Daily Herald opinion: Matuszak, Gens and Brogan for Mount Prospect village board

Mount Prospect voters will see three candidates vying for three village board seats on their April 1 ballot. But two other candidates are waging write-in campaigns, giving residents a choice on who will help shape village policy over the next four years.

Incumbent trustees John Matuszak and Terri Gens are seeking reelection, and they are joined on the ballot by newcomer Beth DiPrima. Running as write-in candidates are Jack Brogan and Jeannie Lee-Macatangay.

Matuszak, a retired attorney for the U.S. Navy, has served more than 12 years as a trustee, but he embraces new ideas and admits to changing his mind after initially opposing a pedestrian bridge linking Meadows and Melas parks. Matuszak is an asset to the board and deserves another term.

Gens, who has decades of experience in health and social services fundraising, is seeking her second term. Her four years on the board, and her emphasis on keeping tax rates low for constituents battling rising costs elsewhere, make a solid case for her reelection.

Of the three remaining candidates, Brogan — a small-business owner and a former Mount Prospect police sergeant — has the strongest grasp of the issues and offers a common-sense approach. On the Prestige Feed Products controversy and litigation, for example, he calls for an investigation into how the animal food processing business, where odors have frustrated residents and elected officials alike, was approved in the first place. Though his write-in candidacy poses a challenge, Brogan’s willingness to question the status quo would be an asset if elected.

Matuszak, Gens and Brogan are endorsed.