Library, sales tax propositions both approved by voters
By Paul DelGuidice
For The Villa Park Independent
The voters spoke on Tuesday, April 4, and Villa Park now has a new Village President. Albert ‘Al’ Bulthuis handily bested fellow trustee Robert ‘Bob’ Taglia and long-time resident Charles ‘Chuck’ Pickerill to win the seat. The official totals in the three way race were: Bulthuis 1,505 votes (44.66%), Robert J. Taglia 1,099 votes (32.61%) and Charles Pickerill 766 votes (22.73%).
Total votes cast were 3505, about a 24.6% turn out of Villa Park’s eligible voters.
Four candidates vied for the three Board of Trustee seats up for election. Incumbent Nick Cuzzone garnered the most votes with 2,327 votes (29.94%), followed by incumbent Robert J. ‘Bob’ Wagner at 2,056 (26.45%) and Cheryl Orlow Tucker with 1,783 (22.94%). David Cilella fell short with 1,607 votes (20.67%).
“It was all about knocking on doors and talking with residents,” Cuzzone said after the election. “I went out an did a lot of walking and talking!”
The elevation of Bulthuis to the President’s seat leaves an unfilled seat on the Board, as the spot isn’t up for election until 2019. Bulthuis will need to name someone to fill the unexpired term. The Board of Trustees then confirms the appointment. At press time, their was no indication of who Bulthuis might choose to fill his seat as Trustee.
“We didn’t talk about who he might appoint,” said Trustee Cuszzone. “Some say Dave (Cilella, the ‘odd man out’ among the trustee candidates) should be considered, but that is Al’s choice. The Board will then have a vote on his choice.”
Village Clerk Hosanna Korynecky ran unopposed and received 2,716 votes. She will serve another four-year term as Clerk.
The voters also weighed in on funding two large projects in the Village: The Library remodeling and water/sewer infrastructure needs. The issuance of nearly $10 million in bonds to pay for needed repairs and upgrades to the library passed by a wide margin: 2,215 votes to 1,234, or 64.22$ to 35.78%. The library question was debated among many residents as the bonds issued to pay for the upgrades are paid back via a property tax increase. In the end, voters decided the improvements to the building and programs was worth the cost. Proponents of the library upgrade pointed out that a nice library also helps lift property values for everyone in the Village.
The second proposal, a one-half cent sales tax increase to help fund infrastructure needs, also won by a landslide: 2176 votes to 1,234. This 63.81% to 36.19% split was very different than the vote for a similar tax increase during the November, 2016 election. Voters rejected that measure by a 51.72% to 48.28% (4,818 to 4,498) margin.
Proponents of the sales tax increase noted that much of the money generated comes from shoppers that live outside Villa Park and thus, the impact on residents is lessened.
