Gurnee trustee, mayor clash
Gurnee Trustee Greg Garner told Mayor Kristina Kovarik he didn't appreciate her implying that a campaign contribution influenced his recent vote in favor of a controversial automobile recycling facility.
"I think those comments were cruel and divisive," Garner said at a meeting Monday night.
Kovarik responded that she spoke about business owner Esper Petersen's donation in private with Garner's political ally, Trustee David Ohanian, and the issue never was meant to be public.
Garner's beef with Kovarik was related to the Auto Parts City facility that gained village board approval by a 6-0 vote Oct. 1. The vehicle recycling operation will be on Gurnee's far east side near Route 41, bordering a mobile home complex in Park City.
Auto Parts City's proposal was rejected by a 3-3 vote April 2. Garner was among the three Gurnee village board members who voted against Auto Parts City the first time.
Petersen, who owns Nordic Properties Ltd. in Gurnee and couldn't be reached for comment, contributed $1,000 to People for Good Government on April 2, according to state records. Nordic owns the Washington Street land Auto Parts City wanted for its project.
Garner and Ohanian were among the candidates for public office in Gurnee under the People for Good Government banner. Kovarik said she made the connection between the vote and the $1,000 donation in her private chat with Ohanian.
"That was my opinion," Kovarik said.
Garner also chided Kovarik for publicly stating she was against Auto Parts City's plan two weeks after the final village board vote. He said from now on Kovarik should take a stand on major issues before a vote.
But Kovarik contended her village board colleagues should have known how she was leaning on Auto Parts City. Kovarik said she even shared her thoughts with Garner -- a point he denied.
"I think that my opinion was well-known, that I had some grave concerns about the project," Kovarik said.
For his part, Ohanian said Monday he just wanted to drop the matter of Kovarik questioning Petersen's donation to People for Good Government. Ohanian became a Gurnee trustee after the first Auto Parts City vote.