Following the death of Peoria City Councilman Gary Sandburg, council members are weighing in regarding who should fill the at-large seat.

It has been over a month since the sudden and unexpected passing of Peoria City Councilman Gary Sandburg who was found dead at his apartment on Southwest Adams Street in late July. His death came as a shock to family and friends as well as colleagues.

A Look Back

Mayor Jim Ardis and Peoria City Council members are grieving the loss. Mayor Ardis remembers Sandburg as a council member who always made the people of Peoria and his district a priority and says he will be missed.

Sandburg served eleven years as the Peoria City Inspections Director before making the transition onto the city council in 1989 as second district councilman. He was successfully re-elected until 1997 when he won a seat as an at-large councilman. He launched an unsuccessful attempt for the first district council seat, losing to Denise Moore but kept his at-large position.

The former city councilman’s platform often involved arguments in favor of less government and basic city services.

City Councilman Eric Turner, who served with Sandburg for 18 years, says he is mourning the loss of a colleague and friend and claims he does not believe there ever has been or ever will be anyone on the council with Sandberg’s immense knowledge. Turner calls Sandberg a man who loved Peoria and “would do anything for the people who live in this city.”

Reflecting on Sandburg’s nearly 25 years of service on the city council, Ardis calls the former councilman “an institution” of the city and says an individual with Sandburg’s knowledge is not easily replaced.

Beginning the Search

Various Peoria City Council members have differing ideas as to who will best fill the vacant seat. Jim Montelongo, who just began his second council term representing district four, believes an understanding of how city government functions should be a key quality in a candidate.

The council began soliciting candidates almost two weeks after Sandburg’s death, and applications for the position have been numerous. Deadline for submission of resumes was August 9. Sandburg’s term ends in 2015.

Mayor Jim Ardis and the council must appoint someone to fill the vacant seat within 60 days of Sandburg’s death. But some council members are uncertain whether accepting hundreds of resumes is the right way to go. Montelongo wonders whether the council should pour through piles of resumes or find consensus around a contact with whom everyone on the council is familiar. Some people have said the council should find someone exactly like Sandburg.

However the process finds resolution, the new council member will have some big shoes to fill. And it seems community members have high expectations.

“I don’t think there’s really anyone who can do the kind of job he did as well as he did,” says Helen Finicle of Peoria. “The amount of knowledge he had combined with his connections to the community and his longevity on the council … you just don’t find that type of combination around every corner.”

“He will definitely be missed!” says Jacob David, who often attended council meetings. “His positions weren’t always popular, but Gary was never one to go with the ebb and flow of the tide. He spoke his mind, and you always knew exactly where he stood on an issue.”

Pat Evans remembers when Sandburg was first elected to the council. “Right away, I could see he was different … that he sort of stood out from the other council members … never ever afraid to speak his mind. You could tell by the things he said that his bottom line was the people in his district. He didn’t care about doing the ‘popular’ thing. He cared about the community and getting done what he thought was right.”

One thing on which all council members might agree: At the end of the day, there’s no replacing Gary Sandburg.