Endorsements: Boyle, Gall and Sima for Lisle village trustee
This endorsement is a consensus opinion of the Daily Herald Editorial Board.
Robust economic development. Balanced budget. Business-friendly environment. Flood mitigation. These and other issues are top of mind for the seven candidates running for three 4-year village trustee seats in Lisle.
Lucky for village residents, all the candidates are well-qualified and committed to Lisle's growth and prosperity.
As an independent, Leslie Gall, chief marketing officer at Exigent, shows strong leadership skills, focusing on fiscal responsibility, growing sales tax revenues through a robust economic development commission so property taxes stay flat, addressing stormwater management through modernization projects and changing the perception of Lisle to be open for business.
On the Lisle Forward slate are attorney Meg Sima, small-business owner Beth Lesniak and banker Michael Olson. As a former school board president for Lisle CUSD 202, Sima brings a solid resume and is focused on revitalizing the downtown as a destination, making the Lisle Economic Development Partnership viable, modernizing infrastructure for bridges and flood plains and implementing intergovernmental collaboration. As a small-business owner in Lisle, Lesniak offers a unique viewpoint and would pursue developing a comprehensive business attraction and retention program. A former park district commissioner, Olson wants to bolster commercial development throughout the village and would put his commercial real estate background to work.
The Lisle First slate consists of current Trustee Cathy Cawiezel, former 12-year trustee Mark Boyle and newcomer Michael Hantsch.
Distinguishing Boyle, a College of DuPage professor, is his focus on sound economic development plans and messaging, including taking a proactive approach with developers especially regarding downtown development, creating a unified long-term floodplain policy and municipal workers' pension funding.
Cawiezel and Hantsch also tout a Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan and scrutinizing TIF projects. While Boyle and Cawiezel both have extensive trustee experience that's beneficial to the board, Boyle's independent spirit and thought process and willingness to question the status quo makes him the stronger candidate.
Endorsed are Gall, Sima and Boyle.