Rogers said the last thing he wanted was to cut programs. The last thing I wanted was a tax increase. Guess he won.

I don't think the park district board gets it...quit spending! If a program can't pay for itself, the time has come to say goodbye to that progam. If our governmental representatives don't get it, I want to replace them with others that do.

It is funny, only the City comes under some scrutiny on how money is spent. The Park District and Library get a free pass.

Karen,

I believe the budget from the Library is separate from the City, as is the Parks. I think that one of the reasons that people do not show up is lack of publicity and the assumption that they fall under the City budget. Would you mind researching this? Thank you.

Karen is correct, the library is part of the city. The library receives money from a tax levy which was determined by a referendum passed in March 1986, and currently the library's rate of tax is well below the percentage at which the referedum allows.

As for being unhappy about tax increases, as Karen stated, the public doesn't show up to the public hearings, so if you don't wish to see a tax increase then it's your responsibility to attend the hearings and voice your concerns. All meeting are publicized and meet at the same time each month.

I remember seeing the Library and Park District as separate line items on the tax bill. I will call the City today to confirm. If this is correct then it would be understandable that people would not show up due to the assumption that it is related to the City budget. Lets think about it for a second. I would have to show up for the City budget, the library budget, the Park budget, school related issues such as lighting and the school superintendent . There are multiple meetings so I guess all of my free time would be devoted to attending meetings. I would probably be ignored and feel like my time was wasted.

An independent study, free of any political influence, would probably be the best way to look into the budgets and ways to eliminate any inefficiencies. No system of analysis or checks and balances seems to exist.

After calling the City I have determined that the Library loosely operates as part of the City and that what would be seen as oversight is a result of the Board. The Board does not appear to answer directly to the City even though the Mayors office appoints new Board members. They have a separate budget and it is controlled by the Board. Board appointments are often politically connected so I still not see the level of transparency and accountability that would be desirable.

The Park District operates independently from the City and again I see little transparency and limited accountability.

In these economic times all branches of Government should do everything in its power to improve efficiencies and contain costs. From what I have experienced in any bureaucracy, they seek to maintain the status quo and even to expand. I have never seen a report issued by the City that outlines a specific course of action or areas where cost reduction has been achieved.

For example, is it appropriate for Libraries to buy multiple copies of popular fiction and then to dispose of them shortly afterword? Libraries should seek to expand knowledge as a primary mission and make these type of items available.

Has the City ever made any attempt to increase efficiency by dividing the City into quadrants in order to provide more efficient delivery of services by public works?

I have been told by staff of these two Public entities that their ideas are routinely ignored and morale suffers.

I am convinced we need a Citizens Property Taxpayers Board that would be similar to the Citizens Utility Board. The sole purpose of this board would be to inform and advocate on behalf of property taxpayers.
Not only are our utility bills a mere fraction of our property taxes but we also have some control over almost every bill we pay other then property taxes. If times are tight you can lower your electric bill by turning off lights or not using air conditioning. You can lower your natural gas bill by turning down the temperature. Food cost can be lowered by changing what you buy. Even our income taxes vary depending on how much we earn. If there is a board that advocates on behalf of our utility costs why not one on behalf of our property taxes?
There is no rhyme or reason to how much we pay in property taxes. It isn't calculated based on how much income one makes or the level of services we use. Illinois has become over dependant on property taxes creating great inequities. There has been a property tax bubble that has followed the housing bubble with the one difference being that the housing bubble burst with housing prices decreasing. The property tax bubble hasn't burst and our property taxes continue to rises despite home values falling.
I am convinced a handful of people showing up at various meetings won't impact how services are funded but we need an organization that is well funded to advocate on behalf of the property owners.

Mr Van Der Molen,
You have a great idea. I would be glad to assist you in the creation of such a group. During the housing boom many new homes were built that paid significantly higher property taxes, filling the City coffers. This allowed for expansion of City staff I believe (correct me if I am wrong) and since revenues are declining we should revert to the staffing level of the past. Perhaps a small increase but surely some form of cutbacks. Federal, State, and local Governments must accept this reality which they do not seem to have done. Illinois is in horrific financial condition and this cannot continue.

"not only am i running in the 4th ward, but there are 3 other deserving women that desire to bring about change. alderman diane gutenkauf is running for re-election in the 1st ward...and 23 year-old rachel kern is seeking the seat in the 6th ward. this is indeed one way that you can have a positive impact and bring about the changes you desire"

Darlene Heslop worked on the Vote Yes Twice campaign to raise school taxes almost 80% 3 years ago.
Diane Gutkenkauf signed the Committee report voting to raise taxes this year and voted yes on the levy to raise taxes.
Rachel Kern is a 23 year old college student living at home with her mom, Laura Kern. The same Laura Kern who TRIED to run 4 years ago for 6th ward Alderman but was thrown off the ballot because her nominating petitions were not filled out properly. Mrs. Kern is a lawyer.

