Competitive race for Coal City president and trustees

The Coal City municipal positions of village president and village clerk are up for reelection in April, as are three of the city’s six trustees.

Current Village President Terry Halliday is not seeking reelection this term. He said he has enjoyed his eight years as mayor and 16 years as trustee, but that it is time to step down and let another person fill the role.

“At the end of the day,” Halliday said, “it’s time for me to step away. But believe me, I will be around.”

Village president candidates

Two current trustees are running for the position of village president: David A. Spesia and Ross Bradley.

Spesia is chairman of the Streets and Alleys Department and vice chairman of Water and Sewer Department. One of the board’s challenges in the near future, he said, is attracting new business and industry to town, while maintaining Coal City’s small-town atmosphere.

He is a four-year veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps who served in North Carolina, California and Okinawa, Japan.

Spesia also served as a volunteer baseball and softball coach.

Current Trustee Ross Bradley is chairman of Water and Sewer Department and vice chairman of Finance Department. Bradley was elected as trustee in 2011.

Village trustee candidates

Running for Coal City village trustee positions are Daniel J. Greggain, Neal E. Nelson, Pamela Noffsinger and David M. Togliatti.

Greggain currently is a Coal City trustee and is chairman of Public Health & Safety Department and vice chairman of the Park Committee. He has served as trustee for 18 years, with one four-year break. He has focused, he said, on infrastructure and police protection.

Greggain said future issues to address include bringing in industry south of town to “supply tax dollars and good-paying jobs” to the community.

Neal E. Nelson also is running for village trustee. Nelson served Coal City as village president from 2007-2015 and as trustee from 2015-2019. He said he wants to represent the people of Coal City and make the decisions for the best of the city.

Safety, he said, is number one, and he is concerned about the train traffic “running right through the heart of our town.”

Like Greggain, Nelson said industrial development at the south end of town will be important to “hold our taxes down and provide some much-needed jobs.”

Pamela M. Noffsinger, current village clerk, also is running for trustee. Noffsinger has served as village clerk since 1998 and as village collector from 2000–2022.

“I’ve been silently sitting here not having a vote and taking notes since 1998,” she said. “I know a lot about the inner workings of the village hall. ... Maybe what I can bring to this board now is some insight on both sides of the table.”

Noffsinger said if elected as trustee, she would like to see improvement of the bike paths and the skateboard park, a new city museum and some new parks.

David M. Togliatti also is in the running for trustee. Togliatti is a current trustee serving as chairman of the Planning and Zoning Commission and vice chairman of Streets and Alleys.

Togliatti could not be reached for comment.

Village clerk

Alexis Stone is running unopposed for the position of village clerk in Coal City. Stone attended high school in Coal City, moved to another community for a few years, and has recently returned to town.

“I am looking for some community involvement,” she said. “This is basically a stepping stone for me to learn how the politics of the city works and just to get introduced to it all.”

Stone also volunteers for the Coaler Football Team, where her husband is the coach.