1 day Ago By Steve Sadin
Already North Chicago’s longest-serving chief executive, Mayor Leon Rockingham Jr. claimed victory Tuesday night in his bid for an unprecedented sixth term that will give him another four years to add to his 20-year tenure and continue to push his agenda forward. Rockingham said he is ready to continue to make North Chicago a safer place, improve its infrastructure and work to further economic development.
“I feel good that the residents of North Chicago are allowing me to come back in office for another four years,” he said. “My promise to them is that I will continue to do everything I can to make North Chicago better.” Rockingham had 69.
08% of 670 votes counted late Tuesday night, compared to community activist David Hood with 20.86% and Ald. Anthony Coleman, 2nd Ward, at 10.
06%, according to unofficial results from the Lake County Clerk’s Office. First elected in 2005 with three terms as an alderman under his belt, Rockingham became the city’s longest-serving mayor halfway through his fifth term, surpassing former Mayor Bobby Thompson’s 18-year mark. High on Rockingham’s to-do list for the next four years will be implementing the city’s master plan approved in September.
It includes the development of Sheridan Crossing at the northwest intersection of the Bobby Thompson Expressway and Martin Luther King Jr. Drive. There are also plans to add larger homes to the city’s housing stock to keep young families in the community when they outgrow their starter homes.
“It ties it all together and is part of the downtown revitalization,” Rockingham said. “There will be places for food and other businesses. It’s going to help develop the area along Martin Luther King Drive.
“I’d like to see a hotel,” he added, as a way for people attending weekly recruit graduations at Naval Station Great Lakes to stay in North Chicago instead of elsewhere. Getting involved with organizations like the Illinois Municipal League and sitting on the boards of the Lake County Stormwater Management Commission, the Solid Waste Agency of Lake County and Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning, Rockingham said he has leveraged his tenure into making North Chicago more prominent in the region. Currently working with county, state and federal officials, Rockingham hopes to see the 74-acre Halsey Village — currently part of Naval Station Great Lakes — become incorporated into North Chicago and added it its real estate tax base.
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