Tom Cargie, president of the River Forest Park District board, became the second person last week to announce he is running for the village’s board of trustees in April 2013.
Cargie, 50, joins Village Clerk Roma Colwell-Steinke in the running to fill three trustee seats up for grabs in the April election. Cargie will have served six years on the park board, including two as its president, when his term expires in April.
He has found it “fascinating” learning what people care about and getting their input during his time on the park board, Cargie said. Like the village board several years ago, the group leading the park district was divided when he began serving on it. Cargie said it’s his demeanor — possibly influenced by his career as an attorney — to maintain a civil tone, even during disagreements.
Cargie said he likes the problem-solving aspect of government and hearing people voice different ways of arriving at a solution. But he said no government body should ever be so far apart that its members can’t work together to achieve something for the community.
Economic development is one issue that Cargie said he would emphasize if elected to the village board. The goal, he said, should be to maximize every source of revenue that does not come from property taxes.
“We can’t be as solely reliant on property taxes as we are,” he said.
Cargie plans to live in River Forest for as long as he can and would not want anyone to be unable to afford to stay in the village. He has been a resident of the village for about 11 years, and has a 14-year-old son and 12-year-old daughter.
If it’s doable, Cargie said he’d like to push the village to be more involved in spurring commercial development at Lake Street and Lathrop Avenue.
With the economy picking up, he hopes to help figure out how the property there can better benefit the community.