Joliet City Council candidates present their platforms at first forum

The first forum for candidates in the Joliet City Council election drew a large audience on Thursday.

Roughly 75 people filled a room at the Joliet Public Library Ottawa Street Branch.

Sponsors for the event were the Nonviolent Cities Project-Joliet, Speak Up and the League of Women Voters of the Greater Joliet Area.

Appearing were the five candidates on the ballot: Joe Clement, Juan Moreno, Jan Quillman, Glenda Wright-McCullum and Damon Zdunich.

Also there was write-in candidate Jim Lanham. Write-in candidate Larry Crawford was absent due to illness.

The city-wide election for three at-large council members is on April 1.

Joe Clement

Seeking a second term, Councilman Joe Clement emphasized that he has not missed a council or committee meeting.

A retired Joliet police officer, Clement said, “I am so proud that I worked in every area of the city. I know every area of the city.”

Clement was the one candidate to defend the logistics industry in Joliet.

“If we don’t have economic development, what happens?” he asked. “We’re going to have to raise taxes, which I’m against. We’re going to have to cut services, which I’m against. That’s the reality.”

Jim Lanham

Running as a write-in after being knocked off the ballot in a petition challenge, Jim Lanham emphasized his outsider status.

“I’m not getting any big donations from anyone,” he said. “I’m not bought and paid for.”

Lanham said he has taken a stand on a number of issues, including criticism of an apartment house for sex offenders in the Cunningham neighborhood.

Asked about future jobs, Lanham said the city should embrace the growing cannabis industry and called a decision to reject a Jefferson Street dispensary “dumb.”

Juan Moreno

“Maybe I shouldn’t have said I’m a truck driver,” Juan Moreno joked when faced with a question about truck traffic.

Moreno, however, said the city does “have a problem” and should step up enforcement of laws to keep trucks from roaming onto residential streets.

He is making his first run for public office.

“I’m a young man that wants to be involved in the community, but I need to have a platform so I can advocate for the working man and for the working class.”

Jan Quillman

The senior member of the City Council, Jan Quillman said she wants another term to see past work, including the Lake Michigan water project and downtown improvements, “coming to fruition.”

Quillman emphasized her accessibility.

“My reputation is I give out my phone number, and I call you back,” she said.

On public safety, Quillman said the city needs to rebuild its Neighborhood-Oriented Policing Team, saying it is down from 30 in the 1990s to eight today.

Glenda Wright-McCullum

Glenda Wright-McCullum, chair of the board of commissioners at the Housing Authority of Joliet, pointed to issues that the city needs to address.

“We’ve failed because we have homelessness that’s through the roof,” she said. “We have people who can’t find affordable housing.”

Wright-McCullum advocated support for local businesses already in Joliet as an economic development strategy.

“If we would support businesses we already have, we would not have to go so much to the outside,” she said.

Damon Zdunich

A partner in the Bishops Hill Winery in Joliet, Damon Zdunich said he’s learned that the city can attract destination-oriented business.

“Our customer base is more than 50% outside of Joliet,” he said. “I do believe we can have economic development beyond warehouses.”

Zdunich talked about deep family roots in the city, saying they go back four generations, and the need to prepare for a future Joliet population that he said will reach 200,000.

“I’m a business owner,” he said. “I’m a Navy veteran. I love this town. I want to see this town do well.”