Naperville homeowners group schedules candidate forums
The Naperville Area Homeowners Confederation has announced the dates for its February and March candidate forums in advance of the April 2015 election.
The confederation will host a pair of forums for Naperville City Council candidates and a forum for mayoral candidates either in advance of a primary vote or before the election on April 7. A series of forums also will introduce voters to candidates for the Naperville Park District board as well as for the school boards for Naperville Unit District 203 and Indian Prairie Unit District 204.
"For many years the confederation has been providing Naperville-area voters with the insights necessary to make informed decisions at the ballot box," confederation President Bob Fischer said.
"Given the significant impacts on homeowner property tax bills that these boards and commissions on the spring 2015 ballot have, we are pleased to provide an opportunity for the voters to learn more about these candidates and their plans if elected."
With 20 candidates who have filed to run for Naperville's city council, the confederation plans to invite 10 candidates to each of two forums to give each candidate an adequate opportunity to be heard. The city council forums are scheduled for Tuesday, March 24, and Thursday, March 26.
Candidate invitations will be based on a random drawing during the confederation's general membership meeting on Saturday, Dec. 13, at the Knoch Knolls Nature Center, 320 Knoch Knolls Road, Naperville.
Open to all Naperville homeowners, the meeting begins with coffee and networking at 8 a.m., followed by the meeting at 8:30 a.m. The agenda includes a discussion of new development in Naperville.
Mayoral candidates will meet voters in a separate forum. Given the possibility of a February primary election to narrow the announced field to four candidates, the mayoral forum is scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 5.
A second forum date, Monday, March 16, has also been earmarked for the mayoral race and further announcements will be made as questions around ballot challenges are resolved.
The confederation will host a forum for candidates for the Naperville Park District board on Monday, March 2. Candidates for the Naperville Unit District 203 school board are scheduled for a forum on Wednesday, Feb. 11. A forum for Indian Prairie Unit District 204 candidates is Tuesday, March 10.
"These forums represent the entities on the ballot with the biggest impacts on a homeowner's annual real estate tax bill," Fischer said. "We are also considering a forum date for the College of DuPage elections and details on that possibility will be released in early January."
The confederation's election forums follow a prescribed format of questions from both the confederation and audience members. In addition to answering questions, candidates will be provided an opportunity for opening and closing statements.
All questions will be posed by the confederation's forum moderator, with each candidate at a forum provided the same questions and given a specific time period for their answers.
All forums begin at 7 p.m. in the city council chambers at the Naperville Municipal Center, 400 S. Eagle St. The candidate forums also will be broadcast live on the Naperville Public Access Station WCNC (Channel 6 WOW, Channel 10 Comcast and Channel 99 AT&T). Forums will be replayed in the weeks prior to the elections.
For information, visit napervillehomeowners.com.