As the Landmark noted last week, “All of the candidates running for office in Riverside are serious contenders with a genuine love and concern for the village’s welfare and future.”
Having established that, how can Riverside residents decide who is best qualified to serve as village trustee?
By asking, “What do we want out of our village board?”
Should we continue down the same path that we have for years with more caucus-backed candidates, or is it time for new, proven leadership? If you believe that changes are needed, then the clear choice is to support the Riverside Community Alliance ticket: Mike Gorman, Jim Reynolds, Lonnie Sacchi and Mark Shevitz.
Mike, Jim, Lonnie and I didn’t set out to get into a contested election with our fellow residents and neighbors. But as we went on, it became abundantly clear that one-party rule was taking the village in a direction that residents didn’t want.
In consecutive years, we had two major ballot initiatives – the TIF and the tax increase – voted down by 4-to-1 margins. I and the other members of the Riverside Community Alliance slate are running to change the habit of chasing revenue at any cost and dipping into our pockets to try and keep up with runaway spending.
And we have the backgrounds, the passion and the track record to do it. We, along with other resident volunteers, led the fight to defeat the TIF when people said it was a foregone conclusion that it would pass. And we stood up for residents to help defeat the 2008 property tax increase when others running for village board supported it.
We have our first contested election in Riverside in years, because there are those of us who want something different from our village government.
We can choose to continue on the same path when it comes to village spending, more high-density development and a disconnect between village policies and resident desires. Or we can choose fiscal responsibility, a focus on attracting businesses to the village and a more open, transparent government.
The question about who is right for the village board is no longer “Who do I know from down the street?” or “Who do my kids go to school with?”
This election matters more than ever. We should look at who has a history of standing with us on the issues that really matter, and who has the background and experience to take us into a better future.
Mark Shevitz is a candidate for Riverside trustee.
