I wish Mr. Novak had the " There's room for fresh perspective, room for change." while in the skokie school district. But he hasn't done anything different than any other pta member. Please let me know if this is a community vote because mine is on Lisa Lipin.

I've been a fan of School Dt. 73.5 largely due to Brian's work on the School Board and PTA. Of course, everyone is allowed their opinion. I suggest people visit www.novakforskokie.com to make an informed decision before April 9th's election. As for me and my vote, it goes to Novak for Skokie.

I support Lisa Lipin who has proved her leadership in the community and she "listens" to people! I wish Brian good luck and hope there will be more independent candidates in the future. The Skokie Caucus party way is very outdated! While the Village of Skokie is a great place to live, there is room for improvement. There is a safety concern in the Village of Skokie!

Lisa Lipin is an excellent candidate. She will get my vote.

There will be six trustees elected in the April election. So, you can vote for both Lisa and Brian. The key is to find candidate(s) who represent and will listen to you as a resident.

George - I have a correction. The Skokie municipal elections were contested in 2001. At that time a group formed the Community Vision Party, and slated individuals for mayor, clerk, and six trustees. As a new party they were required to have candidates for all of those positions. However, you may be correct that the last time an independent has run for Skokie Trustee was 1993.

If Mr. Novak thinks we need to enforce existing ordnances he is definitely out of touch with Skokie.

Skokie has too many outdated ordnances on the books as it is, that is why they are not being enforced. Many of them are used as weapons by neighbors against each other when they don’t get along. A truly fresh perspective would be to review the old ordnances and eliminate them. He acknowledges that Skokie is evolving and changing but he is either opposed to these changes or does not know how to change with them. The fresh perspective he speaks of should not include enforcing old outdated ordnances.

The Vilage Board of Trustees needs a new prospective. We need leadership that listens and has a good grasp of what is important to their constituency. I will be voting for independent candidates.

Katie I went on Brian's website at the suggestion of Jackie and was quite surprised to see that you are Brian's contact person/campaign manager. You really should have disclosed that in your comments if you wanted to be totally transparent.

I am not a champaign manager or volunteer and as I stated I am not voting for Brian even if I could vote for more than one person. He has not done anything for the community and he really is not a friendly person until he wants something. And right now he wants your vote. So Katie find another venue to do your campaigning.

I think the ideas of offering a fresh perspective and of representing " the everyday citizen" are marvelous, and couldn't agree more with Mr. Novak's website that Skokie has changed over the years. I think the same is true of District 73.5. Its demographic and programs have changed since the start of the 21st century. It could certainly use a fresh perspective to go along with the changes. On April 10, 2012, the 73.5 Board of Education was faced with a situation where, according to Mr. Novak, a teacher behaved " in a certain manner " which meant that teacher " should not be allowed to remain" in the district. Mr. Novak also noted that the teacher's "judgment is shown to be impaired and continues year after year." This provided a great opportunity for Mr. Novak to stand up for the "everyday" citizens/students of District 73.5 and make a statement that he, as a Board member, would help them get needed change and fresh perspective. He could have helped provide an impetus for a personnel change to eliminate those in District 73.5 who have proven themselves to show the same impaired judgment year after year.The Board chose to keep the teacher. Mr. Novak could have stood up for the rights of the students to schools where good judgment is exercised. He could have. He could have gone on record as truly wanting positive change and voted not to retain the teacher on principle. He could have. But he abstained.

Brian would be a fresh new face in our current Village government that is very outdated. Brian has been very involved in our community and we desperately need change. Brian we wish you lots of luck, you have our vote!!!!!!

I have been a teacher for English Language Learners in Skokie District 73.5 for the past 13 years and I know first hand about the tireless work, dedication, commitment, passion, compassion and authenticity of Brian Novak's to represent all people in Skokie. When he found out I needed some parent support and volunteers in my classroom but was not able to obtain any, he was the first person to sign up for the job. He came in once a week for the entire school year and was down in the trenches with me. He did not do this for his own children or for publicity, he did this because he truly cared about the well being and education of my students who needed an advocate like him. This was not a one time deal either. The following year, he and his wife continued to come into my classroom on a consistent basis to provide real-life experiential learning for my students. They used their own finances, skills and talents to enrich the education and lives of my students. He talks the talk and walks the walk and I know he would work whole-heartedly on behalf of the residents in Skokie.

