Editor’s note: This is one in a series of stories looking at contested races in the Aurora area in the April 4 general election.
The race for the seat from the 3rd Ward on the Aurora City Council in the April 4 election is between incumbent Ted Mesiacos and challenger Olynda De Hoyos.
Mesiacos, 53, has served as a City Council member since 2013 and has worked as an architect for the past three decades, collaborating with school districts and cities of various sizes, he said.
“My education and career skill set revolves around architecture and urban planning, coupled with experiences of running a small business in Aurora, so that is what I bring to the table,” Mesiacos said. “I also grew up in Aurora in a household with immigrant parents from Greece pursuing the American dream.”
De Hoyos, 35, has lived in Aurora for many years and works as a branch manager for a financial services company. The East Aurora High School and Aurora University graduate said her family came to Aurora from Mexico when she was 11 years old.
“They didn’t know any English, so it was definitely those experiences that helped shape me into who I am today,” De Hoyos said.
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She said she was inspired to campaign for City Council after helping take care of her grandfather who is battling Alzheimer’s disease. She said after seeing her family struggle to get resources, she wants to help connect families in Aurora to the services they need.
“I also wanted to see more women on the City Council and more minorities,” De Hoyos said. “By no means am I a career politician, but we just need to make people our priority and know that they matter.”
Mesicaos said his top three priorities if reelected are to keep residents safe, continue to revitalize neighborhoods and to support infrastructure improvements, specifically the maintenance of Phillips Park. The 325-acre park is a crown jewel for Aurora, Mesiacos said.
“Several infrastructure projects have been placed on the back burner and the cost for these projects will only continue to increase, so I’d like to see that through,” he said.
Additionally, during his time on the council, Mesiacos said he is proud of kickstarting two neighborhood groups with a focus on public safety and quality of life.
De Hoyos said if she is elected, her top three priorities will be safety, especially in the Hometown neighborhood; infrastructure and road improvements; and supporting smaller businesses within the 3rd Ward. She also said she’d like to create more programs for seniors and high school students in Aurora.