New Downers Grove commissioners ‘forged a great friendship’ during campaign

The two newest members of the Downers Grove Village Council could have started out as adversaries on the campaign trail.

But fate weighed in and the two quickly became friends.

Jokingly calling Rob Roe, her fellow newcomer to the Village Council, a “little brother from another mother,” Tammy Sarver said, “I am glad I met him. We have forged a really great friendship throughout the campaign.”

The two and along with incumbent Commissioner Chris Gilmartin were the top vote getters in the April 1 election. Sarver and Roe were sworn in at the May 6 council meeting. Gilmartin was unable to attend the meeting and was sworn at an earlier time.

“I am really excited, and I feel like this group can do great things,” Sarver added.

The trio joins commissioners Leslie Sadowski-Fugitt, Martin Tully, Mike Davenport and Mayor Robert Barnett to form the Village Council.

Sarver is a political science and pre-law professor at Benedictine University. She holds a bachelor’s in political science from the University of Pittsburgh and graduated from the Duquesne University School of Law. Sarver also holds a Ph.D. in political science and statistics from the University of South Carolina,

Sarver, who unsuccessfully ran for council two years ago, said she wasn’t sure if she would she’d throw her hat in the ring a second time.

However, some of her supporters encouraged her to give it another try.

This time around, Sarver received a lot of support from the community, earning her the second largest vote total.

“I was inspired to run because I have been studying political science and law all my life, and I wanted to put that knowledge into action to help my community,” she said.

Sarver, who lives in a 100-year-old farmhouse, has experienced several issues with storm water and drainage.

Correcting the issue was an easy fix through working with the village. But it made Sarver realize issues like this will continue to exist and development “must be done responsibly.”

As a result, responsible development became one of the issues Sarver focused on during her campaign.

“That was one of the impetuses of doing this was my own experience as a landowner and also as someone who respects the environment and nature,” Sarver said. “I want to make sure these things are being done in the most stewardship way possible.”

Sarver will continue to focus on “the three Es—environmentally conscientious, equity and inclusion for all our community including our marginalized members, and evidence-based decision making. Facts not politics.”

Roe, a Downers Grove resident since 2008 and local attorney, began to think about running for office last fall after becoming involved with zoning issues related to a proposed Andy’s Frozen Custard outlet near his home.

He shared that the initial plans included a drive-thru only exit onto residential streets. He worked with village staff and officials so that plans were modified to minimize traffic in the neighborhood.

“I freakishly enjoyed the experience,” Roe said.

He clearly remembers getting a phone call from a commissioner on a Sunday night about his concerns.

“That was a really good feeling,” Roe said.

After a conversation with his wife and two daughters, Roe made the decision to enter the race.

Hearing positive comments from residents while on the campaign trail made Roe “cool” for a moment to his daughters, he said.

He also was proud to show his daughters that if you have a concern and get out and try to fix it, changes can happen.

Most of all, Roe tries to convey to his daughters the importance of caring about others in their community and “give your time for something that is bigger than yourself.”

Now Roe is excited to get started in his new role.

“We have a lot of really positive stuff coming down the pipeline,” he said.

Thanks to the work of the previous council, “there is a bunch of long-range plan stuff that we are actually going to execute,” he said.

Roe campaigned on several issues including street safety, a balanced budget, senior social services and affordable senior housing.

“We need to keep drive-thrus off residential streets,” he said. “It is important for developers to have straight information at the beginning.”

He also hopes to better connect seniors to existing services within the community that they may not know about.

Content with being the “new guy,” Roe said he is ready to listen and learn about people’s issues.

He confessed, he may not know the answer, but he is committed to “figuring it out” and “moving forward and not getting stuck in the mud.”

“There are a lot of people in the community who are out there trying to make a difference in their own way,” Roe said.

The two newcomers have already been participating in orientations prior to their swearing in ceremony. Their first official Village Council meeting is set for May 20.