.... reading to the kids, being involved in school events, devotes his time (no different than any other parent). Comments ...for many years tries to make changes and Hasn't always had a ton of support. Sounds like the trustee position might be too much for him to handle. We need a person who can lead and make the changes everyone here is talking about. Thats person to me is Lisa who has the leadership not only in the community but the world, when she tackled a toy company and won.

One thing is clear....the residents of Skokie are sick and tired of being sick and tired. Talk to your friends and neighbors and get them registered to vote. Then encourage them to follow through come the April elections. Apathy and discouragement are the enemies of us all. Clearly there is a tsunami of resentment towards a slow moving and out of touch village government and management.

Isn't it time the for the very richly compensated Al Rigoni retire and enjoy his handsome pension and all the other wonderful benefits he receives as a government employee? Most highly compensated Illinois state village manager in calendar year 2010, in the midst of the current hobbled national economy.

Things don't look so bad from Al's kitchen sink window. Skokie local politics are as dirty as anything at the national level. Plenty of back room maneuvering. It seems to have generated epic levels of discontent amongst village residents. Go vote. Make things change!!

The mayor and his minions would prefer we all just shut up and pay the new taxes they cook up quietly. It's one thing for the village government to say they give a damn and another to actually back that up with improved performance and provision of better village services. They only thing current village management seems committed to is full employment of village employees. It's high time fat got trimmed and performance increased. Nothing increases work efforts like trimming away the slackers.

You have to wonder who "Schoolmarm" and "Skokiegal" are. Outspoken, but hiding behind pseudonyms. You have to pray the "Marm" isn't a really a school teacher. Oops I forgot...no more praying...at least not in the schools. But a moment of silence perhaps? We are OK with "Shut Up".

Is it that she doesn't understand the concept of a paragraph, or hasn't mastered the computer? Most likely a teacher though....that would help explain district 219's overcompensated teachers and under performing students.

They must need more money. They ALWAYS need more money. For more than 30 years now. And still, student performance continues to decline. A 60% competency rating among 219 graduates. Now that's performance you can stand behind. You sure wouldn't want to stand in front of it.

And the unforgettable words or 219 board president Robert Silverman referring to tax increases ..." I don't want to leave any money on the table ".

I can see why. There are actually fewer and fewer tables in Skokie as we "enjoy" the highest or close to the highest foreclosure rate of any Chicago suburb. See the March 30th Chicago Tribune story titled "Schools Stockpiling Cash" . Three specific Skokie school districts were cited in this city and suburban wide analysis.

Good to know that reord spending by our schools in harsh economic times doesn't hurt your typical property owner and ratchet up his property taxes. Ya know, I think Niles West needs a new $15 MILLION dollar pool too.

After all, we don't want fragile teen egos suffering "Pool Envy". Move along folks....there's nothing to see here. Just move along. Remind me, how did Illinois get it's sparkling reputation?

It does seem as though there is general agreement that change is desired. Change, however, doesn't just mean different names and different faces. Change has to include the courage to make actual changes.

I appreciate everyone taking the time to read the article and submit comments. I would like you all to know that I am listening.

I am extremely proud of the work I have done with the 73.5 School Board (as Secretary), District 807 - NTDSE (as president), the PTA, as a Commissioner on the Consumer Affairs Commission, Chamber of Commerce Economic Development Task Force, Skokie's home delivered meals program, and all of the other local organizations I have been a part of since I arrived in Skokie.

For those of you who do not know me but would like to learn more, you can either visit my website, www.novakforskokie.com, or attend a meet-and-greet coffee. There have been and will continue to be many opportunities to meet me in person - the dates will be posted on the web-site or you can join the mailing list so that you will be notified.

As Skokie residents we are all invested in the community and should be part of the conversation - I strongly encourage you to exercise your right to vote on April 9th.