Endorsement: Dominic Marturano for Lindenhurst village president

Like many smaller suburbs, Lindenhurst strives to maintain a delicate balance between preserving the small-town feel beloved by its residents and attracting the commercial development needed to help fund public infrastructure and services.

How best to do that is the key issue in the race for village president, in which first-term incumbent Dominic Marturano is facing a challenge from Ryan Brandes.

Marturano, an information technology manager who served two terms as a village trustee before winning the president's seat in 2015, leads Lindenhurst Best Choice, an establishment slate featuring three incumbent trustees.

Brandes, deputy director of the North Chicago Housing Authority, tops the challenger slate Lindenhurst United for Change, also featuring three trustee candidates.

They agree on Lindenhurst's needs - more economic development, better roads and utility upgrades - but differ on how to address them.

Marturano advocates working within the town's limited budget in order to maintain Lindenhurst's status as one of the lowest-taxing communities in Lake County. Brandes proposes a more aggressive approach, starting with the hiring of a full-time community development director and increased spending on public services.

While both men have merit as potential leaders, it's worth noting that Marturano's approach is beginning to bear results, such as the opening of the town's first car dealership in 2017, the addition of Lake Michigan water to the village (on time and under budget) and some long-overdue efforts to improve the struggling Lindenhurst Plaza shopping center.

But where Marturano sets himself apart is in his experience in public service and extensive knowledge of local government. That experience should pay dividends as the village seeks state backing to get a hospital built in town and consolidate the Lindenhurst Sanitary District.

We endorse Marturano.