Lombard's Fitzpatrick not running for reelection

After serving eight years on the Lombard village board, Trustee Laura Fitzpatrick has decided it's time to move on.

"I took my turn in the village of Lombard," said Fitzpatrick, who is not seeking re-election in April.

The District 5 representative is now working as district office director for State Sen. Chris Nybo. She worked for Nybo several years ago when he was a state representative.

"My flexibility won't be there like it used to be and I don't want to limit what I can do for the village," she said of trying to juggle both jobs.

While there are aspects of being on the board that she will miss, Fitzpatrick said she's looking forward to working in government full-time once her term ends in May.

"Government is a very exciting place to work. Every day is a little different," she said. "It's very quick-paced, pretty demanding, reasonably stressful, but a very interesting and exciting business to be in."

During her time as a trustee, Fitzpatrick said she was pleased to see customer service and communication from village hall improve "100 percent."

She is also proud of the development of the village's historic downtown area, which she said has been ongoing since she joined the board.

Fitzpatrick said she actually started to gain an interest in joining the board because of her work to save the historic DuPage Theatre. The building was demolished, however, just days before she took her seat in 2007.

"I'm really proud to say as I'm leaving, we're saving two important historical buildings in the downtown," she said, referring to the bank building at 1 S. Park Ave. and an old hotel at 101 W. St. Charles Road. "That makes me feel good."

Fitzpatrick said she felt she made a difference by fighting to keep the village's gambling ban in place. She is also pleased with the progress that was made to address flooding issues in her district, which covers an area on the northeast side of the village.

Recently, Fitzpatrick met with the two candidates for her seat - Lori Solyom and Robyn Pike - to tell them what the job entails. She hasn't made a decision yet on who she might vote for, but said she was pleased to see two women running for the position.

After she leaves, Fitzpatrick hopes the village board will continue to watch spending and keep a "frugal attitude."

"I know that we're just a small cog in the giant bill that the taxpayer pays, but that's my responsibility," she said.

Fitzpatrick and former Trustee Peter Breen often voted the same way, but Fitzpatrick said Breen's resignation last month had nothing to do with her decision to leave.

Breen vacated the seat on Dec. 31 to prepare for his new job as a state representative. According to municipal code, the village president is required to fill the vacancy within 60 days of Breen's resignation, or by March 1.

However, Village President Keith Giagnorio said he plans to leave Breen's seat open and let voters decide in April who should fill it.

"Realistically, you're looking at maybe one or two meetings that that appointed trustee would be involved in," he said.

As for losing Fitzpatrick, Giagnorio said he will miss having someone with her experience on the board.

"To be able to look over to someone who's been through tough votes, tough issues, and see how they handle it and get a different perspective is really beneficial," he said.

While he didn't always agree with Fitzpatrick, Giagnorio said he admired the way she respectfully listened to everyone but didn't waver on her convictions.

"She would have her opinion on an issue and, really, she felt her way and let everyone know where she was coming from and she stood behind it," he said.

Fitzpatrick agreed that facing people who disagreed with her didn't matter as much as doing what she felt was right.

"I never shied away from a challenge and I was never afraid to take criticism if I thought I was doing the right thing," she said.