Tom Chlystek, Darien Ward 4 Alderman Candidate

DARIEN, IL — Incumbent Tom Chlystek is one of two candidates running for Ward 4 Darien alderman in the April 4 election. Here are his responses to the Patch questionnaire:

Name:

Tom Chlystek

Age:

43

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government?

No

Education:

Bachelor of Science

Occupation:

Bringing ideas to life. Engineering.

Campaign website or social media page:

None

Previous or current elected or appointed office:

Current Ward 4 Alderman

The single most pressing issue facing our city is _______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

Making sure young professionals and families consider Darien as a place to live. I intend to continue to push for things in our City that would attract these future residents. From putting in bike lanes for healthy living for our kids and new residents to getting electric vehicle chargers throughout town so people have places to charge. The Tesla Charging station in Burr Ridge has done wonders bringing customers into restaurants as their cars charge. I would like to see more activity related business versus just consumer based business. Such as an Orange Fitness for your morning workout. To a Kumon or other kids learning center. Maybe a cooking school or photography studio. So much of our tax revenue is sales tax that we sometimes lose focus on other businesses that might not offer a sales tax, but would improve our collective quality of life and entice residents to move here. I try to keep a broad, open view, versus just focusing on tax revenue alone.

How do you view Darien's handling of economic development?

I think we are doing as well as can be expected. What many of us have realized in the age of big data is that there is a lot more than just offering an economic package or performing networking here and there when it comes to bringing in certain businesses that we want. For example, a Trader Joes gets a lot of support to come into a town like ours. But to get Trader Joes to come in, they have numerous key metrics that need to be met before they will even consider a location to move into. These factors include things like median household income, education, population density, labor force, and distribution efficiencies, just to name a few. In my opinion, to grow economic development we need to meet some of these unmet needs that we have not focused or even thought about in the past.

What is your perspective on the City Council's approval of an apartment complex on Sokol Court in 2021?

Affordable housing is in big demand, and I’m glad the City is able to address this need with the new development. The new housing complex will be quite hi-tech and will include vehicle chargers and other modern amenities. Plus it gets us even closer to meeting a Trader Joe's Metric!

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidate seeking this post?

Mr. Leganski is an outstanding Darien Citizen. I have known him for many years, and he has done a great job with social events like block parties and get togethers, and the neighborhood watch. The biggest difference I would say is in our mindset in how we are considering this position and what battles we are willing to take on. Mr. Leganski announced that he is running because he wants something to do in retirement. I am here to be a voice of reason on the council and challenge business as usual.

We had several big events that were important to our Ward in the past few years, from Sterigenics and a proposed trucking warehouse, to a proposed crematory. I made our collective voice heard and did the work. This is a stark contrast.

Quite often on council people might go along to get along. I don’t. If I often feel a different direction is needed, and you can be sure I will make my residents' voices heard. I also support a Dispensary in Darien and the revenue it would bring to keep the city from having to raise taxes, while Mr. Leganski does not.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

I love this question. There isn’t a part of town I feel I haven't touched to be honest. From pushing to re-landscaping 75th street and Cass avenue along with Lemont avenue to 75th steer. To pushing for new building aesthetic standards so we have a standard architecture style throughout town. To using environmentally friendly to pre-treat spray for our streets before big snow storms. This saves money by using less salt, helps the snow plows by giving them time, and saving your grass near the street. To new sidewalks at Hinsdale South. To a new stop light at 67th street and Clarendon Hills. To speed control devices on 67th street. To saving money, and lower pollution by incorporating Hybrid vehicles.

But all these accomplishments don’t compare to getting the community together to get Sterigenics, who was poisoning us with a class 1 carcinogen out of our community. Everyone said it couldn’t be done!! But with the help of the amazing community group, Stop Sterigenics, we changed the course of our community's health. Most importantly, our families and childrens. This movement has now made other communities across the U.S. and the world more conscious of the class 1 carcinogen used in sterilization. For our community, I like to say, “The best way to smash cancer is to make sure it doesn’t even start!”

I was also one of the only voices in opposition to building a very large trucking warehouse near our elementary school. While I couldn't prevent the entire warehouse from being built, I was successful in preventing it from being a high traffic facility, keeping our residents safe and reducing air pollution in our ward.

When the funeral home wanted to build a cremation edition in Darien, I was one of the few voices that raised concerns on the council. While I certainly support our local businesses, this particular addition had the potential to greatly increase air pollution with toxic metals and our elementary schools would be downwind.

If you win this position, what accomplishment would make your term in office a success?

Continue making our community attractive to young professionals and young families. I had the honor to serve on District 61 Strategic planning a few years ago, and much to my surprise our student population is down by a ⅓ over ten years. In addition, we had the closing of Our Lady Peace School. Schools are the lifeblood of a community, and I want to make sure they are growing once again

Is there any reason you would not serve your full term of office, other than those of health or family?

No

The best advice ever shared with me was:

Fred Rogers, Mr. Rogers, said in real life he was inspired by the phrase "Life is for service." I try to embody this quote. In addition, Mayor Marchese does an outstanding job with his weekly quotes in Darien Connect. Many residents mention how they have enjoyed it.

Haven't Signed up for Darien Connect? (You do not have to live in Darien to get it) Follow the link here: https://darien.il.us/reference-desk/directconnect-signup

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

I always try to look forward and ask myself, “How can I leave Darien better for the next generation of residents, and our kids?”