Elk Grove's elder statesman remembered for impact on the community

Called one of the deans of the Northwest suburbs and Elk Grove Village's elder statesman, James "Jim" Paul Petri is being remembered for his impact as the longest-serving elected official in village history.

Petri, who didn't seek reelection in April 2019 after a record four decades on the village board, died suddenly in his home Thursday, village officials announced Friday. He was 86.

Mayor Craig Johnson, who has been in his position for roughly half the time Petri was on the board, said board members looked to Petri's keen mind, business intellect, and ability to solve problems in order to enhance development and shape regional public policy.

"His fingerprints are all over the Elk Grove community,” Johnson wrote in a remembrance Friday afternoon.

Petri's legacy can especially be seen in development of the village's infrastructure, in which he helped to shepherd some $100 million in upgrades to the six-square-mile business park. That included widening and adding streets, truck intrusion bays, lights, signage and water lines.

As co-chairman of the village's Industrial/Commercial Revitalization Commission and chairman of the village's capital improvements committee, Petri drove up and down village streets every Saturday, then brought a list of items that needed attention to village staff on Monday.

It was no surprise, then, when officials decided to name their new public works headquarters on Devon Avenue after him in 2019.

Through the upcoming week, bunting will hang from the building in honor of Petri.

An Army veteran, Petri came to Elk Grove Village in 1966 to work for United Airlines. Working his way up from a baggage handler to regional data manager, Petri spent 45 years with the airline.

Petri unsuccessfully ran for trustee in 1977. After he lost, Mayor Charles Zettek appointed him to the plan commission and two years later, Petri won a spot on the board.

His first task was to bring cable television and a local community access channel to the village. After working with the Northwest Municipal Conference to bid cable television services for the region, Petri chaired a regional group of five towns to regulate cable television in the 1980s and 1990s. It was among a number of regional and local committees on which he served.

He also ran unsuccessfully for mayor in 1989 and 1993.

In total, Petri attended more than 800 village board meetings, voted for some 2,300 ordinances, and served with three mayors and 18 trustees.