Letter to the Editor: Time For More Districts on Kendall County Board

Did you know that the Village of Oswego is the largest municipality in Kendall County with 30,355 residents, but not one KC board member lives in Oswego? Over 80 percent of residents live in larger municipalities such as Oswego, Yorkville, and Montgomery and unincorporated Boulder Hill, but 80 percent of County Board members live in rural or small unincorporated areas in Kendall County. No other county in the Chicagoland area has this type of representation disparity.

Is the current two district proportional representation disparity a major underlying factor in the KenCom dispute or other potential disputes between the KC board and Municipal Boards in Oswego, Yorkville and Plano?

 The population of Kendall County has increased by over 110 percent in the last decade, but Kendall County currently has only two districts, and is the ONLY Illinois county with a population of over 100,000 with so few districts. With more and smaller districts, county board representatives will live in the communities in which they are elected and have a better understanding of local issues.

Does it make sense to continue the two districts structure for another ten years with each member of the board representing over 55,000 for another ten years when we know the county is going to keep growing? With 5 districts, each board member would represent approximately 22,000, with 10 districts, each board would represent approximately 11,000 residents. 

We need a vision of a better future, and a path towards that future. For that, we need county board members with open minds. It has been said that a good leader should have an open mind and open door.

The board members who have already said that they don’t want to change the current two district system before hearing public input obviously don’t really care about true representative government. Holding onto their power is more important than what benefits the people of Kendall County.

The Kendall County  is Thursday at 6 p.m. at 111 W. Fox St., Yorkville, 2nd floor, regarding residents submitting 5 , 10 district plans and comments to the board to better represent the public using the same amount of board members, just more localized representation. Please attend this meeting and show your support for fair and adequate representation for KC residents. If you would like more information, please call me at 630-551-3701 orchrisivineyard@comcast.net.

Chrisi Vineyard, Oswego, President, Kendall County Democratic Women