Voters in Wilmette had the opportunity to learn the views of the four candidates for the Village Board at a League of Women Voters candidate forum held March 1.
Incumbent trustee Justin Sheperd, who was elected in 2021, and newcomers Michael Lieber, Ryrie Pellaton and Mark Steen are vying for three four-year seats on the board in the April 1 Cook County consolidated election. Early voting begins March 17.
In his opening statement, Michael Lieber praised the village, saying, “Wilmette is thriving, our downtown is vibrant, we are a well-run community, and we are in a fiscally sound position.”
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He explained that he is running for the trustee position because, “We want to keep Wilmette the wonderful place it is. We need good people to step up and serve. I believe that Wilmette is a
crown jewel of Chicago’s North Shore.”
Ryrie Pellaton also praised Wilmette and said he wanted to “continue making this a welcoming, safe and prosperous community.” He added that he has “a great deal of relevant professional and volunteer experience.”
Justin Sheperd, who served on the village’s Plan Commission before being elected a trustee four years ago, said, “Over the past four years, we’ve made meaningful progress on key priorities, including public safety, infrastructure and sustainability, while laying a strong foundation in long-term planning for the future.”
Mark Steen said, “I believe that Wilmette needs to continue to be the attractive community that we love. To do that, it is really important that we elect trustees who are experienced, who
understand good government principles, who listen to the residents of our community, and who can make even-handed, financially-sound decisions based on fact. I think I fit that role.”
Each of the candidates were questioned as to whether they were in favor of replacing the current police station.
Pellaton said, “There are many, many needs that need to be addressed that can only be addressed by a new station.”
According to Sheperd, “We have a 60-year-old police station that’s outdated. We need to build a new station. I think it will help public safety. I think it comes down to recruitment, training, morale and outreach. These are all things that we can better handle with a new police station. We need the ability to process the evidence that comes in. We need the ability to train our police staff.”
“One of the things that I see is missing with the current plan is integration with the space around it,” Steen said. “It’s right next to the Lake and Ridge commercial district.”
Lieber said that reasons for building a new station include the fact that, “We don’t have a digital forensics processing room. We don’t have sufficient space for defense and tactics training. We don’t have appropriate space for female officers. We also need a best-in-class evidence room.”
The issue of development was also covered, with Steen saying that on 4th and Linden, “There’s a great opportunity for a cultural and arts center. That’s an area that has good access to
downtown Chicago and I think it can become a center of creative thinking.”
Lieber noted that many residents he has spoken to are concerned about the number of empty storefronts in certain areas.
“As a Village Board member, I pledge to cut the red tape to make it as easy as possible for new businesses to come into our village,” Lieber said.
The issue of affordable housing was also brought up, with Lieber observing that there aren’t large tracts of land available for creating affordable housing. All of the candidates, however, felt there were still ways to create some affordable housing.
Steen said that the village currently has 5% affordable housing.
“The state of Illinois requires that any municipality with less than 10% affordable housing must create a plan,” he said. “That’s why we have a plan.”