Political newcomer looking to unseat Lake Zurich mayor

Lake Zurich Mayor Thomas Poynton wants a second term in office, but he'll need to defeat a political newcomer in the April election.

Alex Samoila is looking to unseat Poynton in his first attempt at public office. Poynton had been in the middle of a 4-year village board trustee term when he defeated then Mayor Suzanne Branding and Mary Black to become Lake Zurich's top elected official in 2013.

Poynton, 70, a retired sales and marketing executive in the consumer products industry and former small-business owner, is heading the Lake Zurich Proud political slate with candidates for three trustee seats and village clerk. Samoila, 36, who works in the financial services industry, is running independently in the April 4 election.

Downtown redevelopment was one of the issues Poynton and Samoila covered in a Daily Herald editorial board endorsement interview this week.

Poynton said it's a "chicken-and-the-egg" debate on whether retail or residential development should lead the way downtown. Feedback from the development community and research indicate homes would be the best option to pursue at this time because new businesses need to see enough potential customers to support them located downtown, Poynton said.

"I would say the residential should come before the retail," Poynton said.

Samoila said while he "agrees to an extent" that more homes are needed downtown to attract retail development, he questions why there is no estimated number of residents identified to achieve the goal.

"Without having those numbers and a plan to properly execute it, I don't know if we could properly say that residential, or more residential, is needed in a specific area before retail can come in," Samoila said.

When asked what his candidacy represents to residents, Poynton said it's about accomplishments under his administration over nearly four years that include establishment of the Rock the Block festival held in September downtown. He was first elected as a village trustee in 2007.

"We have taken the village of Lake Zurich from almost a laughingstock in some places because of the politics - the petty politics - the (not in my back yard) issues, and resuscitated our reputation throughout the state, throughout the county, throughout other places by changing the government, bringing in special events, listening to the residents, engaging the residents," he said.

Samoila's profile elevated in the village late last year when he publicly questioned the village board's approval of 48 one- and two-bedroom apartments on the northwest corner of Old Rand Road and Main Street downtown. He said he would bring fresh energy as mayor to help attract new businesses to Lake Zurich.

"It represents a new idea and a new debate in our town," Samoila added. "And it's through that debate, that diversity of thought, that we're going to get the change that's required in order to move forward."