Endorsements: Tyson-Dunne and Honig for Lombard village board
On April 2, residents of two Lombard Village Board districts — 4 and 5, which cover the village's northeast quadrant, basically north of Madison and east of Main — will have a ballot choice for village trustee.
In District 5, voters will elect either Daniel Militello or Tina Tyson-Dunne. District 4 voters will elect either Andrew Honig or Bill Johnston. Anthony Puccio is running unopposed in District 2.
The District 5 choice is particularly difficult. Not only are Militello, a retail operations manager, and Tyson-Dunne, a small-business owner, engaged and thoughtful in their approach, both are extraordinarily well-informed, especially for first-time candidates who do not enjoy the benefit of having been immersed in village board business.
Both have gone the extra mile to solicit residents' views and concerns. Both present an impressively detailed understanding of key challenges facing Lombard and of various strategies for meeting these challenges. Primary among these are continuing economic development and balancing the budget in a responsible manner that weighs the needs of the village against the cost to taxpayers.
While believing that either candidate would provide conscientious, hard-working and thoughtful representation, the Daily Herald gives a slight edge and endorsement to Tyson-Dunne, based primarily on her accounting background and nuanced grasp of the many variables involved in making economic development decisions.
In District 4, the Daily Herald endorses Honig who, while young — he's a North Central College student — has worked to hear and understand residents' concerns. Honig demonstrates a solid and emerging grasp of issues and solutions. Johnston, the incumbent with a long record of volunteer work with the park district, completed the Daily Herald's questionnaire but did not participate in an interview.
One oddity of this campaign is that the two local issues currently generating the most conversation in Lombard — the ongoing library facility impasse between library and park districts and the possibility of approving video gaming — are not directly within the village board's purview. While Tyson-Dunne and Militello and Honig all acknowledge that the library-park dispute is not theirs to resolve, they would also consider any constructive role the village board might be able to play.