Glen Ellyn's Civic Betterment Party picks 3 for village board

A Glen Ellyn school board president, an architectural review commissioner and a political newcomer have won the support of Glen Ellyn's Civic Betterment Party to fill three open seats on the village board.

The candidates who will have the party's support in the upcoming spring village election are Glen Ellyn Elementary District 41 Board President John Kenwood, village architectural review commissioner Mark Senak and resident Carol Fontana.

Kenwood received 407 votes from Glen Ellyn residents at the party's Saturday town hall meeting and elections, while Senak and Fontana received 349 and 347 votes, respectively.

Current village trustee Peter Ladesic also was vying for the party's support, but he did not get enough votes, receiving just 326.

If elected, Senak, Kenwood and Fontana will replace village trustees Diane McGinley, James Burket and Ladesic. Typically, candidates who garner enough votes at the party's town meeting have gone on to win the election.

Before election results were tallied, residents got to hear from the four village trustee candidates the party had slated for Saturday's town hall meeting at the Glen Ellyn Civic Center.

The party's nominating committee interviewed all potential candidates for the open positions and took a vote on who they wanted to slate for the Saturday meeting.

It was then up to the residents to determine who would be the official party candidates. Residents were able to vote Saturday or earlier in the week.

“To me, the most important part of the whole process is that it allows citizens who want to serve the community the opportunity to run for village offices, not have to raise money, not have to organize a campaign,” Civic Betterment Party President Erik Ford said.

Residents can still run against the chosen party candidates, but they have to spearhead their own campaigns. The next step for the party is to help its candidates file their nominating petitions to get on the spring ballot.

Kenwood has been on the District 41 school board since 2005. Among his many remarks, Kenwood said he thinks the village should continue to explore technology so that they can use it more efficiently and improve services.

In her Saturday speech, Fontana said her goal as a village trustee will be to maintain an open mind.

“I will listen first and speak second,” she said.

Senak said he will be a trustee who works hard, comes prepared for meetings, knows the issues and listens to his constituents.

“I will not remain behind the table, but I will reach out into the community, become a part of the community, and listen to the people in the community to try and understand their problems and to try and propose creative solutions to solve them,” he said.

The party also slated six candidates for four open positions on the Glen Ellyn Public Library board.

The four nominees are Molly McGinnis Knapke (345 votes), Barbara Rundell (325 votes), Jill Clouse (324 votes) and Chris Crawford (322 votes).