Nov. 25--The race for Downers Grove mayor next Spring will be a head-to-head battle.
Mayor Martin Tully is seeking a second term in the top spot and faces a challenge from Commissioner Geoff Neustadt, a two-term council member making his first bid for mayor.
The opponents served together as council members from 2007 to 2009, and since 2011 when Tully returned to the board as mayor. The two-person race will knock one veteran member off the board.
Tully said that the village has hit "unprecedented success" during his tenure, including several awards and recognitions hailing Downers Grove as a good town to live in, Standard Poor's highest bond rating, and millions of dollars invested in street, storm water and sidewalk infrastructure.
"I think it's a real indicator that we're doing something right and we're on the right path," said Tully, 49."I want to sustain that success for the next four years."
The mayor said his experience in the top spot gives him an edge in the election.
"I think having continuity in the leadership is important," Tully said. "This is not the time to leave things in untested hands. Things have been going pretty darn good for the last four years. If it ain't broke, don't fix it."
Neustadt agreed that the village has grown over the past four years and is running smoothly, but he felt it was time to bring more access to the mayor's office.
"I feel like with a mayor like myself who is more connected, more visible and more present, we would be able to continue that growth as a family-oriented community," said Neustadt, 39. "I want to be everyone's mayor next door."
He said that he would implement a once-a-month open meeting time wherein community members and business owners could meet with him to discuss any concerns or questions.
"Our village is run to be council meetings on the first three Tuesday nights, but our village is so much more than Tuesday night," Neustadt said. "If there's a resident who has an issue, being able to have a neighborly conversation is much more approachable than coming up to the microphone and being formal. It's very important to have those conversations at their discretion."
Both candidates highlighted upgrading the village's aging buildings as a primary challenge in upcoming years. Recent figures show that new buildings for Village Hall and the police station could cost upward of $50 million.
"We're trying to find a way to operate Downers Grove in locations that are appropriately sized for the services," Neustadt said. "Having a police station that's way too small isn't great. And having a village hall that's way too big also isn't good for services."
"It's a large community project and we have to find a way to do it without big costs to taxpayers," Tully said.
Tully is a partner in the Chicago office of law firm Ackerman, LLP, a position he began over the summer. He obtained his law degree from DePaul University and a political science degree from University of Illinois at Chicago. He served two terms on the council from 2001 to 2009 and ran unopposed for mayor in 2011.
Neustadt has been a maintenance mechanic with Grade School District 58 for 20 years and represented his fellow employees this summer in securing a new four-year contract with the district. He studied facilities management at College of DuPage. He is completing his second term on the council, having first been elected in 2007.
The election will be held April 7.
