Eight candidates force Salem Lakes primary

Voters to narrow field to six

By Gail Peckler-Dziki
Correspondent

With eight residents vying for three contested trustee seats in the Village of Salem Lakes, voters will cut that field to six when they head to the polls for the Feb. 21 primary election.

The six candidates, along with the race for village president, which is between current Silver Lake Village President Bruce Nopenz and Salem Town Chairperson Diann Tesar, will appear on the general spring election ballot in April.

The Town of Salem and Village of Silver Lake are slated to merge, effective Feb. 14.

The following are profiles of the candidates, including committees incumbents have served on, for the three vacant Salem Lakes trustee seats as provided by the candidate:

Patrick Dunn, Inc.

Patrick Dunn

Dunn, a current trustee on the Silver Lake Village Board, has served three two-year terms.

Previously, he ran for municipal judge four years ago, but was defeated by Marlene Engstrom.

Dunn studied law enforcement at College of Lake County in Grayslake, Ill. and took fire science courses at Gateway Technical College.

Dunn is a Fire Investigator at EFI Global and belongs to the International Association of Arson Investigators.

He has volunteered for Habitat for Humanity in the past and assists where needed in the village, including construction of the ice rink.

“I originally ran for office with very idealistic goals,” Dunn said, about why he is seeking another term. “Once in office, I found there were many problems within our then current government. I was able to help eliminate many of the problems, thus saving the village and taxpayers money. I hope to be able to continue to work to save more money, and to finish the work we started, with the consolidation of the two governments, Silver Lake and the Town of Salem. We have many opportunities to grow economically and improve our new village.”

Also, Dunn served on the Public Protection and Emergency Services Committee and the Department of Emergency Government Commission.

Ted Kmiec, Inc.

Ted Kmiec

Ted Kmiec, 55, is a Town of Salem Supervisor and has thrown his hat in the ring for a seat on the eventual Salem Lakes Village Board.

Kmiec, at the urging of former Salem Town Supervisor Joe Meier, has served on the town board since 2011. Kmiec was appointed to fill the vacancy left when Meier passed.

While Kmiec is a member of Christ Lutheran Church, he also is a member of the State Bar of Wisconsin and State Bar of Illinois.

Kmiec, a past president and vice president of the Kenosha County Bar Association, was also a member of the Walworth County Bar Association.

Additionally, Kmiec has volunteered with the Pleasant Prairie Patriots Hockey, Kenosha Komets Hockey and Lakeland Little League and served as a coach and referee for local youth soccer and floor hockey clubs.

Kmiec said Joe Meier encouraged him to seek appointment on the Salem Town Board and “was honored to be appointed to his seat after he passed away,” he said. “I feel that we have had an excellent town board with good cooperation that has served Salem residents well. We have made significant progress in repairing infrastructure, one of my biggest concerns from the beginning of my time on the board.”

“We have purchased and improved our parks and kept taxes down,” Kmiec said.

Also, Kmiec mentioned the new Salem Business Park, refinancing debt at favorable ratings, and the well-led and well-trained fire and rescue service, which he said is a “great asset” to the community.

“I would like to continue working with the citizens and employees of the new village to ensure a safe and vibrant community we all can be proud of,” Kmiec concluded.

Kmiec is the Park Commission Joint Liaison and serves on the Administration, Public Safety and Communication Committees.

John McEntegart

John McEntegart

McEntegart, 65, is semi-retired and serves as a part-time library aide and occasional teacher’s assistant. He is also the chairperson of the Hooker Lake Management District.

McEntergart is the past treasurer for Boy Scout Troop 328 and the website manager for the Hooker Lake Management District.

He believes the merger of the Village of Silver Lake and Town of Salem into the new Village of Salem Lakes is an exciting time.

“I have lived in Salem for over 25 years,” McEntergart said. “My wife of 40 years and I have raised our three sons here. Over the years I’ve enjoyed many of the perks of life in Salem, including good schools, libraries, parks, lakes, roads, and municipal services. My reason for seeking the village trustee position is to give back to the community we call home.”

Since the new board is transitioning from two municipal entities into one, his “20 plus years of experience as an executive in business can be put to use helping the village grow in a fiscally sound manner and My experience with the Hooker Lake Management District has shown me the importance of balancing growth and development with protecting the health and usefulness of these valuable natural resources.”

“I see opportunity to encourage smart growth and development in our area, “ he said. “With the right Village leadership, we can better advertise that our ‘Main Street’ districts in Trevor, Salem, Wilmot, Camp Lake and Silver Lake are open for business.”

Dan Campion, Inc.

Dan Campion

Campion, 62, is a current Salem Town Supervisor and has served on the town board for six years.

During his six years, he served on the Public Works Committee and served as town liaison for the Kenosha County Board and Voltz Lake.

Campion, a Warren Township High School graduate in Illinois, studied at the College of Lake County.

Campion, who has has volunteered at the Town of Salem Pumpkin Daze, Easter Spring Fling and Santa Comes to Salem, said he strongly supports the Sharing Center and Westosha Senior Citizen Center.

