Building a Better CommUNITY
Why am I running for re-election as Trustee for District 3? Why did I run in the first place?
Four years ago, I became Trustee and since then I've learned just how vital it is to our residents that we have competent, experienced, non-partisan elected officials who will work tirelessly for the Village of Lombard and for ALL of our neighbors.
As trustee, I will continue my efforts to engage directly with neighbors to address concerns, encourage business development, ensure the safety and security of all residents, add more green space to District 3, promote transparency, encourage bicycle and pedestrian safety throughout the Village, increase hotel/motel tax revenues, oversee collective bargaining efforts, and balance the budget as we have successfully done for the past four years.
I’m proud to represent our vibrant and diverse community of 44,000 residents and I feel the best is yet to come. There are currently more than 60 major projects occurring throughout the Village and many of those are happening right now in District 3! Please visit the website link below to see how the future of Lombard is changing before our eyes!
Click below to visit the Village website to see what's currently happening in Lombard:
Perhaps the most exciting project for me currently is the major revitalization occurring at Yorktown Center. I am proud to have helped oversee this multi-faceted $250,000,000 dollar renovation that will transform our venerable shopping mall into a residential and entertainment hub complete with new restaurants, tenants, townhomes, apartments, and a grocery store - as well as a 2-acre public green space and much more! The economic impact of this development for Lombard will be enormous and I want very much to see this project through to completion. A non-Home Rule village like Lombard needs to bring sales tax revenue to balance the budget and this will be a big piece of that puzzle for years to come.
Click below to visit Yorktown Center's website to see everything that's happening:
Also visit the Village website to learn more about the development plans for Yorktown Center:
Dudekforlombard@gmail.com
What are the Main Issues Challenging Lombard?
1). Responsible Budgets and Taxing
Navigating the unique challenges and financial responsibilities of being a non-Home Rule community and finding ways to creatively balance our $131,875,574 budget without reducing the Village’s quality of services. The loss of the state grocery tax this year will cost residents more than $1,000,000 and we will need to find a way to address that shortfall. Increased hotel/motel sales tax revenue will help, as will taxes and incentives generated by the huge Yorktown Center revitalization project, but there will be much work to be done with the Village Manager, the finance department, and Village staff to solve this puzzle. I’m proud that during the time I’ve served as trustee we have balanced the budget each year and I expect that trend to continue, regardless of the challenges we face.
Click below to visit the Village website budget page for more information:
Dudekforlombard@gmail.com
What are the Main Issues Challenging Lombard?
2). It's all about CommUNITY
Ensuring the safety and security for all Lombardians. In these uncertain times, residents deserve to know they are safe, and I am proud to say our police and fire services are second to none. The next four years will see significant steps to responsibly upgrade support for our first responders, including planning and budgeting for a new police station and firehouse.
But this issue is bigger even than that. The thing I love most about Lombard is its diversity and I will work tirelessly to ensure that everyone feels welcome here regardless of race, religion, gender, sexual identity, or any other reason.
These past four years, I have outreached directly with neighbors as well as religious and social justice groups at Village Hall, in restaurants, and private homes listening to concerns and helping to ensure that no one feels marginalized and that ALL safety issues and needs are immediately addressed. It has been one of the most rewarding aspects of this position and why I so strongly believe in Building a Better CommUNITY.
Dudekforlombard@gmail.com
What are the Main Issues Challenging Lombard?
3). Planning for the Future
The new trustee board and all Village departments will soon be tasked with creating an updated Strategic Plan to guide the Village's decision-making process for the next four years. This will be a vibrant and spirited debate to determine the Village’s future and I look forward to being part of it again.
Significant questions will revolve around attracting and retaining businesses, economic incentives, construction of a new police and fire station, infrastructure, financial sustainability, operational excellence, bike and pedestrian safety, and green space. All Village decisions that will occur going forward will be based on this plan so the importance of this cannot be overstated.
