A sign urging voters to vote against a referendum launched by Mayor Andrew Przybylo to reverse the results of Joe Makula’s November 2014 referendum during the March 15, 2016 referendum.
By Igor Studenkov | For the Bugle
Even if they wanted to, Niles residents will not be able to put any referenda questions on the next two election ballots.
Under the state law, in every municipality, either residents or municipal governments can submit referenda, but there are only three slots available overall. While residents need to collect valid voter signatures, that changes depending on most recent
An election sign by a group backing Niles Mayor Andrew Przybylo that urged residents not to vote in favor of Joe Makula’s trustee vacancy referendum during Nov. 4, 2014 election
election vote totals, municipalities only need to pass a resolution to make it happen.
During the June 13 special meeting, the Village of Niles Board of Trustees voted unanimously to place three advisory referenda on the March 20, 2018 ballot and three more advisory referenda on the Nov. 6, 2018 ballot. Former village trustees and community activist Joe Makula complained that this limited Niles voters’ free speech, since it left no free slots for resident referenda available until 2019. But Mayor Andrew Przybylo argued that it was the best way to let residents know about the issues and gauge their feedback.
The last few elections have seen a number of voter-launched referenda launched by Makula. While some didn’t make it onto the ballot due to legal challenges, others did. Most notably, in April 2013, voters approved Makula’s referendum creating term limits for village trustees and mayors, and in November 2014, voters approved his referendum taking away mayor’s power to fill trustee vacancies. In Oct. 25, 2016, he filed a petition that would reserve two of the three referenda slots for resident petitions, but the Niles Municipal Officers Electoral Board threw it out because petition circulators didn’t properly signed to petitions, rendering them invalid.
The village-elected officials opposed Makula’s referenda on multiple occasions. When he placed a term limit petition, the village board placed its own, less stringent version on the ballot, and both wound up passing. After the trustee vacancy referendum passed, the village board put a referendum to reverse it on the following election ballot – only to see voters reject it. Most recently, trustees Denise McReery and Dean Strzelecki expressed opposition to the 2017 referendum that would require all Niles “taxing districts” to be approved by public referendum – though both emphasized that they were opposing it as private citizens rather than trustees. That referedum was subsequently thrown off the ballot for the same reason as the referenda slots referendum.
During the June 13 meeting, the village board put three advisory referenda on March 20 ballot. The first referendum will ask whether Niles should “encourage economic development through valid State of Illinois and Cook County economic development initiatives to promote low property taxes.” The second referendum – which, unlike the other five, was submitted by Strzelecki – would ask residents if the village should modernize its Emergency Operations Center. The third referendum would ask whether the village should “incentivize senior affordable multi-resident housing developments.”
As previously reported by the Bugle, Niles Family Services director Tony Hollenback recently raised alarm about shortage of affordable housing options in Niles – but he was speaking about affordable housing in general, rather than one for seniors specifically.
For the Nov. 6, 2018 ballot, the first referendum would ask whether the village should build a “multi-purpose community center” somewhere on the existing village property. The second referendum would ask whether the “Village of Niles Community Development Department [should] continue to work with local school districts to enhance their ratings.” The final question would ask whether the village should modernize the Niles Historical Society building. As Przybylo argued during the meeting, while the building’s exterior looks fine, the interiors could use some work.
Former trustee Chris Hanusiak raised concerns about affordable senior housing, asking whether it would be for Niles seniors or if “they would be bringing people in for the south South Side and West Side of Chicago.” He also criticized the way the village board approached this round of advisory referenda in general.
“You are elected to make decisions, not put advisory questions,” Hanusiak said. “You have fiduciary obligations for the Village of Niles – please follow them and do your jobs.”
Former trustee Rosemary Palicki agreed with Hanusiak that those questions didn’t need advisory referenda. She argued that, whatever the intent was, putting up the referenda seemed anti-democratic.
“It really, to me, and other people I spoke to see, seems like blocking citizens’ opportunities to put referendum on the ballot,” Palicki said.
Makaula made the same point.
“In my opinion, it’s against the First Amendment, because it [hurts] our right to speak,” he said.
Attorney David Carrabotta, who ran for village trustee in 2015, proposed a compromise – keeping some advisory referenda but removing two from each ballot to free up one slot each.
As each item came up for vote, Przybylo spoke in their defense, arguing that they were important issues that needed resident attention and support. He also pushed back against the idea that, by putting up the referenda, the board wasn’t doing its job.
“This board works hard,” he said. “I’ve been a trustee for 23 years and I never owrked as hard as I had in the past four years as mayor.”
McCreery said she was cognizant of the concerns about taking up all of the slots.
“I do, how every, believe in the the validity of those referendums,” she continued. “I think it’s important that we get this in – and it helps us do our jobs.”
Trustees George Alpogianis and Joe LoVerde were absent, but the remaining four trustees said they supported putting the refenda on the ballot, voting 4-0 to approve.
During the comment period after the votes, former trustee Louella Preston said she was “dismayed” by the vote – and the mayor’s arguments didn’t convince her.
“If all of those [questions are so important, why are we putting them on the ballot nine months from now?” she asked. “Three other items – why are we waiting 17 months?