David S. Weinstein: 2021 candidate for mayor of Gurnee

Two candidates are vying for a four-year term as Gurnee's next mayor.

Bio

Town: Gurnee

Age: 55

Occupation: Trial attorney

Employer: The Law Office of David S. Weinstein, P.C.

Education: Bachelor of Arts in political science from Indiana University (1988); Juris Doctor from the University of Miami (1991)

Civic Involvement: Woodland Consolidated District 50 school board in Gurnee. I volunteer extensively with the Coalition to Reduce Recidivism. I helped organize and volunteer weekly at the Waukegan Expungement Clinic, where I help people expunge and seal their past criminal records. Recently, the Coalition to Reduce Recidivism awarded me their Justinian of the Year Award for my volunteer work. The Most Influential African Americans of Lake County Group recently awarded me its "Freedom Award" for my anti-recidivism work in the African American Community. It should be noted that I was one of the only non-African Americans to win this award. My wife and I are also very involved with dog rescue.

Q&A

Q: How do you view your role in confronting the pandemic: provide leadership even if unpopular, give a voice to constituents - even ones with whom you disagree, or defer to state and federal authorities?

A: As Mayor, I will lead by example and provide leadership towards mitigation measures for COVID-19 and any future health crisis. It was regrettable that wearing a mask became political. I will follow all state and federal guidelines. I will follow the science. Environmentalism is one of my three key issues that I would like to address as Mayor. If we don't stop the virus, we can never get our economy going. In addition, I will provide leadership in stopping Eto from poisoning our community. It has been two years and our present administration has failed to act at all. This will change when I am Mayor. The Stop ETO group has endorsed me.

Q: Did your town continue to adequately serve its constituents during the disruptions caused by the pandemic? If so, please cite an example of how it successfully adjusted to providing services. If not, please cite a specific example of what could have been done better.

A: Gurnee did the best it could adapting to the pandemic. I do know that the counters at city hall were closed and this did cause some disruptions.

Q: In light of our experiences with COVID-19, what safeguards/guidelines should you put in place to address any future public health crises?

A: As mayor, I will order a top-to-bottom review of all Village actions concerning the pandemic to find out what worked and what we could do better. Based on this, we will develop knew protocols to address any future health emergency.

Q: What cuts can local government make to reduce the burden of the pandemic on taxpayers?

A: Property tax relief is a very important issue. Please note that as a board member of the Woodland Consolidated School District #50, I am very proud that I helped negotiate a new teacher's contract. Homeowners in our district will have the Woodland portion of their tax bill reduced next year. No other district in Gurnee or the surrounding area has done that. The Village is very reliant on sales and amusement taxes which took a very big hit this past year because of the pandemic. We might be able to refinance some of the debt based on the low interest rates and save some money as we did at Woodland. I do not want to speculate on cuts currently. It is my great desire to not cut any services for the community.

Q: What do you see as the most important infrastructure project you must address? Why and how should it be paid for? Conversely, during these uncertain economic times, what infrastructure project can be put on the back burner?

A: My number one infrastructure project is to stop the ETO polluters who are poisoning our community. The intersection of Grand and Route 41 must be completed. This has been a disaster for years. In addition, the intersection of Grand and Hunt Club has been one of the most dangerous intersections in Illinois for years. This must be reconfigured for safety. I have received many complaints from residents of the east side of town that their neighborhoods have been ignored. I will try and change that.

Q: Do you agree or disagree with the stance your board/council has taken on permitting recreational marijuana sales in the community? What would you change about that stance, if you could?

A: I disagree with the Village's stance on recreational marijuana. Our board made statements that this is not what we want in our town when they rejected this. First, recreational marijuana is legal. Many Gurnee residents legally use marijuana. They should not have the hassle of driving out of town to get it. Experience has shown that a cannabis dispensary does not bring crime or any other social problems. Second, it was foolish for the board to reject all this tax money. A dispensary which is properly zoned, such as the dispensary in Mundelein will bring in a huge amount of revenue. Now we are giving that revenue to other municipalities.

Q: What's one good idea you have to better the community that no one is talking about yet?

A: I think that Gurnee needs a town square or outside gathering place. This would help give Gurnee some identity and would be great for the community.

Q: What makes you the best candidate for the job?

A: I would be the best choice of leader for this community based on my leadership skills. My platform is based on the three E's: Economic revitalization, Education, and ETO. I will provide leadership which has been lacking in these areas. Many of our warehouses and stores are empty. I want to bring clean businesses to Gurnee. Education is very important to me. I want to continue the work I have done at Woodland Dist. 50 as mayor and assist all three school districts we have in Gurnee. We have known about ETO for over two years now. Many of our residents are very upset that the Village has done nothing. I will use every tool at my disposal to end the poisoning of our community.

I am very happy that almost all the elected officials in every level of government believe in my leadership and have endorsed my candidacy. They include:

-Congresswoman Lauren Underwood

-Congressman Brad Schneider

-State Rep for Gurnee Joyce Mason

-Lake County Treasurer Holly Kim

-Lake County Recorder of Deeds Mary Ellen Vanderventer

-Lake County Clerk Robin O'Connor

-Lake County Clerk of the Circuit Court Erin Cartwright Weinstein

-This list is growing daily