The mayoral candidates for the April 1 election for the Town of Normal and the City of Bloomington attended a town hall meeting Saturday hosted by the McLean County Republicans.
Council members Kathleen Lorenz and Chemberly Harris attended as candidates for mayor of Normal, and incumbent Mboka Mwilambwe, council member Cody Hendricks and former state Rep. Dan Brady attended as candidates for mayor of Bloomington.
The only candidate not in attendance was incumbent Normal Mayor Chris Koos.
The event, moderated by GOP party chairman Dennis Grundler at the Freedom Baptist Church in Bloomington, allowed the candidates time to introduce themselves and answer questions written by community members.
Candidates for Normal
The town hall started with the Normal mayoral candidates.
Lorenz was the first to speak. After a brief introduction of her 10 years on the town council and another 10 years on the zoning board and planning commission, Lorenz referenced her absent colleague, who Grundler said was not able to attend because he was in Washington, D.C.
“I am running because it’s time, it is time for new leadership," said Lorenz. 'We have been led by a very capable mayor, probably will be remembered in the hall of fame … he has served faithfully for 22 years. My son was 8 when Mayor Koos became the mayor. My son will turn 30 this year.”
Lorenz went on to explain the new leadership she is promoting is the best option for the town moving forward.
“I want to show you that I am the choice for that fresh leadership,” she said. “My skill set matches the time; my skill set is very grounded in a very urgent issue in this community and that is housing.”
Lorenz described herself and leadership style as curious, independent, fiscally responsible and socially compassionate.
Harris also outlined her experience. She said her time in the Illinois Municipal League, National League of Cities and seven years on the council have given her a unique chance to understand the relationship between the town and the greater statewide and federal agencies it works with.
“I have literally worked through Illinois Municipal League to lobby our state legislators to make sure that we are not impacted by unfunded mandates and regulations that impact us long term down the line,” Harris said. “As well as working with our federal legislators through the National League of Cities, sitting on various committees.”
Harris said her experience is what gives her the ability to push her vision of seeing Normal thrive, or THRIVE.
“There’s a meaning behind that word thrive, if you have a quick second for me to tell you about these six points,” she said. “The ‘T’, technology … The ‘H’, housing …The ‘R’ is reimagining cultural diversity. The next is intentional community engagement…The ‘V’, vibrant community development … and last but not least, our crown jewel, economic development.”
In the question-and-answer portion of their time, Lorenz and Harris were asked about one of their top issues — housing.
One anonymous writer asked whether a so-called tiny house ordinance would help the town function better and alleviate the burden around housing. Both candidates agreed it could be an option, but it was certainly not a solution.
“I think it is something we not just could [but] should be open to,” said Harris. “There’s a lot of pieces to the housing crises. However, can it help? Absolutely.”
Lorenz agreed, but elaborated on why she thought it was not the solution.
“I think the broader picture is that we need to look at all of land use ordinances when it comes to residential development and find ways to, as I like to say, lead and get out of the way,” she said. “Lead by inspiring developers both near and maybe not so near to come to Bloomington-Normal.”
The issue they most disagreed on was a McLean County Regional Planning Commission’s study on how Veterans Parkway could be made safer and more accessible for those without their own vehicle. Harris was all for the study.
“I know most of you in this room are probably going to yell at me, throw something at me or tell me to get out after this,” she said. “I support it.”
Harris said she would take the time to do the project correctly and promote the location as an economic hub for Normal, but Lorenz said she wasn’t as enthusiastic.
“I applaud the McLean County Regional Planning Commission for studying it,” she said. “I don’t know that this is something that I’m going to get really jazzed up about because it’s going to be a generational project.”
The candidates also were asked about other issues, including water safety, the possibility of switching to a strong mayoral form of government, and how they would function within a state like Illinois that has an overwhelming Democratic majority. They agreed on all three, emphasizing a cost-effective way to treat chemicals in water, the importance of a city manager/mayor system and being a strong advocate for Normal despite what goes on in Springfield.
Bloomington candidates
In the second portion of the event, the candidates for mayor of Bloomington followed the same format.
After saying he was running because he felt Bloomington is where he could do the most good, Brady zeroed in on his campaign points.
“The first is public safety. If you don’t have a safe community, people are not going to want to come and live here,” he said. “Public infrastructure … our roads, our bridges, sidewalks, sewer system. Capital dollars are needed, obviously money from the city’s budget is needed, and I’ll lead in securing more funding if elected.”
Brady said other priorities were prioritizing spending, growing business and being the best cheerleader for Bloomington.
Hendricks, a history, civics and economics teacher at Olympia High School, touted his experience as well — not only two years on the city council, but also four years on the Pekin City Council. He proposed his campaign as a vision for Bloomington, one that can provide fresh leadership.
“I kept hearing from individuals within our community that they wanted new leadership … leadership that was engaged and active and a part of the community,” he said. “Our campaign is really focused on again, being a part of the community and following through on the things we said for council.”
Hendricks said those priorities were housing, economic development and infrastructure.
Mwilambwe not only discussed his record and what he has accomplished in his first term, but also how he wants to continue the work.
“We’ve renovated our public library, we’ve built the O’Neil Aquatics Center, we’ve also used our funding to help ... fund some roads and sewers … we finally have a downtown streetscape plan,” he said. “We’ve kept public safety as a priority, we’ve provided a lot of support for the police, but also for the fire department and now this results in, you know, fairly low crime compared to other communities.”
Mwilambwe also touted the attraction of more artists and acts to the Grossinger Motors Arena, and the arrival of the ECHL’s Bloomington Bison, the highest level of hockey ever in Bloomington. In the future, he wants to focus on housing, infrastructure, economic growth and investments.
When asked how the candidates would work with the federal government in efforts to deport illegal immigrants, the candidates had varying answers.
Mwilambwe and Hendricks agreed they would like to work with organizations like The Immigration Project and Home Sweet Home Ministries on assisting individuals to obtain their citizenship, or working with law enforcement on individuals who have committed crimes.
Brady's position was more personal.
“I learned a lot about this years ago when my wife and children were hit by an individual that was here without a valid Illinois driver’s license and was not legally,” he said, reflecting on how that helped him when he was a state legislator. “If you’re here legally, we want you here. If you’re not here legally, we have to protect you, the ladies and gentlemen of Bloomington, first.”
One question about city investments and road conditions evoked some audience reaction after the candidates were asked why the city continues to build in downtown Bloomington when road conditions as less than adequate.
Mwilambwe said he didn’t see the conditions the same way, and Brady talked about how investing differently if he was mayor. Hendricks had more to say about downtown.
“I wish we were in Arizona or a warm state that didn’t have plow trucks coming through all the time … primarily it is because of that snow weather,” Hendricks said. “As the mayor said, we have increased the funding for that line item and we can be a community that does multiple things. We don’t need to focus on and be like, ‘Bloomington, the place where we fix potholes and nothing else.’ We can do other things.”
All the Bloomington candidates agreed they enjoyed the nonpartisan aspect of the race, they do not support a new grocery tax, the city manager system is beneficial and they don’t believe in rent control.
The municipal election in Bloomington and Normal will be April 1; early voting starts Feb. 20.
