Summary of Gail’s Priorities

Start with the people. 

Skokie’s greatest asset is its residents and workforce in all our diversity. A vote for Gail Schechter is a vote for a vision of Skokie whose high quality of life is built on putting its people and its natural environment first.

Build on what’s right in Skokie.

Diversity. Skokie’s population is ethnically and economically diverse, with families of all kinds who call it home. This is because Skokie incorporates a diversity of industries, housing types, transportation options, public schools and health-care institutions. 

Vibrant amenities. Skokie has vibrant economic and cultural amenities large and small, from Westfield Old Orchard Mall and the Center for the Performing Arts, to the Skokie Theater. Skokie has well-loved parks and abuts the Harms Woods forest preserve. Skokie’s location is optimal as a neighbor to Chicago and the north suburban region.

Gail would build on these assets

  • Strengthening neighborhood-based small businesses, recycling local dollars and building community in the process.

  • Preserving and promoting mixed-income housing, prioritizing at all times residents and workers with the fewest housing options – those with low or fixed incomes, disabilities or large families.

  • Recognizing that a community built on trust and an ethic of safeguarding our environment is the safest and most desirable community.

Co-create with the people a vision for Skokie 

Skokie needs to cultivate a culture of engagement following nearly 60 years of single-party governance. Having co-founded and led the successful Skokie Alliance for Electoral Reform, Gail knows how to build relationships and to:

  • Proactively engage the public in a new Comprehensive Plan for Skokie. The current one hasn’t been updated in nearly 25 years. 

  • Turn the resident input process into a genuine, productive dialogue with our elected leaders so public comments at official meetings and the input of commissions are meaningful.

  • Expand community-building efforts, including reviving “know your neighbor coffees” and the collaborative Coming Together in Skokie, to build trust and cultural appreciation among residents.

Implement clear “rules of the road” for development that put people and the planet first.

  • Employ “human impact” and “environmental impact” non-displacement criteria as the basis for evaluating housing and economic-development proposals.

  • Promote development that prioritizes safety, sidewalks and green space over paved lots and drive-throughs.

  • Adopt Age-Friendly City measures, as developed by the World Health Organization, to promote a Skokie that is welcoming to people at all stages of life.