Matthew Kapustianyk has focused his campaign on bringing in new businesses that can offer higher paying jobs to keep NIU graduates in DeKalb, as well as offer better jobs for students.

Kapustianyk serves as DeKalb County Precinct 4 committeeman, where he works with DeKalb County democratic candidates seeking election to the county board.

He wants to focus on what he calls the “big three issues”: safety, new business and growth.

He would like to see the council examine providing better lighting along Annie Glidden Road and use more community policing to establish a better relationship between students and police.

Also, Kapustianyk said he wants to bring more businesses to DeKalb to retain NIU graduates.

“Right now this community is saturated with minimum wage jobs,” he said. “That needs to change.”

Graduates aren’t the only people who can benefit from new businesses, he said, and he hopes more students will be able to find employment in DeKalb.

Kapustianyk said he would like to see “continued structured growth,” but stressed, “the more growth, the more opportunity.”

He added he wanted the council to study the impact past growth has had on the area before rushing headlong into continued expansion.

His final primary points are continued parking on Garden Road and more landlord oversight.

Kapustianyk said he wants to hold landlords more accountable for their actions and decisions, and wants to ensure that students don’t lose their security deposits unless the action is warranted.

Kapustianyk is an NIU junior political science major with an emphasis in public law.