How St. Charles City Council candidates would address Charlestowne Mall, other issues

What should be done with the largely vacant Charlestowne Mall was among the many issues discussed Wednesday during a St. Charles City Council candidate forum.

The St. Charles Area Chamber of Commerce organized the candidate forum in collaboration with its legislative committee. Asking questions of the candidates was Charlie Murphy, who is on the board of directors for the St. Charles Area Chamber of Commerce. The forum was held at Clarke Control in St. Charles.

There are five seats open on the St. Charles City Council. Ten alderpersons serving on the city council, with two alderpersons representing each ward.

There is a three-person race for the open 1st Ward seat on the city council with Jessica Bridges, Tom Galante and Mark Foulkes running for the seat. Foulkes' grandfather, Walter Foulkes, was on the St. Charles City Council for 22 years.

Second Ward Alderperson Rita Payleitner is not running for reelection. Running for the seat are Arthur Lemke, who lost his seat on the city council to Ryan Bongard in 2021's consolidated election, and Jayme Muenz.

In the 4th Ward, incumbent David Pietryla is facing a challenge from Laurel Moad, who lost her election bid in 2021 in a three-person race.

Charlestowne Mall is in the 2nd Ward. Lemke said what to do with the largely vacant Charlestowne Mall is the most pressing issue in the ward.

"Charlestowne Mall has a lot of unoccupied space," he said. "There is some opportunity to allow some residential density to the north. And we've had several developers that have proposed that in concept plans."

Schaumburg-based UrbanStreet Group is expected to present its plans for the mall property soon.

A plan to redevelop the mall was shelved last year when several St. Charles alderpersons and plan commissioners questioned whether a previous proposal was the best plan for the site.

Lemke's opponent, Muenz, was asked if she thought the city had a parking issue and if so, how she would address the problem. Muenz said there is less parking available on the east side of the Fox River than on the west side.

"I think we have opportunities for some really creative solutions," she said.

Muenz suggested requiring future developments to provide top-level or lower-level parking. Metered parking in certain areas is another possibility, she said.

Foulkes is a St. Charles school district teacher. When asked what his priorities would be during his first six months if elected, said the completion of the First Street Plaza expansion project would be a priority.

"I think that is a big project that needs to be completed," he said.

Other priorities of his include improving the city's infrastructure, such as roads, sidewalks and water and sewer lines.

"We want to make St. Charles a safer place for our kids to walk and for our kids to bike," Foulkes said.

Bridges was asked about budget planning.

"When it comes to a budget, you've got to stick to it," she said. "But you also need to constantly review it as circumstances change. For instance, right now, circumstances are changing. Prices are rising on everything. And families are struggling. Now is not the time for the city to raise taxes or raise prices on utilities. We need to do everything we can to keep those low so our citizens can continue to live here and aren't taxed out of their homes."

Galante is a member of the city's Natural Resources Commission. He was asked if he had any ideas on how to generate more revenues or reduce expenses for the city.

"In terms of revenue expansion, really what I'm going to do is to promote the thriving business environment because that's where we're going to get the biggest bang for the buck," Galante said.

He offered government grants and purchasing partnerships as ways expenses could be reduced.

Pietryla is running for a second term. When asked about how he would describe his management style in terms of his approach to the 2nd Ward as well as an alderperson, Pietryla said he views himself as being very collaborative.

"I am an influencer," he said. "I utilize my optimistic experience and my influencing abilities to inspire change and inspire action. I like to say that I use that same skill with my constituents, collaborating with them and working with them and responding to them. And with my fellow council members as well. We are stewards, so we need to be very mindful, very thoughtful."

Moad serves on the St. Charles Plan Commission and is president of the board of directors for the River Corridor Foundation of St. Charles. When asked to talk about her experience, Moad spoke about the plan commission's interactions with developers.

"I have had the opportunity to watch numerous developers come before us with concept plans and proposals," she said. "It's rare for a developer to bring something to the commission and for it to end up looking the way it came to us. That developer, whomever they are, receives feedback from the plan commission and eventually from the community through public hearings and also receives feedback from the city council. A developer will come back numerous times to all those bodies until there's agreement about the proposed project."