“I constantly listen to the electors so I can be their voice on town issues. I feel I am one of the reasons we work together. I stand on my six-year record of looking out for what is best for the town,” Campion said.

“We are currently in the final stages of becoming a village with Silver Lake. I choose this route because the DOA (Wisconsin Department of Administration) would not include the entire Town of Salem as a village. We would have to have two governments, one as a village and balance as a remnant town.”

Campion serves on the Administration, Communication and Public Works Committees.

Dennis Faber, Inc.

Dennis Faber

Faber, 71, has served as a Salem Town Supervisor for the last 14 years, starting in 2003, when he received appointment to a fill a vacant seat has secured re-election since.

He is a member of the Wisconsin Lakes Association, a Lake Leader Graduate, Former Secretary, Silver Lake Sportsman’s Club and Trap Committee Treasurer.

Faber seeks re-election to continue the strides made during his time on the town board by serving on the new village board.

“Our tax is just $3.50 per thousand of assessed value. Our credit rating is the highest, AA. Financial institutions aggressively bid to buy Salem’s bonds, which mean lower interest rates. In fact, we recently borrowed to construct the infrastructure in the Business Park we are developing in partnership with Kenosha Area Business Alliance at under two percent interest.”

Faber, who reportedly has missed only two meetings in those years, lists accomplishments on the Salem Town Board.

“We have refinanced debt, paid off loans and lower service costs. We paved many miles of roads, fixed significant storm water problems, built $10 plus million highway, fire building and have not raised taxes to pay for it,” he said.

”We bought approximately 140 acres for parks, using impact fees and DNR grants that I have championed and did not raise taxes to do so.”

Faber is the liaison for CCLRD, Southeast Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission and the Planning and Zoning Joint (town and county) and also serves on the Board of Review and Public Safety and Communication Committees.

Mike Culat, Inc.

Mike Culat

Culat, 64, has been a Salem Town Supervisor the last five years. He campaigned as for Salem Town Chairman and lost once.

He is a realtor, with an office in the Village of Antioch, for the past 26 years.

Previously, he was an Antioch police officer.

Culat is a member of the National Association of Realtors, the Wisconsin Realtors Association, and Lakes Area Realtors Association, which he has served on various committees in each group.

He is a retired volunteer paramedic from the Antioch Rescue Squad, past director of the Antioch Lions Club, an active volunteer for the Antioch Traveling Closet and he supports The Sharing Center in Trevor.

Culat said, “This is the most exciting time in the history of Salem and Silver Lake. We are at the beginning of a great venture.”

Culat believes his 26 years of real estate experience, representing families and their most important assets can help the new village move forward.

“Over the past five years, I have spent countless hours listening to all sides of every issue brought to my attention and spent countless hours learning the workings of our highway and public works departments.” Culat said.

“This knowledge has helped me endorse and support much needed improvements in these departments,” Culat said.

Culat has served on the town’s Parks Commission, Planning and Zoning Commission and Public Works Committee.

Eric Ericksen, Inc.

Eric Ericksen

Ericksen, 57, has been a Silver Lake Village trustee for two years and works as an electrician, belonging to several trade organizations.

The 57-year-old has volunteered for charitable organizations at various, including past walks to raise money for the Multiple Sclerosis Society.

Ericksen ran for office two years ago in an “to make things better for the future of everybody.

“Silver Lake got the ball rolling for the merger between the two municipalities,” Erickson said. “When we approached Salem, it was to discover that Salem had a citizen’s committee that had already reviewed the different ways to incorporate into a village.”

Much of the work,” Ericksen said, “was done.”

“We knew that the current village model wasn’t going to work much longer and we really couldn’t grow with our confined borders.”

He points to various improvements made by the present Silver Lake Village Board before starting on the merger.

Ericksen notes the contract with the Kenosha County Sheriffs Department and Salem Fire and Rescue created better services for village residents, among other items.

“Our new garbage contract had improved services with weekly recyclable pick up and a pick up for large items the first pick up day of the month,” Erickson said.

“I decided to run to help give continuity and continuing a smooth transition in moving Salem and Silver Lake into the village of Salem Lakes.”

Ericksen has been working on a committee with Jeff Albrecht, village president Bruce Nopenz and Greg Galich on a downtown improvement exploration committee.

Ericksen has served on the finance, administration of legislation committee and the planning commission.

Joe Wade

Joe Wade

Wade, 51, spent 14 years as a national sales manager in the hardware and craft industry and holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Iowa.

He has no previous political experience and said, “Although I have no political experience, I bring a wealth of leadership and knowledge from the business world I have worked in both large and small companies making financial and operational decisions on a daily basis. I have built many functional teams and have proven record in the business world. I have attended as many meetings as I could to learn the issues and how they are handled.”

Wade is a member of both the Knights of Columbus and St. Anne Church in the Village of Pleasant Prairie.

When asked his reason for running, Wade responded, “I am an outsider that moved to Salem three years ago. I feel I bring a new perspective and fresh ideas to the town of Salem lakes. Because I am an outsider I have no agenda and I will base my decisions based on the benefits to the citizens of Salem lakes to move this great community into the future.”


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