Banker Vs. Blue Collar In Darien Council Race In Tuesday's Election

DARIEN, IL – The Darien City Council is seeing just one competitive race in Tuesday's election – between Ward 1 incumbent Ted Schauer and challenger John Mayrens.

Ward 3's Joe Kenny, Ward 5's Mary Sullivan and Ward 7's Thomas Belczak are all running unopposed.

Two years ago, the three council incumbents up for election drew opposition. Voters threw two incumbents, Tom Chlystek and Lester Vaughan, out of office. A third, Eric Gustafson, won by a hair.

Elected in 2009, Schauer is the city's longest-serving alderman. Ward 1 includes Q Bar, Cass Junior High School and Concord Elementary School. It also includes Darien's only marijuana dispensary, High Haven.

In their Patch questionnaires, the candidates were asked about the major differences between them.

Schauer, a banker, suggested that Mayrens is an unknown.

"I have never met my opponent, nor has anyone from the city has ever seen him at city hall or a city meeting," Schauer said in his questionnaire. "In fact, he met Dan Gombac, the head of Municipal Services, on the street and never knew who Dan was, so I cannot tell you the difference between him and myself are."

Mayrens confirmed in his questionnaire that he never met Schauer.

"We are two different people: I am a blue-collar union worker and he is a banker," he said. "All I can say is that due to no opposition in past elections, he seems to have forgotten about his constituents. I intend to do my best to meet with as many of our first ward residents as possible."

Asked about the city's most pressing issue, Mayrens said, "Keeping it running properly." He described Darien as a beautiful city with a great police force.

"The constituents of Darien need to be informed about things happening in city hall regarding our city and how monies will be spent," Mayrens said.

For his part, Schauer said the most pressing issue is funding police pensions every year without eliminating police positions.

He said when he joined the council, the city's police pension contribution amounted to $900,000 a year. This year, Darien is putting in $3 million.

The key, Schauer said, is to attract and retain businesses that would generate sales taxes to pay for pensions.

Both men agree on marijuana dispensaries – they're against them. In 2019, a 4-3 council majority decided to allow such a store, with Schauer in the minority. That paved the way for High Haven.

Schauer and Mayrens both said the taxes generated from High Haven aren't worth the societal costs.

"Since it became legal, more people (are) indulging while driving, and this is a safety issue, plus it sends the wrong message to our youth," Mayrens said.