Clarendon Hills Asked To Delay Major Actions Until After Election

CLARENDON HILLS, IL – A slate of Clarendon Hills candidates is calling for the current Village Board to defer major long-term decisions until after the April election.

In a statement Thursday, the Clear Choice slate said it has invited the rival slate, Clarendon Hills Together, to join it at Monday's board meeting to make the same request.

Clarendon Hills Together said it won't, calling it a "presumptuous demand."

Such a request could affect proposed downtown improvements, which have divided residents for the last couple of years.

The Clear Choice candidates are Keith Chval for village president and Kathleen Hirsman, Erika Jones and Derek White for three trustee positions.

They said residents deserve an opportunity to weigh in before the village makes major commitments.

"Regarding the proposed plaza project in particular, with planned Village Holiday activities and the slow winter construction season upon us, there will be relatively little construction activity occurring in the near term," candidate White said in the statement. "Taking the time to hear from residents before moving forward would provide an important community benefit with minimal impact on the overall project timeline."

The Clarendon Hills Together slate is made up of Corri Natarelli for village president and Laura Donnelly and incumbents Ralph DeAngelis and Elizabeth O'Connell for trustee positions. Last year, Village President Eric Tech appointed O'Connell.

In its response, Clarendon Hills Together said the village still must schedule work, meet deadlines and keep projects moving. The slate pointed to flooding issues.

"For residents already waiting for relief, a delay until May could mean waiting even longer for impactful solutions," it said. "If the Clear Choice slate believes a particular decision should wait for the next Village Board, we welcome that discussion, both as candidates and current board members. Which decision, and how would waiting benefit residents? That’s a fair question to ask of any slate, including ours."

Originally, the village proposed replacing the downtown traffic triangle with a permanent plaza. But many residents opposed that idea, saying it would cause traffic backups.

In September, the Village Board approved a $1.9 million no-bid deal for downtown improvements.

The project does not include a permanent plaza, but would feature bollards that can be installed temporarily. That would let the village block the triangle for village events. Many opposed that idea as well.

The Clarendon Hills Together slate appears friendly to the village's downtown approach.

Village President Tech has not revealed his political plans. He did not return a message for comment.