A newcomer candidate appeared to beat out a two-term incumbent in a four-way race for three open seats on the Antioch Village Board.
Ed Macek joined incumbents Mary Dominiak and James “Jay” Jozwiak as the top vote-getters with 13 of 13 precincts recorded. If the percentages hold up after early voting and other late-counted ballots are included, incumbent Dennis Crosby will have lost his seat on the board.
The four candidates were vying for three four-year terms on the Village Board.
Macek, a lifelong resident who runs an insurance office, said Tuesday night he wasn’t surprised by his vote total, adding that he walked the village talking to residents .
“I wore out two pairs of shoes, and went through two bottles of ibuprofen,” he said.
Macek had said he decided run for office to fight rising taxes and help revitalize the downtown, and reaffirmed Tuesday evening that those would be his top priorities.
With 13 of 13 precincts reporting, Dominiak carried 29.54 percent of the vote, Jozwiak received 25.52 percent, Macek got 24.28 percent and Crosby received 20.65 percent.
All of the candidates had mentioned concerns about the passage of an ambulance service for the area during the campaign, and they received a partial victory, at least with the village portion of the referendum appearing to pass by a strong margin.
Dominiak, who appeared safe in securing her second term on the board, said the funding of ambulance services was the board’s biggest current issue, one official hoped the referendum will resolve.
“Otherwise we have to look at the budget to figure out how to provide ambulance service and probably would have to cut programs and services no one wants to cut,” she said.
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Dominiak said she is excited about the ongoing prospects for revitalizing the downtown.
She noted that the Antioch Theatre is reopening with two movie screens, and that combined with live entertainment offered by the PM&L Theatre, an atmosphere has been created to draw more people to patronize new and existing restaurants and businesses.
Jozwiak, who also seemed to have nailed down a second term on the board, said he sees economic growth, both in terms of luring businesses to the village’s new industrial park and revitalizing the downtown, as the main goal of the board over the next several years.
He said he also favors the use of business incentives to bring in commercial revenue, but said that the village must ensure that they are performance-driven to produce the desired results.
Crosby had said during the campaign that with the economy picking up, it is vital for Antioch to properly advance commercial growth, from stores and restaurants to new industry in the village’s industrial parks.
“It’s been a battle royale to keep the village going with the money we have,” Crosby said. “We’ve cut pretty much to the bone.”
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