Bartlett candidates promise no big changes when incumbent leaves

The two candidates for Bartlett village president waited patiently for Catherine Melchert to step down to have an opportunity for the spot.

Bartlett Village Trustee Sherry Bormann has spent six years on the board with Melchert. Hanover Township Supervisor Michael E. Kelly has spent the last 12 years at his post.

Both note it won't be a revolution when one of them succeeds Melchert, who's been village president for 16 years. The village employees who run most of the day-to-day operations in Bartlett will remain the same.

Kelly, 53, said the village president's post would give him an opportunity to better serve the community.

"With 12 years at the township, I think I've accomplished as much as I'm able to do," Kelly said.

If elected, he wants to bring more businesses downtown. And he said he hopes he can better listen to his constituents' concerns, compared to the Melchert administration. He wants to be an advocate for senior citizens and help residents with flooding concerns.

"I would devote myself to listening to the community, to respect the people's opinions, to advocate as much as I would be able to reduce the tax burden in the business community and the residential community at the Cook County and DuPage County levels," Kelly said.

For Bormann, 62, the top spot in the village would allow her to continue working on projects she said are important to her, including improving the climate for local businesses, bettering the community's education and continuing the village's conservative spending practices in the middle of the recession.

She said she's already met with Elgin Area Unit District 46 Superintendent Jose Torres. While Melchert championed disconnecting the village from U-46, Bormann doesn't think that's possible and wants to see the district improve.

"The climate in Springfield is definitely not one that's going to have the proper amount of time to talk about doing something like that," Bormann said.

Bormann, who is in the middle of her term in office, said that she would be able to effectively continue to work as a trustee if Kelly wins the election. Kelly said if he loses the village presidency, he'll remain active in the community with the Bartlett Library Foundation and the Lions Club.