West Dundee Village President Nelson seeking re-election

By Lauren Rohr

lrohr@dailyherald.com

West Dundee Village President Chris Nelson announced this week he is seeking a second term in office.

Nelson, 45, first was elected to the position in 2013. Since then, he said, the village has made strides in strengthening economic development, improving community relations and partnering with other local governments - efforts he hopes to continue if re-elected next spring.

"I care about this community and I would like to ask residents for the opportunity to continue to serve," Nelson said in a statement. "Given that privilege, I promise to serve the residents of West Dundee to the best of my ability."

Under Nelson's leadership, West Dundee officials and staff have begun implementing a plan to redevelop the village's historic downtown. A roughly $50 million project to renovate Spring Hill Mall is well under way, he said, and the village has secured almost $100 million in private investments to expand its corporate park and renovate parts of downtown.

During his tenure, Nelson said he also has pushed for collaboration between Dundee-area fire entities to share resources and improve services. The West Dundee Fire Department recently decided to share a fire chief and a fire prevention officer with the East Dundee & Countryside Fire Protection District.

Additionally, he said, the village has improved its social media presence, supported community events and developed West Dundee 2020 - a plan to create jobs, increase sales taxes and grow property values.

"The village team and I have been able to work with residents and businesses alike to turn things around in West Dundee," Nelson said. "There is positive activity happening in all parts of town, and we are well on our path to diversifying the economy of the village while finding more ways to increase efficiencies by working with our municipal partners."

Nelson lives in West Dundee with his wife and two daughters and is an executive at Comcast, where he has worked since 2003.

In addition to his leadership role in West Dundee, he serves on the boards of several other organizations throughout the Chicago area, including the Metro Mayor's Caucus, the Kane-Kendall Council of Mayors, the Metro West Council of Governments, and the Boys and Girls Clubs of Dundee Township.