Elections ’11: Gary Waight, Candidate Sycamore First Ward

Gary Waight, Candidate Sycamore First Ward

My name is Gary Waight and I am a candidate for Sycamore’s First Ward alderman position, my first-ever political endeavor.  My wife, Mary, and I have lived in Sycamore for eleven years having moved here from the Naperville area.  We moved to Sycamore to find an older home to update and we are nearly finished with that project, so there is sufficient time available for me to get more involved in community activities.  I am seeking the First Ward Alderman’s office because I like what I have seen going on in Sycamore since we moved here.  The ongoing capital improvements both downtown and in residential areas have unquestionably helped to keep Sycamore a nice city in which to live and shop.

During my forty-year working career as a public school business manager, I have attended hundreds of school board meetings, so I think I have a good idea as to how public meetings are run.  I have been pleased with what I have witnessed at the City Council meetings in Sycamore.  The city meetings are very business-like yet open for input from anyone wishing to express an opinion.  I believe the City of Sycamore is financially sound and I think my public financial experience will be helpful to me in doing what I can to help keep the city in excellent financial condition.  While cities and school districts are vastly different in their day-to-day operations, the financing concepts are quite similar, i.e., both are primarily funded by businesses and residents within their boundaries.  Although we may be anxious to have the streets, sidewalks and alleys improved throughout all of Sycamore, we should only approve those projects that can be funded on a year-to-year basis so as to maintain the financial integrity of the City of Sycamore.

My wife, Mary, and I have three married children and six grandchildren ages twelve to three who all reside in the Chicagoland area.  They look forward to coming to Sycamore to experience the small-town atmosphere, but especially enjoy coming for the Pumpkin Festival parade and activities.

If elected to the First Ward Alderman’s office, I look forward to serving the residents and businesses in this ward to the best of my ability.  Rich Neubauer has done a great job of representing the constituents of the First Ward, and I hope to continue on with that level of representation.