Ara Goshgarian Reflects on 6 Years as Alderman | The Lake Forest Podcast

Former Alderman of the 3rd Ward, Ara Goshgarian, joins The Lake Forest Podcast for a wide-ranging conversation reflecting on his six impactful years serving the City of Lake Forest. Hosted by Pete Jansons, Joe Weiss, and Skoo Walker, this farewell episode covers key moments from Ara’s time on City Council, leadership through challenging issues, and the lasting value he places on transparency, civic service, and community engagement.

✅ Topics Discussed in This Episode:
➡️ Ara’s 6-year journey as Alderman for Ward 3
➡️ Transparency, city governance, and how the caucus really works
➡️ The new police station: why it was needed
➡️ Parks and Rec board controversy explained
➡️ Volunteerism and public engagement in Lake Forest
➡️ Ara’s personal path: From LFHS football to orthodontist to public servant
➡️ How local politics really works in Lake Forest
➡️ Shoutouts to former colleagues, staff, and political opponents

✅ Key Moments:
0:00
6:15 Dr. Ara Goshgarian joins the show – Ara C. Goshgarian, D.D.S.
8:32 Ara Goshgarian City Council Send-Off
41:45 Alderman Nick Bothfeld will be taking over as 3rd Ward Alderman
42:42 Ara's contested election against Joann Desmond
44:40 Ara's football career
46:05 “Wishbone Ara” of Lake Forest High School Football
46:45 Shoutout to Ara's coach George Barry https://uwwsports.com/honors/athletic...
50:28 How did Ara get involved with volunteering?
51:40 Ara's first interactions with the Caucus
53:29 Pete’s resignation from Caucus clip
54:55 Mayoral contested election
55:55 Regina Etherton new Caucus president clip • 🚨 Inside the Lake Forest Illinois Cau...
https://www.lakeforestcaucus.com/cauc...
56:50 Where has the podcast got it wrong
57:40 Police station clip • Why Lake Forest Needs a New Police St...
1:02:00 Communication regarding eliminating the Law and Parks and Rec boards
1:09:35 Fill out Volunteer Profile Sheet (VPS) – first step to volunteer for Caucus https://volunteer.lakeforestcaucus.com/
1:16:00 Communication issues that keep popping up regarding city matters
1:20:26 Cell tower issue clip • The 4th Ward Deserves Reliable Cell S...
1:27:15 What should we be worried about that isn’t in the public eye? Pensions?
1:31:00 What’s going on with the 1% grocery tax
1:33:40 Why don’t we use the $3.5 million surplus to pay for the grocery tax
1:36:40 Kum Ba Ya serenade

✅ Support the show: / lakeforestpodcast

📌 Don’t forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more local stories and community conversations from Lake Forest.