No stranger to politics or Bloomington, former state Rep. Dan Brady announced Monday he plans to run for Bloomington mayor in 2025.
The Bloomington native and two decades-long former Republican state representative of the 88th and 105th districts will challenge current Mayor Mboka Mwilambwe in the municipal election next April.
In a news release Monday, Brady said his campaign will focus on "public service and public safety, create affordable housing, lower taxes and support business and economic development with a new leadership style."
"The election for Mayor of Bloomington is not about a political party, it's about people over politics," Brady continued. "That’s how I have earned my reputation as a common sense trusted public servant.”
Since the 2022 campaign for Secretary of State ended, Brady has talked at various times about continuing public service. He said he thinks this race and this job are a great fit.
“Bloomington is my hometown. I'm born and raised here. I've worked with a number of mayors over the years as representative. It's a nonpartisan race, which is appealing to me as well. And also, it's a race that keeps me in Bloomington, associated with our business,” said Brady.
He is a partner in a funeral home.
He said the appointment of new Bloomington City Manager Jeff Jurgens as Tim Gleason left to return to the same job in Decatur is an important inflection point for Bloomington.
“It's also a very critical time that there is a mayor that is maybe more hands on and has a different leadership style,” said Brady. “What I mean by 'new' is the fact of an individual that maybe communicates differently … The office of Mayor in Bloomington has some unique aspects to it, and empowerment with line-item veto vetoes and other actions the mayor can take that's normally not heard of or issued.”
He said his style is different from Mwilambwe's.
“More highly visible in certain areas, maybe more involved with the city manager from the position of decisions and what's presented to the city council and actually looking at those areas where if something needs to be vetoed out of a budget, and then trying to be a consensus builder as much as possible,” said Brady. “I have a unique style of connection with people. People know me and I know them. I've had the ability to work with many others in city government, five different mayors, city managers, and different members of city councils.”
He talked about watching the next phases of the Bloomington streetscape project and spreading out that money across the city and its various infrastructure needs. Brady claimed that does not mean he thinks the downtown emphasis is out of whack.
“Oh, no, I'm not saying it's received too much. I'm saying that there could be a balance,” said Brady.
He also noted some of the proposals in the plan involve the old courthouse building that houses the McLean County Museum of History that should not necessarily be city responsibility because the city does not own it.
“That's another government entity called McLean County. Where has the discussion been with them and where do things sit along those lines?” said Brady.
He also noted a mayor is in a position to help manage public concerns and address potential access to business problems during the replacement of downtown underground infrastructure.
“I'd like to be part of that. It's my hometown,” said Brady.
Brady cited his two-plus decades in Springfield as an asset to the city in funding projects and smoothing bureaucratic hurdles, an expertise necessitated by his status as a member of the minority Republican party in the House.
Housing and TIFs
In his online announcement Brady mentioned the need for the city to create affordable housing. He said he wanted to include real estate professionals and people who know housing and the markets in the discussion in an advisory capacity.
Monday night there is a meeting in Bloomington to discuss the potential creation of a Tax Increment Financing (TIF) district, which uses increases in property values caused by new development to fund such projects. Brady said he has advocated for TIFs in the past.
“I want to see exactly what some of the numbers are. I want to see what's involved with the TIF itself. I'll certainly be watching that meeting very closely. But the idea of having that assistance and funding and not having as much drawn from the taxpayers is extremely important,” said Brady.
Brady said he might support an area for such a TIF that is broader than the downtown core inside the "buckle" of the one-way streets.
“If we're going to do it, let's see what we can do to get the most good with it,” said Brady.
He shares that position with Mwilambwe.
To support businesses and encourage economic development, Brady said he wants to avoid increasing application fees and permit costs.
“That's what's going to help business not only thrive, but make sure that we can maybe attract more businesses into the city of Bloomington,” said Brady.
During an interview for WGLT’s Sound Ideas, Brady several times mentioned a need to increase support for public safety (fire and police), even though crime rates in the city are largely static. He cited several shootings early in the year that have not yet resulted in an arrest.
“Those are things I think could be improved upon. For instance, a greater investment in the street crimes unit, trying to make sure that we have officers out where they need to be and getting those guns off the street. Also what's related to a drug unit we once had in this particular city?” said Brady.
Brady's announcement comes shortly after Mwilambwe confirmed to WGLT this month that he intends to run for a second term. In an interview on WGLT's Sound Ideas, Mwilambwe said he wanted to continue to oversee what he called an "upward trajectory" in Bloomington.
Mwilambwe has been mayor since 2021, following a roughly decade-long period on the Bloomington City Council. He was appointed to the council in 2011 and successfully ran for alderman in 2013.
Brady unsuccessfully ran for Illinois secretary of state in 2022. Brady lost to Democrat Alexi Giannoulias but served on Giannoulias' transition team after the election in what he called a "fresh approach" to bipartisanship.
Brady also publicly mulled a run for the 17th Congressional District or the 88th House District this year, but ultimately opted not to run for either position, citing an increasing amount of political polarization.
Brady is also a former McLean County coroner, holding that office for eight years from 1992-2000.