Visit the Village website to learn more about Lombard's 2021-2024 Strategic Plan:
Dudekforlombard@gmail.com
My wife and I moved to Lombard 24 years ago, in the fall of 2001. It was the exciting - and nerve wracking - next step on a path we’d begun fifteen years earlier when we met at high school in Elmhurst.
After college graduations and a bit of slow walking on my part, we married and moved into the city. I began a career as a television producer and editor and my wife, Dawn, the practical one with the conscience and heart of gold, became a social worker. In November 2000, though, things changed dramatically for us with the arrival of our twins, a son and daughter. Suddenly our loft and downtown lifestyle had just gotten smaller and a lot more complicated. It was time to move.
We wanted what every young couple wants: A house. A chance to build a better life. Safe neighborhoods. Great parks. Exceptional schools. New neighbors and friends. Community. Lombard checked every box on our scorecard and so many more.
I still remember the day before closing, sitting at a picnic table in Southland Park with Dawn and our two infants strapped in their car seats, looking across the ball field at the house that would soon become ours. We were terrified and exhilarated. A new, adult, chapter of our life was about to begin.
And it was a whirlwind, of course it was; the same one every young couple experiences when kids arrive and become the center of everything. Day care. Schools. Long, scary nights comforting a sick child. Walking the dog in the park. Parent teacher conferences. Teaching my twins how to ride bikes. Movie nights. Vacations.
The years passed in a blur... Lombard had become home.
My daily routine of walking the children to Hammerschmidt School changed abruptly in fourth grade when we moved south of Roosevelt Road to our new house in District 3 (I knew nothing of Lombard's "Districts" at that time). Those same twins that were born six weeks premature suddenly sprouted and in junior high were now running track and cross country and playing basketball, volleyball, and soccer. And then just like that they were high school students at Glenbard East.
I cannot say enough good things about School District 87 and our decision to move to Lombard. My children were given all the help and resources they could hope for and in addition to sports they excelled scholastically, thanks to their incredible teachers.
Because of the encouragement they received, my son is currently enrolled in a Doctorate of Physical Therapy program at Bradley University in Peoria and my daughter is attending medical school at George Washington University in Washington DC.
I take no credit for their accomplishments, but I am very proud of them.
So why did I become involved in Lombard politics? By accident really. A large portion of my career was spent making documentary television programs for networks like National Geographic, History, and CNBC, among many others. I learned I liked to ask questions and I like to understand how things work.
I began attending Village meetings in 2013 when my neighborhood banded together to fight a major development next door. It was my first taste of a grassroots campaign and it was fascinating to see how our individual voices when unified could impact decisions on the local and county level. We lost that particular battle but I met many of our Village staff and I had to grudgingly admit that, even though I disagreed with what was happening, everyone from the Village Manager on down was honest, transparent, committed to their jobs, and as helpful as they could possibly be.
It was an eye opener to see just how much work and effort goes on behind the scenes at Village Hall every day that we never think about and often take for granted.
In 2021, I learned that our District 3 trustee was stepping down and I figured that, as a former TV documentary producer who likes to ask questions, this would be a unique opportunity to learn how our Village operates.
So with no political experience or ambitions, I threw my hat in...
The past four years have been a fascinating experience. I have learned so much and continue to learn more every day. The challenges of being a non-Home Rule community, budgets, strategic plans, and the wonderful daily interactions with residents and staff as we try to make Lombard a better place for EVERYONE is what make this position worthwhile.
I take pride in making non-partisan decisions to ensure Lombard is a happy, safe neighborhood for everyone. It's what I’ve taken to calling Building a Better CommUNITY.
We have accomplished so much the past four years but, as always, there is so much more to do, and I look forward to being a part of that journey if you'll allow me to.
Thank you for the privilege and honor of being your Trustee...
Please Vote April 1!
Bernie Dudek
Lombard Trustee District 3
Building a Better CommUNITY.
Dudekforlombard@gmail.com
Credits:
Bernie Dudek Trustee District 3 Village of Lombard Building a Better CommUNITY