The two candidates running for village president in Norridge both say public safety is a top priority for them, but they have differing views when it comes to the current economic health of the village and strategies to bring in more tax revenue to the community.
The incumbent, Jim Chmura, is running for a second term against Deputy Secretary of State Thomas Benigno. A 22-year resident of the village, Benigno ran against Chmura four years ago and lost.
Benigno is running alongside a slate of candidates known collectively as the Norridge First Party. He said the roughly 2-year-old political group is a nonpartisan collection of candidates interested in “putting the residents of Norridge first again.”
Both Benigno and Chmura said they identify politically as “independent.”
Chmura, who has called the village home for more than three decades, is running as part of a slate that includes several incumbent board of trustee members known as the Norridge Improvement Party. He said the nonpartisan political group has existed for decades and is made up of elected officials and Norridge residents “who want to see the village move forward without any city or state politics getting involved.”
The first-term village president, who served as financial director for the village between 1998 and 2012, said one of the biggest challenges facing the community currently is public safety.
“We are trying to keep the village very, very safe, and what happens is, obviously, what goes on in Chicago, some of that will leak into the village,” Chmura said. The Norridge Police Department will have 37 officers on staff by the end of this month, he said. Fully staffed, the department would have 39 officers, he said.
Benigno said the shortage of police officers on staff is a problem. He said he’d like to see more officers hired and said there are “a lot of ways of funding that.”
“Just being a little more efficient with your government and streamlining your operations, you can hire a policeman,” he said. Benigno added that stimulating economic growth in the village would also create more tax revenue to fund police operations.
In addition to taking credit for bringing in about 23 businesses to the community during his first term as village president, Chmura said the new development taking shape at the former Norridge theater building will increase sales tax revenue, produce property taxes for local schools and other government bodies and bring new jobs into the community.
The village board approved the planned unit development last May for the properties located at 4510-4520 and 4474 N. Harlem Ave. Plans for the property include an AMC theater and a Miller’s Ale House, an Orlando, Fla.-based chain. He said the project, a joint venture led by Hamilton Partners and Harlem Irving Companies, would also include leases with retailers “down the line” and he expects the $27 million development to be completed and open to the public in late April. Fully developed, he said, the property is expected to bring in between $500,000 and $700,000 in sales tax revenue to the village annually.
Chmura said ensuring the success of the development is one of the primary reasons he is running for second term.
“I see it being a very good destination point,” he said, referring to the development.
If elected in April, Benigno said he’d try to stop the project at the former Norridge theater building from moving forward because “I think it’s a mistake, and I think we could do something much better with that area.” Benigno said he envisions outdoor cafes, “quality restaurants,” and a big box store like a Costco or a Mariano’s in its place.
The deputy secretary of state said he’s running because there’s “no new quality businesses, economic growth is at a standstill … the police department is short of police.” Benigno said he’s also concerned about financial troubles plaguing Norridge School District 80. A $60.6 million tax increase referendum question posed by District 80 officials failed by a significant margin last November.
Benigno said his experience managing a budget of approximately $390 million for the secretary of state’s office and an employee roster totaling more than 3,700 people makes him well qualified for the village president post.
“I know what it is to negotiate and bring businesses in and negotiate a good thing for the village,” Benigno said.
While the village has its challenges, Chmura said it’s a remarkably affordable place to live given its low fees and taxes charged to residents.
“Right now, we are in very, very good shape. We have no debt. We have money in the bank,” Chmura said.
If elected, Benigno said he’d retire from his post as deputy secretary of state and serve full-time as village president.
“The village needs a fresh look, a look that would bring in young people again, bring the youth moving back in with their kids,” he said.
Lee V. Gaines is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
