Clarendon Hills voters will choose between at least two slates for village president in April after a second group of candidates entered the race.
Corri Natarelli, a 19-year Clarendon Hills resident and Clarendon Hills Middle School PTO co-president, is running for village president under the new Clarendon Hills Together banner, Patch reported. Running for the three open trustee seats are incumbent trustees Ralph DeAngelis and Elizabeth O'Connell and newcomer Laura Donnelly.
The slate is calling for a traffic light at Western Avenue and 55th Street and for the village to address flooding problems. In a news release, the candidates said they want to restore the community spirit that makes Clarendon Hills distinctive.
Plaza question looms
The release did not mention the downtown plaza proposal that has divided the village for months. When Patch asked, Natarelli said, "The plaza is a settled issue. There will be no plaza."
But the candidates' prior public statements paint a more complicated picture, according to Patch. The outlet reported that all four have, to some degree, taken positions friendly to Village President Eric Tech's push for downtown upgrades that include a plaza. Donnelly has advocated for a plaza during Village Board meetings. In a June letter to Patch, Natarelli argued that children should be welcomed downtown, pushing back on residents who opposed the plaza for that reason. On social media, Natarelli questioned a village survey showing most residents opposed the plan, saying only a tiny fraction participated.
Downtown spending backdrop
Tech, who took office in 2023, proposed eliminating the downtown traffic triangle and replacing it with a plaza. After residents objected, trustees revised the plan to include retractable barriers. Opponents argued blocking the triangle, even temporarily, would cause dangerous backups near the railroad tracks.
In July, O'Connell and DeAngelis joined the majority in rejecting a $3.3 million no-bid contract for downtown improvements. DeAngelis called the deal "too spendy." The board later unanimously approved a smaller $1.9 million no-bid contract.
Tech did not respond to Patch's inquiry about whether he will seek re-election. Former Trustee Taps Gallagher has said he is also running for the Village Board. Whether Trustee Mark Peterson, elected in 2023, plans to run again is unclear.
A crowded field
The Clarendon Hills Together slate joins a separate group led by Keith Chval, a former Hinsdale High School District 86 board member running for village president. Chval's trustee candidates are Erika Jones, Derek White and Kathleen Hirsman, also a District 86 board member. Two of Chval's candidates, Hirsman and Jones, have questioned the village's downtown proposals.
The Clarendon Hills Together candidates plan a meet-and-greet and petition-signing event from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 28, at The Open Door Taproom & Bottle Shop, 20 S. Prospect Ave.
