Two fresh faces challenge three incumbents for seats on the Huntley Village Board this spring

A local small business owner and an experienced attorney are running against three incumbent candidates this spring for spots on the Huntley Village Board, promising voters a fresh perspective and new ideas, while the incumbents point to their records and vow to finish what they have started.

Mary Holzkopf, owner of the local bakery Blessed Little Kitchen, and Burt Natkins, an attorney with experience in local politics, will challenge Huntley Village trustees Ronda Goldman, JR Westberg and John Piwko for their seats on the board in the upcoming election on April 6.

“Going through the process of building my business ... gave me some insight as to the behind-the-scenes aspects of what goes on when businesses are trying to come to town, and I feel like I could be a great asset to other businesses,” Holzkopf said of her decision to run.

Natkins served on the Village Board in Oregon, Wisconsin, where he previously lived, and currently serves as a member of the Huntley Historic Preservation Commission, the Citizen Police Academy Alumni Association and the Kane County Zoning Board of Appeals. This experience coupled with his career as an attorney working closely with local governments has readied him to serve the residents of Huntley, he said.

“I would fill a very definite niche that I think really is desirable to have on the Village Board,” Natkins said. “It’s not that I would actually practice as an attorney, but I have this background and knowledge that I bring to the table that I think is really critical sometimes in working through issues that the Village Board will face.”

Before launching her business in 2018, Holzkopf was a social worker for many years. Her experience in advocating for others through this work will lend itself well to being receptive to and advocating for the needs of Huntley residents, she said.

Goldman has served on the Village Board since 2013 and hopes to be granted a third term so she can see through a few key development projects that she feels strongly about. She said she also wants to challenge herself to dream big for Huntley’s future even as the COVID-19 pandemic has made striving towards that dream a bit more strained.

“Bottom line is our population has increased over the past decade ... and our residents deserve to have outstanding places to shop and get their services,” Goldman said. “... Huntley should be a destination location for people to live and shop here.”

She and fellow incumbents Piwko and Westberg want to continue Huntley’s growth by pursuing a mix of commercial and industrial business developments that will create jobs and generate more tax revenue to support the village’s schools and infrastructure.

Westberg, who has also been a trustee since 2013, placed an emphasis on the importance of industrial development like a recent proposal presented to the village by Venture One on behalf of an unnamed client, which said the development would create 1,000 jobs in 2022.

“Most people want to live near or in the same town that they work in right? So these jobs will create housing, more housing will create more revenue and generate more money ... for the schools and for roads as well,” Westberg said.

Holzkopf said she sees the village as being at a key point in its growth where the board should aggressively pursue business development, while ensuring that they listen to residents as to what kinds of developments they want to see in the community – something she said she feels well-positioned to do.

As the village looks to attract businesses to key areas along Route 47 near the recently completed interchange with Interstate 90, Piwko said it is crucial that the board balance projects that residents want to see, such as individually owned restaurants, with the need to jump on the job-creating opportunities so that those developers don’t leave in favor of another town.

Natkins said he would find this balance by ensuring each development aligns with the village’s long-term goals expressed in its strategic plan.

Piwko, who has served on the board since 2007, said he is “all about transportation and walkability” and will push for more multi-purpose paths near future residential developments. He said he is proud of the board’s decision to include a path in its plans to renovate Kreutzer Road near the county line.

All five candidates agreed that bringing passenger rail service to Huntley through an Amtrak or a Metra stop should be high on the priority list. This process has been slow going and Westberg said the best way for the board to help speed things along is to find a viable property and have a plan prepared.

Also on Goldman’s list of priorities are environmental issues, such as maintenance of wetlands, and implementing body cameras for Huntley police as a safety and accountability measure that she said benefits them as well as those they serve.

Natkins also expressed an interest in public safety, saying that the Village Board has a responsibility to stay on top of crime in Huntley as the village continues to grow.

As the economic impacts of COVID-19 stretch on, Holzkopf said she would push to offer more grant programs for small businesses and wants to create a small business mentorship program for budding entrepreneurs in the area.