Larson will seek eighth term as Schaumburg mayor
Schaumburg Mayor Al Larson is getting the band back together as he prepares to seek an eighth term in office next spring.
Larson will be joined on the ballot by village trustees George Dunham, Mark Madej and Tom Dailly, as well as Village Clerk Marilyn Karr, whose terms also will be ending next year.
"I could use the cliché, 'There's still work to be done,' but in this case it's true," Larson said. "As far as the area by Motorola (Solutions) and Zurich Insurance, I think there's a whole area around there ripe for redevelopment. I want to make sure we continue to pressure the reduction of the property tax levy. I'm still engaged in the community, and I'm still engaged with regional planning organizations to ensure the welfare of Schaumburg."
The village's redevelopment plans to which Larson refers include a tax increment finance district running generally along Algonquin Road near the Motorola campus. Officials hope the TIF will spur development of an entertainment district surrounding the Schaumburg Renaissance Hotel and Convention Center.
When Larson was first sworn in as mayor in May 1987, the national headlines were not of war and terrorism, but personal scandals like Democratic presidential candidate Gary Hart's alleged extramarital affair with model Donna Rice, and accusations of sexual misconduct and financial fraud against televangelist Jim Bakker.
Before becoming mayor, Larson was a trustee for 12 years - taking his service on the village board back to 1975 and the immediate aftermath of the Vietnam War.
Dunham, Madej, Dailly and Karr all confirmed their intentions to run again.
Dunham is the board's senior trustee, having first been elected in 1991.
Dailly had been senior trustee, with 20 years of service before he decided not to run in 2009. He returned last year to fill the vacancy created by Trustee Hank Curcio's resignation, saying the time away had given him a chance to recharge his batteries.
Madej was appointed to the board in 2005, filling the board seat left open when Trustee Pat Riley resigned to join the Regional Transportation Authority board. Madej won his first election in 2007.
Municipal elections are scheduled for Tuesday, April 7, 2015, and a potential primary would take place Tuesday, Feb. 24. A primary would be triggered if the number of candidates who file for a particular office exceeds four times the number of seats available.
For the office of trustee, for example, in which three seats are available, 13 candidates would need to file to trigger a primary. Even then, the primary would eliminate only the lowest voted candidate.
Because of the potential of the primary, the filing dates for Schaumburg races are earlier than municipalities that will hold their elections only on April 7. The filing period for Schaumburg candidates will run from Monday, Nov. 17 to Monday, Nov. 24.
Karr said the nominating petitions for Schaumburg candidates require a minimum of 76 signatures - 1 percent of the number of people who voted in the 2011 mayoral election.
Karr added that she's not heard of any potential candidates besides the incumbents in the 2015 election.
In 2011, Larson was challenged by then Schaumburg resident Brian Costin, who now lives in Buffalo Grove.