Abu-Taleb Announces Intent to Re-Run for Mayor of Oak Park

Oak Park Mayor Anan Abu-Taleb has announced his intent to rerun for mayor next April.

Abu-Taleb, who was initially elected in 2013, told the Pioneer Press he feels he’s worked on several important projects throughout the past four years and wants to continue to push that progress forward.

“I feel it’s important to complete the journey we had started,” he told the Press. “I really believe the stars are aligned for our community.”

During his term as mayor, Abu-Taleb has focused largely on development, construction and infrastructure improvements in the village. He recently backed a development proposal for Madison St. and has been at the head of several new development projects in downtown Oak Park.

His immediate plans are to continue constructing the Madison St. corridor, reconstructing the Harlem Ave. and South Blvd. viaduct and continuing to stabilize and grow the village’s tax base, the Press reported.

“What has happened over the last few years is we believe we cannot rely on the state or federal government to help us out,” Abu-Taleb said. “We have to rely on ourselves to deliver the services that make Oak Park what it is. We need to make Oak Park a desirable place to live and work."

Abu-Taleb owns the Maya Del Sol restaurant at 144 S. Oak Park Ave. and said he can sympathize with the difficulties of being a local business owner. He said he believes the last four years have made that transition easier for new businesses.

“When you talk to small businesses coming today to Oak Park, they say it’s like night and day,” he said. “We’ve gotten rid of all the red tape.”

In 2013, Abu-Taleb beat John Hedges in the mayoral election, but only by a small edge. Abu-Taleb earned just over half of the vote — 58.4 percent — and didn’t have the backing of the Village Manager Association like Hedges.

"Even though I wasn’t their pick [in 2013],” he said, “I was proud to be their mayor and represent all of Oak Park."

Whether another candidate announces their bid for mayor or not, Abu-Taleb told the Press he encourages Oak Park residents to look back on the past four years and think about all the progress the village has made as a whole.

“I don’t know the answers to everything, but you will find me approachable, someone who will listen, ask a lot of questions and someone who is willing to bring people together to make a decision,” he said.

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