2025 Consolidated Election will elect a Village President and 3 Village Trustees for Glen Ellyn. It will take place April 1st, with early voting starting 3/17.

We asked all candidates 3 questions:

Candidates for Village President

  • Gary Fasules

    Candidate for Village President

    Q1. What does sustainability mean to you? Meeting or reducing our resource needs and preparing for the future so we do not compromise the quality of life/environment for future generations

    Q2. Comments on Sustainability in Comp Plan. As a trustee who championed adding sustainability to the Comprehensive plan by giving Go Green the time and opportunity to add language to the comprehensive plan, I fully support all 4 objectives.

    Q3. Other comments In the short term, I would support initiating a trial for the following: 1) community composting, 2) downtown cardboard recycling, 4) clothes recycling containers, 4) developing a policy for buying hybrid vehicles, 5) working with the park district to aggressively add to our tree canopy and 6) a limited test for hens in Glen Ellyn (details to be worked out). In the long term, after the Village's Environment study is completed, finding 2-3 initiatives that have major benefits/impact to the community and reallocating financial resources to implement. In addition, one long term concern I have is our landfill which I have been told has approximately 30% capacity left. We need to find innovative ways to reduce items that are collected weekly that could be reused - ie. furniture, and clothes to name a few My vision is to reduce the village's carbon footprint so future generations of Glen Ellynites have a better more sustainable environment in which to live.

    Photo courtesy of GE Civic Betterment Committee

  • Jim Burket

    Candidate for Village President

    Q1. What does sustainability mean to you? Sustainability in my mind is the practice of living in such a way that allows us to meet our needs today but does not harm the chances of my children and future generations to do the same. Conserving resources and protect the environment are now goals that many wouldn’t have thought of a half century ago.

    I have been in the agricultural business for close to 40 years and in that time, farming has changed quite a bit. While the concept of sustainable farming began in the mid-1970s, we are still in an era where conventional farming is the norm around the country. But the movement to sustainable farming is growing at a quick pace as the industry understands the positive impact of doing so. Practices such as no-till farming and crop rotation are becoming more common as the industry understands the science behind them in and as they strive to maintain and improve soil fertility, protect water sources, and become more financially efficient while protecting the needs of this and future generations.

    Q2. Comments on Sustainability in Comp Plan: I commend your group’s efforts to make sure this was included, and I absolutely agree with the need to make significant progress here. Any modern municipality should be looking at how to be more sustainable because it is the right thing to do, it will appeal to the next generation of residents, and we may actually be able to find efficiencies in the long-term. This is something I absolutely believe in and see the need for.

    My issue is that, while a great start, simply stating this as our intention does not necessarily lead to action. We need to take these intentions and put some real actions around them. I would hope that the Environmental Commission could help lead this effort. It can’t just be “parks” good, “apartments” bad. We need a thoughtful and thorough plan to reduce this community’s footprint. Obviously, we can’t do everything at once, but I would like to see us have one goal every year that we work to make happen in a variety of ways.

    The objectives listed in the comprehensive plan are admirable and I commend your efforts to get them included. The objective that piques my interest, and something I believe can be done sooner rather than later, is the reduction of waste heading to landfills. I do not believe that the village has done enough to encourage simple things like recycling, exception being private residences, and that is something should have been address administrations ago. While I have some acquaintances who have opportunities to recycle at their business, there are plenty more who do not. Every liquor bottle, beer can, and wine bottle at some restaurants heads straight for the landfill. While I presume this is a landlord issue rather than a village one, things can and should be done to encourage the single most basic aspect of landfill reduction including incentivizing property owners to help or having the village take on some of the task. Both aluminum and glass are infinitely recyclable. I believe the turnaround in the life of an aluminum can is as little as 60 days. Glass has more challenges, but modern processing and equipment have made the economy of doing so much more viable and an alternative to making new product. Having even one easily recyclable object end up adding to our waste problem today is not good . . . and certainly not good for tomorrow.

    Q3. Comments: I started my volunteerism about 25 years ago when a group of like-minded individuals were concerned about the condition of our central business district. The area was frequently dirty with both trash and environmental debris and we started a group that would meet weekly on Saturdays to clean it up. My father taught me the habit of picking up garbage off the ground regardless of where you see it. I still do that to this day, though my wife Kathy did have to convince me to not practice the habit as she and I walked through the Loop to work as she assured me the buildings had staff who would come out and clean.

    A year or so before Covid began, I started organizing clean up missions at various points around town from the Great Western Trail to the Du Page River crossing on Crescent. These meet ups would attract anywhere from zero people to ten and, especially during the lock down, were a rewarding way to stay outside and active while helping the community.

    Photo courtesy of Daily Herald

Candidates for Village Trustee

  • Stephen A. Szymanski

    Q1. To me sustainable means the responsible management of our resources to meet not only our current needs but also our future needs for not only ourselves but for generations to follow.

