Endorsement: O’Connor and Harris for Long Grove Village Board

Four candidates are running for three seats on the Long Grove Village Board.

The incumbents are Rita O’Connor and Bobbie O’Reilly. They are challenged by newcomer Philip Carona and current Long Grove Village Clerk Adam Harris.

O’Connor, a real estate broker, and Harris, an attorney, found the time to meet with us to discuss issues important to the community and its residents, and submit candidate questionnaires. O’Reilly and Carona did not respond to our candidate questionnaire or to repeated invitations to an interview with our Editorial Board, so we cannot offer an endorsement for them, but we find O’Connor and Harris both well suited to the job ahead.

O’Connor has served as trustee since 2017. Her experience is clear in her discussion of such issues in town as the covered bridge, drawing more visitors to the historic downtown area and Lake Michigan water access. She’s also passionate about residential road and pathway safety. Moving forward, O’Connor would like to see bridges installed over Route 83 near Robert Parker Coffin Road, and also over Old 53 at Schaeffer Road. She says these bridges will help connect neighborhoods, offer community members more access to each other and to Long Grove amenities.

She is knowledgeable on Long Grove’s finances, and her experience in local government makes her a valuable member of this board. Her willingness to collaborate, consider differing opinions and bring projects to the community to benefit the residents makes her an excellent candidate. O’Connor is endorsed.

As the current village clerk, Harris also offers experience and knowledge that is valuable to Long Grove and its residents.

Like O’Connor, he is focused on connecting to Lake Michigan water and the funding needed to complete this project. Pedestrian safety is a priority for Harris, and he’d like to see sidewalks added to neighborhoods.

Harris' current clerk role allows him to be familiar with board meetings, executive sessions and how the village operates overall. He also wants to preserve the charm of downtown Long Grove while also helping to boost commerce and activity to the area. Harris brings enthusiasm, perspective, experience and solid ideas to the role of trustee and is also endorsed.