If that is the kind of change Elmhurst needs, we're all in trouble.

Jim (Nice name by the way!)

I don't know who you are but I would get the impression that you might be on the ballot to act as a spoiler. By dividing the vote the "preferred" candidate wins by default.

Diane is a brilliant and independent voice who deserves total support.

Darlene may be a thorn in some peoples side but no one can doubt her intelligence and commitment.

Do we shoot the messengers?

Does youth prevent somebody from being qualified? Maybe we need a youthful perspective and ideas.

There seems to be an attempt to consolidate power.

So..........are you committed to no tax increase? What else do you stand for? I am listening with an open mind. You cannot just attack others without talking about your values and ideas.

Is Elmhurst politics getting dirty? Kind of sounds like it.

Ms Heslop,

Dire need of additional classroom space? Like the white elephant on York road for an astouding $4.5 million? Or a 4 year contract for teachers averaging 4.5% yearly increases? Shall I go on?
As for filling out petitions, it is not that difficult. If you believe that to be difficult, do you think taxy levies, zoning ordinances and police/fire pensions will be any easier? If a person can't fill out those rudimentary forms, or believes those forms to be difficult, I want them nowhere near any form of elected body.

I don't care about Steve Hipskind. I don't live in the 4th ward, but for a person claiming to be a agent of change for the same old same old, you sure sound like the same old to me.

Mr. Court,

I am neither shooting messangers nor questioning intelligence. Rather, I am pointing out the flaws (with fact) in Ms. Heslop's argument or position. She has been very vocal about what she perceives as wrong in this town but has yet to offer up one alternative plan or where she would cut the city budget in order to "live within it's means". Strikes me as a person in full candidate mode, meaning say or do anything to get your vote. Even in her reply to my first post she manages to sling some more mud at Hipskind. I doubt very seriously her political handlers would let her say much in terms of solutions because she neither has them or they wouldn't like what she has to say. Lots of sacred cows in the city's budget.

Let Ms. Heslop start proposing solutions (or cuts) to the budget issue and then I'll take her seriously as a candidate. I moved to this town because of the location, schools, home values and community. I did not move here because of low taxes. Could it be the reason for such low turn out at park board or city council meetings is because the vast majority of the people in town feel the same way? I guess we'll find out in April.

PS I am not a candidate nor am I opposed to tax increases.

Jim,

You are operating under some rather negative assumptions ab0ut Ms. Heslop. I have read that she has a degree in Chemical Engineering as well as being a nurse. If so, she is not incapable of filling out forms, she just finds it tedious and thus "overwhelming" because all of details. Some people are big picture oriented, some love the details.

You are probably right about the administration building and the large pay increases.

I hate to say it but you sound like a hired gun who is out to diminish opponents of the existing political order. This is a democracy and those who voice opposing opinions are part of the process.

This creates a system of checks and balances. What else would you propose?

Mr. Court,

One more thing. I don't see this as dirty politcs. I see this as a forum for candidates like Ms. Heslop to campaign and for people like us to question what she is saying/advocating.

Unless you are new to Elmhurst or incredibly naive, there is a lot of dirty politics in Elmurst. See some of the comments in other comment streams on this site. However, I am not attacking Ms Heslop, or any candidate personally. I am simply questioning their positions and challenging their assertions while asking for what they would ACTUALLY do if elected to office. Running on simply a "lower taxes" or "living within its means" platform, without providing detail, is irresponsible in my opinion.

Jim,

I am not new or incredibly naive. I sure hope I don't come off that way. I am trying to see all perspectives and this forum is a good way to do it.

The other "Jim"

Ms. Heslop,

I'm glad you view the white elephant as wrong. About 80% of Elmhurst does so you're really not too far out on the limb there. However, the referenda that you worked so hard on provided the money for them to pay for the building. So to say you had NOTHING to do with it is not completely accurate. If they had that money to spend, maybe your referenda should have been less than asked for, then maybe they wouldn't have purchased the building.

I am well aware of you and have no issues with your "thorn platform". I watch pretty much every City Council meeting. Instead of running in front of every tv camera you see, attacking Dicianni, Hipskind, et al, how about telling us, specifically, what you would cut from the budget. I would think the residents of the 4th ward would be much more interested in your ideas on how to solve the problem than just hearing you tell us there is a problem.

