Meet the 2024 Candidates

Robert (“Rob”) Apatoff

 

Rob has lived in Winnetka for over 30 years.  A graduate of New Trier, he raised his own family in Winnetka and now has the pleasure of being close at hand as two of his grandchildren grow up in the Village.  After serving as president and chief executive officer of Rand McNally and Company and FTD Companies Worldwide, Rob is now an executive director and professor at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management where he runs the Kellogg Executive Leadership Institute and teaches, among other things, on governance issues and innovation.  

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Rob is now in his second two-year term as a trustee on the Village Council.  

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In his application, Rob notes “I have a clear understanding of the heritage of Winnetka while bringing a unique sense of innovation and perspective …. I have spent my career tackling difficult global challenges that took a combination of open-minded thinking, perseverance and unquestioned integrity to chart the right path.”  In his interview, he characterized himself as being a generalist and a trustee who listens to the residents.  He praises the current Village Council of which he is a part for being transparent and respectful, and for making significant progress in the Village while keeping taxes from increasing.  

 

 

Kristina (“Tina”) Dalman

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Tina has lived in Winnetka for 16 years.  She has raised her family in Winnetka.  Her youngest is a student at North Shore Country Day School and all three of her children are graduates of Winnetka Public Schools.  After a number of years as a partner in private practice as a real estate and land use lawyer, Tina is now Vice President and Area General Counsel of PulteGroup, Inc. responsible for supporting the company’s homebuilding operations in the Midwest.

 

Tina has been a trustee on the Village Council since September 2021.  Prior to service on the Village Council, Tina served on the Winnetka Plan Commission (which she chaired from 2013-2021), the Winnetka Planned Development Commission and the Downtown Master Plan Steering Committee.  Tina has also been active in the greater Chicago area with service on the Metropolitan Planning Council’s Sustainable Development Committee and the Urban Land Institute-Chicago District Public Policy Committee.

 

Tina characterizes the bulk of her professional career as “representing property owners, land developers and government entities in the development of commercial, industrial, multi-family and retail projects.”  In her interview, she noted that while the permitting process for real estate projects in Winnetka has improved by becoming easier and more efficient during her term on the Village Council, she is committed to seeing that trend continue.  She is equally committed to making Village government generally more “customer-friendly.”  

 

 

Kimberly (“Kim”) Cawley Handler

 

Kim has lived in Winnetka for 38 years.  Kim earned a BA in Economics and Finance from University of Illinois, a Masters in Accountancy at DePaul University, and her CPA.  Kim served as Vice President of Finance at Strategic Hotel Capital, Director of Finance and Administration—Worldwide Technology at Kraft General Foods and as an auditor at Price Waterhouse. More recently, she has provided financial and consulting services to small businesses including the Winnetka Music Festival.

 

Kim has served the Village as Chair of the Winnetka Caucus, commissioner on the Zoning Board of Appeals and Planned Development Commission, and currently and most importantly, as a Village Trustee where she developed a program to give the public more access to Village Council via one-on-ones at coffee shops and the Farmer’s Market.

 

Her duties on Village Council include serving as liaison on both the Landmark Preservation Committee and the Northwest Municipal Conference.

 

Kim noted in her application that “Because of all my work on different village activities, and now as a trustee, I fully understand the Council-Manager model – the roles, responsibilities and how to work to make it operate more effectively.  While I bring strong business experience that is helpful in many ways, I also have experienced that government doesn’t usually work like a business – the legal, reporting requirements and coordination with other government bodies requires patience.”  During her interview, Kim also noted she “digs deep” into research on an issue to have a fully informed decision process.

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