed.
District 6 includes all or parts of Warrenville, Batavia, West Chicago, Wheaton, Winfield, Carol Stream, Bloomingdale, Hanover Park, Bartlett, Wayne and St. Charles.