To a degree, I am not opposed to reasonable tax increase. I just want to believe that taxing bodies are being good stewards of public monies. I support the higher taxes in the hope that we attract the type of citizenry that makes us different than surrounding communities. Call it elitist but I like that I live in an educated community with many good citizens. I love this town, although everything could always use improvement, including me.

Take care.

the mayor ran on "leadership, unity, solutions"...and got elected.

I do not believe that ANYBODY has really taken a look at how the City operates and made sincere attempts to increase efficiencies and reduce costs. Not the Park District, the Library, or the City as well as the School District.

I have seen no attempts to seek input from employees and then REALLY listen but more importantly, to actually act upon these suggestions.

Has anybody looked at staffing levels prior to the large amount of new construction that allowed the City to spend freely. Perhaps from 1999 and prior to that.

Other people have made some serious allegations implying deep political interests being placed in positions of power and strong links to Chicago. I guess there can be benefits but I would be more than cautious. Perhaps individuals have their eye on larger political office and using their position to build connections, possibly to the detriment of Elmhurst. I understand that you cannot just define yourself for what you are against but also what you are for.

i will work diligently to avoid having something such as utilizing funds for a lobbyist when none was necessary, which, is a line item "consultants". mr. o'brady, while it may surprise you to know, i handle myself. there are no "handlers" in my campaign. i answer my own questions. i have talked to many people here in the 4th ward, and in no particular order, their main issues are independent representation - they want someone who will answer their calls, e-mails, and who has the ability to think for herself, infrastructure - we have flooding issues that have been identified for years that need to be addressed, taxes and fees - we need to look at identifying different ways to generate revenue other than looking to the taxpayer as this does nothing to attract business growth. the days of "easy money" from building fees are long gone. while i realize that these may not be the issues you are most concerned about, my committment to all residents is genuine - to do the best job possible that i can. whatever issues you are concerned about, please feel free to let me know and i will do my best to address whatever concerns or questions you have.

mr. o'brady..., i am glad that you are satisfied with the mayor, the council, all the consultants, and are financially stable enough that increases in taxes are nothing that truly bother you. i, for one, do not believe that we are getting our money's worth from our consultants (please tell me what businesses ken bartels has brought to elmhurst and how it is that we cannot function without him?...and kathy maloney...how is it that our downtown has been enhanced by the establishment of a twitter account and is it worth what we pay?...charlie van slyke...he draws a pension and we pay him as a consultant...again...what has been the return on our investment? do you know, mr. o'brady, because based upon your criticism, you should have these answers and then some.). our sales tax base has deteriorated. we need businesses that cater to the demographics that live here, which a good example are the two new restaurants that opened recently downtown - family friendly, good value, but vacant storefronts are not good business, and it's the higher taxes, and thus higher rents, that can break a business.

if you are satisfied with the mayor, his treatment of the women on the city council, his outbursts, his less-than-factual statements, the responsiveness of your alderman, whomever he may be, as well as you feel as if you are being adequately represented, and you are happy with the taxes here in this city, then why did you make the statements that you did in the first place? (you made several inferences to which you did not have correct information). i am not just about limiting our spending as a city - i believe in services just like you do - but i am also about much more than that, to which you appear to be disinterested. there is not just 1 issue in this election, but many.

Tearing down homes is a part of the natural life cycle of real estate. Modern homes ad to the quality of our community and yes, bring in higher property taxes. We do not have significant amount of retail compared to other communities and some of our auto dealerships no longer exist. This was a great contributor to our tax base. If we wish to continuously avoid tax increases then we should welcome these new homes. Much of our housing truly needs to be replaced. No one seems to concern themselves with the efficiency or lack of, that may exist. A big mistake. Consultants can be a positive IF their actions bring greater benefit than their costs. There are many things that could improve the quality of Elmhurst but they never seem to be discussed. We are blessed with a tremendous location and this can be leveraged to create a premier community. Although we were rated number one, it was in the second tier of communities rated. I would not mind if we moved to the first tier. I am all for the betterment of Elmhurst. Don't you want this community to be the best it can be?

mr. vandermolen..., i deleted my response to your post thinking it was from mr. o'brady...my apologies. you bring up some very valid points in your post that are the reason's for my wanting to become an alderman. i am all for transparent, citizen-centered government and i believe that you all should know exactly how every tax collected is spent. i also believe that it shouldn't be put in terms of "it's only a starbuck's latte per week... ." we have a 10% foreclosure rate here in elmhurst indicating that this community has already become unaffordable for some. when the fees and taxes continue to rise, discretionary income decreases, especially if household income is not keeping pace, which, in many instances, it has not, and will not any time soon. this then effects the sales tax revenues. i am committed to communication, as well as making your government understandable and accessable. i don't have answers to all of the problems, but i am willing to work as hard as i can to find ways to make our government better.