    Q2. In my 42 year career in industry being a responsible steward to our environment was paramount in all of the decisions made and our performance was measured. That level of commitment has carried on in my life to everything I do both on a personal life and as Chairman of the Villages Capital Improvement Commission. This includes support for new parks, new classes at the high schools of Horticultural Science , and the design of the streetscape project making the Village more walkable and better access for bikes, and addressing lead line serves in the community. I would continue to support communications to the community our vendors and contractors, and have them submit their recommendations on how we can better improve our environment, essentially learning about best practices, while continuing to make sure we meet the Villages goals in the 2023 Comprehensive Plan.

    Q3 Thank you for the opportunity.

    Photo courtesy of Civic Betterment Committee

  • Sonia Desai Bhagwakar

    Q1. Being sustainable means creating a community that thrives today while being forward-looking in environmental choices so that future generations can enjoy a good quality of life. Current conveniences and future growth need to be balanced with environmental protection, using resources efficiently, and reducing waste and pollution. It also involves fostering social and physical well-being of our citizens such as encouraging green spaces and outdoor living. A mindset of sustainability is incredibly important to me especially having three younger daughters who are concerned about environment. As a trustee, I would look for practical green initiatives to promote, and I would be mindful in community planning such that environmental impact and benefit are always factors in decision-making.

    Q2. I believe work can and should be done for all four objectives in the next term. I would prioritize Objectives 1 and 3 as I believe there are relatively immediate opportunities to make an impact there. Development of the Downtown Event Park in the old U.S. Bank site and the revitalization of Panfish Park are wonderful opportunities to create new green space. The planning of these areas should be continued with sustainability and wellness in mind to increase areas to walk, bike and sit outdoors for longer periods of time. We can partner with other small businesses to create "picnics to go" which citizens can pick up and take to these parks to spend greater time outdoors. We can also incorporate eco-friendly practices such as the use of native plants that help biodiversity, inclusion of recycled and sustainably sourced materials for benches and other park structures and managing waste better with composting stations and water bottle filling stations.

    Q3. I look forward to partnering with the great efforts of Go Green Glen Ellyn.

    Photo courtesy of Civic Betterment Committee

  • Kelley Kalinich, Ed.D.

    Q1. "Sustainable" in relation to the environment means to care for, cultivate, and nurture Earth and our natural world. This impacts all aspects of environment from air, land, and sea. While sustainability is an important topic for our world, making changes in our homes, as well as, at the local community level, not only have a positive impact, but help to set an example for our future generations.

    Q2. I see the four sustainability objectives as being interdependent, as such, in my mind, there is not one that is a priority over another. If I were re-elected to Village Trustee, I would consider the following examples of how we could become a more sustainable community:

    +Continue the development of the public park at the former US Bank location at the corner of Forest Avenue and Duane Street. This park will be inclusive of a new tree canopy and green space, while being dark sky compliant. The selection of materials will be important to the sustainability considerations, as well. This project is being implemented in collaboration with the Glen Ellyn Park District and I am currently a Trustee Liaison to the project planning.

    +Respond to the anticipated Environmental Commission consultant report, identifying "next steps" for the Village of Glen Ellyn to consider in relation to sustainability efforts. I am hopeful that at least of one of the priority action items will be for the Village to consider reducing the use of plastic bags at our community businesses through some type of incentive program.

    +Expand the Village's educational outreach to the community in collaboration with Go Green Glen Ellyn, the Glen Ellyn Park District, and the Environmental Commission. A specific example of one educational topic for this outreach is that of composting. The Village's existing program (of which our family participates) is a great way to process yard waste and provide the opportunity for access to compost for our garden. This can be expanded for homeowners to establish a home compost system.

    +When purchasing Village vehicles and machines, particularly those for the Public Works and Fire Departments, as well as Village Links, consider the viability of the most energy efficient options that are available within the financial stewardship of the Village. Not all high energy efficient vehicles are at a point of reliability, and maintenance as needed at this point, but I anticipate that these technologies and the related costs will become more favorable and the Village will be able to make such purchases when current machinery needs to be replaced.

    Q3. I think that Go Green Glen Ellyn has made an extraordinarily positive impact on our community in its four years of existence. I am grateful for the awareness that has been raised, as well as, the changes that have been fostered by the organization's influence. I consider this work the "tip of the iceberg" and look forward to the impacts in our future as the collaboration with the community grows. As a Master Gardener with the University of Illinois Extension Service, as well as growing up in a family that always composted, the mission of Go Green Glen Ellyn is aligned with my core beliefs and experiences. Thank you!

    Photo courtesy of Civic Betterment Committee

  • Robert Margetts

    Go Green Glen Ellyn received no response from Mr. Margetts.

  • All candidates provided permission to publish these answers.

  • The answers were not edited in any way.

  • Photos are used with permission from the Civic Betterment Committee’s website.

  • Go Green Glen Ellyn is a non-partisan organization and does not endorse any particular candidate.