One Orland Party Candidate: Derek Rinaldi

ORLAND PARK, IL — Meet Derek Rinaldi, the Village Trustee candidate running with the One Orland Party in the April 2021 Consolidated Elections. The election is April 6.

Rinaldi recently filled out the Patch candidate survey, and his answers can be found below.

If you are a candidate for the April election, and would like to answer our Patch candidate questionnaire, please email yasmeen.sheikah@patch.com.

Derek Rinaldi

Age (as of Election Day)

38

Town/City of Residence

Orland Park

Office Sought

Village board or city council

Party Affiliation (if a partisan race)

One Orland Party

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government?

No

Education

Bachelor of Arts in Architectural Studies, Minor in German Language

Occupation

Self‐employed property inspector/owner with Black Paw Home Inspections since 2011.

Campaign website

https://www.oneorland.com/

Previous or Current Elected or Appointed Office

N/A

The single most pressing issue facing our (board, district, etc.) is _______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

The single most pressing issue facing our community is economic stagnation. Multiple businesses and business owners do not know what to do right now as there are many mixed messages regarding health, safety, and how they can process customers. I would work directly with the Chamber of Commerce, as well as talk to local owners to see where they stand and how we can safely allow businesses to re‐open.

Do you support Black Lives Matter and what are your thoughts on the demonstrations held since the death of George Floyd and the shooting of Jacob Blake?

I support Black Lives Matter. No one should live in fear of the people that are employed to protect the public, and those who abuse that power should be held accountable for their actions. I do support everyone’s right to gather and protest peacefully, but I do not support looting and destruction of property. In my opinion all that leads to is less overall support of a good cause, and the general public conflating protesting with looting.

Do you think the current board has done enough to support racial equality, and if not, what specifically should be done to do so?

If elected and given the opportunity, I commit to talking with the residents of Orland that have concerns regarding racial inequality, or similar discriminatory concerns, and working towards rectifying the issue in the best way possible. I am not currently aware of any racial inequality issues in the Village, so I cannot speak to the effectiveness, or lack of, the current administration’s efforts, but I don’t believe we can successfully unify Orland Park if a percentage of our residents feel they aren’t being heard.

What are your thoughts on the national and local coronavirus response? Do you favor measures such as limiting operation of non-essential businesses and restricting indoor/outdoor dining? And do you favor a local mask mandate?

The national response to COVID‐19 has not been effective. There were too many mixed messages, and the experts on the subject were not given the adequate voice that they needed. As a small business owner, I understand the fear of not knowing how you are going to pay your bills, as well as your employees; but I also understand that limitations on non‐essential businesses need/needed to be set in place to prevent the situation from lasting as long as it has. I do believe a mask mandate needs to be put in place.

What are your thoughts on the state and local coronavirus vaccine distribution, and how do you think local governments should work together to handle vaccine rollout?

My wife is an ER nurse, and even in her field, there were mixed messages on how the vaccine would be delivered. There needs to be a clear hierarchy set in place that all persons, businesses, and governments follow – from first responders and high risk jobs, down to low risk.

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

There are multiple vacant businesses, and vacant lots, despite the current mayor hiring a “business developer” at $120K a year. What is the justification for this, when the current mayor was supposed to be the acting business developer, which was included in the $150K salary that he rallied against? This is just one example of the type of wasteful spending and disregard for our community that I want to be a part of challenging.

If you are a challenger, in what way has the current board or officeholder failed the community (or district or constituency)

There has been no transparency, nor fiscal responsibility in the way things have been handled with the current administration. When our residents and small business owners have tried to get help from the current Village government on pressing issues, including guidance on how to maneuver the COVID‐19 pandemic, and we’ve been told it’s not their problem to solve. This is unacceptable. I want to help bring back the values of responsive government that the current administration has failed to provide.

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform

Our team is prioritizing Village safety, economic growth, and keeping partisan politics out of Orland Park.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

As a small business owner for 10 years, I understand what so many fellow small business owners in Orland Park are dealing with. I know what it takes to lead a team as well as how to be part of one, as I’ve also worked directly on several large‐scale projects, including CTA’s Blue Line restoration project, the Minneapolis NorthStar rail expansion, and Chicago's Block 37 Project.

If you win this position, what accomplishment would make your term in office as a success?

To me, a sign of good governance would look like a united Village that has seen positive economic growth for both existing and new businesses, and successfully navigating the COVID‐19 pandemic with fewer positive cases and recovery for our small businesses.

Why should voters trust you?

I am an open and honest person. If someone questions my judgement, or wants to know why I’ve chosen to do the things I’ve done, I have no issue with sitting down and talking to them about it because I know that transparency is critical in local government. In my opinion, in all aspects of life, communication is key, and unfortunately I feel a lot of people currently holding office in our Village have forgotten that.

What are your views on fiscal policy, government spending and the use of taxpayer dollars in the office you are seeking?

The citizens of Orland Park should know how their money is being spent. There needs to be a level of transparency present, so that even on the basic level, people can see how they are helping to better their own community.

Is there any reason you would not serve your full term of office, other than those of health or family?

No

The best advice ever shared with me was:

The paraphrased quote from Theodore Roosevelt: “Nothing in life worth having comes easy.”
The full quote is:
“Nothing in the world is worth having or worth doing unless it means effort, pain, difficulty… I have never in my life envied a human being who led an easy life. I have envied a great many people who led difficult lives and led them well.”

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

We aren’t divided; we are all residents of Orland Park. Every one of us should be working together to make the Village a better place. My wife and I both work full-time jobs and are raising two boys, while also being active in the community. At the end of the day, most of us just want a nice place to come home to and to raise our families in a place where we feel safe, secure, and comfortable. We’re no different, and I want to help be that voice for every other working family in Orland Park.