Incumbents leading in Vernon Hills trustee race

Voters in Vernon Hills are opting for experience, re-electing three incumbent trustees who already have more than a half century of combined tenure on the village board.

Trustees Thom Koch Jr., James Schultz and Barbara Williams outdistanced challenger Ted Sindermann in today’s election.

Unofficial results have Koch leading with 772 votes, followed by Schultz with 742 votes and Williams with 726 votes. Sindermann tallied 490 votes.

Koch is a teacher and has served as a trustee since 1993. Williams is bus company manager, who served on the village board from 1981 to 1993, including four years as mayor and then again as a trustee since 2001. Schultz, a consultant and retired distribution engineering manager, has been on the board since 2005. Sindermann said he respected the incumbents and wanted to freshen rather than reform the board.

During the campaign, the incumbents cited their experience in several areas including financial management, the ability to fill revenue gaps as retailers left and other development matters as strengths. All three said they wanted to see several projects through, including the proposed expansion of the Westfield Hawthorn shopping center.