Hebda, Marquardt, Sanders re-elected in Vernon Hills

A quiet campaign for three seats on the Vernon Hills village board ended Tuesday with incumbents winning another term.

The structure of the village board will remain the same as Cindy Hebda, Mike Marquardt and Jeanne (Schwartz) Sanders easily rolled to victory. Four candidates were seeking three 4-year terms.

With all 20 precincts reporting, unofficial totals showed Hebda with 1.024 votes followed by Marquardt with 894 and Sanders with 835.

Thomas Newberg, who has served on the village's zoning board of appeals for 17 years, fell short in his first run at public office, finishing fourth with 538 votes.

Voters apparently felt comfortable with the state of the village, with its balanced budget, ample cash reserves and new retailers filling vacant big-boxes stores.

Like other communities, Vernon Hills has been facing a decline in revenue, particularly sales tax, in the past few years and has had to make tough choices.

Incumbents, who essentially ran as a slate and shared local endorsements, stressed their financial vigilance and emphasized the economy as a continuing concern. Maintaining financial strength and increasing sales tax revenue were shared priorities.

Hebda, an early childhood educator, has served on the board since 1993.

“It's a long time to be on the board but I don't think I'm stagnant,” she said.

She said filling business vacancies and providing more opportunities for the senior population were priorities moving forward.

“We're going to have to build some more affordable housing for those folks so they can stay here,” she said.

Marquardt, a real estate developer, was appointed in 2004, won a two-year seat in 2005 and was elected to a full term in 2007. Sanders, a food and beverage manager and former village clerk, has served on the board since 2004.

“Keeping financially sound is the most important thing,” (Schwartz) Sanders said.