Kaptain says he wants to be Elgin mayor

In the mid-1980s, David Kaptain read about a woman in his neighborhood who was afraid to let her kids play outside past 5 p.m.

Instead of dismissing the problem as someone else's, Kaptain took action, working with neighbors to form a Neighborhood Watch and later a homeowners group.

That passion and community involvement spread to his founding of the Elgin Community Network as well as serving the past six years on the Elgin City Council.

Kaptain, a lifelong Elginite, announced Wednesday that he has his sights set on another way to serve the community by running for the mayor's seat in spring 2011.

"I want to help people," said Kaptain, 62, a retired laboratory director and chemist, and self-described independent on the city council. "People have not been entirely happy with things for a variety of reasons."

Ed Schock, who has served as Elgin mayor since 1993, noted it was a bit early for candidates to declare their intentions but added he will seek another term as well.

"I'm intending to run and I look forward to a good campaign," he said. "It will be good for Elgin. Whenever issues are discussed, it's good."

Kaptain says made his announcement over the summer to give other residents interested in his council seat, which expires next spring, time to decide on whether to run.

Candidates for mayor and three other council seats can begin circulating nominating petitions in the fall with filing due in December.

Kaptain said Elgin government needs to be more transparent. He also believes older neighborhoods are weaker compared to 10 years ago as the city has spent money expanding westward.

Infrastructure needs repair and police, fire, public works and code enforcement need strengthening, he says.

"We've been on a building spree. Now it's time for rebuilding. Our foundation has gotten a little weak," Kaptain said.

Kaptain says he favors a "bottom up" approach of helping those who need it most instead of Schock's "top down" approach of offering incentives to developers with few or no strings attached.

Schock said he's been a huge advocate of neighborhoods dating back to the 1990s and argued that the city made developers pay for western infrastructure.

David White, president of the Association for Legal Americans and frequent Schock critic, said he was not yet ready to commit to run for mayor.

"I think I will (make a decision) in about a month, one way or the other," White said. "We need somebody. We need another direction."