Ms. Heslop,

I don't doubt your motives at all and believe you to be motivated to make a difference. I am willing to give you the benfit of the doubt. The question is how. How will you make a difference? In a previous post, you say you will cut consultants. I don't know the people you mention, except Ken Bartels. I have met him a few times and believe him to be a professional, ethical and benefit to the city of Elmhurst. So you would cut consultants and save the $150K or so a year. For that, the City would have NO dedicated resources towards economic development. Do you believe that will have no impact on the sales tax base, still the city's largest revenue stream? How would you address economic development if elected?

Police and fire are, by far, the largest expenses to the city budget. Would you propose to cut them in order for the city to "live within its means"? Would you oppose every tax cut? if so, would you spell out EXACTLY where in the budget you would cut in order to make up the difference? We already have 3 or 4 Aldermen who vote against tax increases yet when budget time comes around, not only do they not advocate where to cut the difference, they actually try to add things back into the budget. The height of hypocracy. Raise less but spend more. In other words, be all things to all people, in other words, spineless politicians.

What would you do?

the referendum was to have the ability to utilize the 162 s. york building as classroom (instructional) space should ever the need arise in the future. it was discovered, through documents acquired through foia, that the superintendent was made aware of this early on in the process of purchasing the building, however, it had already gone to contract and there was nothing that could be done at that time, hence, the delay in putting the use issue to the voters. as for the funds utilized to purchase the building, it was illegal for the board of education to directly utilize the funds from the "vote yes twice" referenda, so instead, through some loophole that the board of education is allowed to do, they were able to purchase the bonds. there are plenty of emerson parents that fought long and hard with the superintendent and board of education to have the remainder of the over $4 million dollars which remained in the "vote yes twice" fund utilized for the additional classrooms added to emerson.

What I would do.

1) Examine staffing levels that currently exist and the staffing levels prior to the real estate boom. If excessive I would reduce them to proper levels.

2) Be very aggressive in economic development.

3) Seek out ideas from public employees to reduce expense and increase efficiencies

4) Try to encourage a home center in Elmhurst, perhaps in the current Sears if possible. Our tax dollars go to Northlake, Oakbrook Terrace, Glen Dale Heights

4) Eventually more efficient Police vehicles. Modern communications eliminate much of the need for high speed chase, which is a rarity.

5) More downtown activities to attract people.

6) Cost containment of future pensions

7) Promote leadership that seeks the common good.

8) Promote Elmhurst at every level.

9) Address the constant interruption of intersections by trains.

10) Demand and sue if necessary, that Com Ed bring our electrical supply up to modern standards. They are using an antiquated system and refuse to replace it in order to seek higher return on investment, at our communities expense.

11) Aggressively address flooding issues and do it NOW

12) A more proactive code enforcement that works to maintain community standards, not the current reactive model.

13) Encourage realtors to everything in their power to maintain property values.

14) Seek ideas from Citizens and implement whenever possible

How would a home center be cannibalistic ? The scope of products vastly exceeds local hardware stores but you might have some logic trying to protect the existing hardware stores. That I understand.

Jim O 'Brady It seems we agree that when possible fees based on usage are better then property taxes. Until recently this seemed to be the approach that Elmhurst followed. My concern has always been the substantial increase in property taxes that resulted from the housing bubble not real increases of household income.
Not all towns do use fees in the same way. Some towns only charge a small markup on the Lake Michigan water. I don't believe Wheaton has a vehicle sticker fee. I am sure I could find more examples. I guess if residents want more bells and whistle or lower property taxes depends on who you talk to. If the majority of residents want the high levels of services shouldn't everyone share equally in the costs through a flatter real estate tax or fees?
I guess one of us is confused about the Administration building. I thought I had a pretty good understanding of this since I called prior to the purchase and asked specifically why they didn't need a referendum and received a detailed explanation. I was also at a few of the board meeting where this issue was discussed as well as the LWV meeting.
You seem to have a good understanding of how the labor contracts are negotiated. Does Elmhurst negotiate individually on these contracts or does it follow what is negotiated on a regional level? Are individual alderman responsible for these negotiations or do they more or less approve contracts that have been negotiated the city manager or staff?

Darlene,

I now understand what you were talking about. Long ago I proposed the idea the the City might negotiate with Lowes Home Center where the under-performing Sears now is. This Sears actually takes a market share from the Oak Brooke store. It has been said that three competing companies in the same industry can survive. The current Sears store is in the former location of Builders Square. It had significant sales and contributed much to our tax base. We now MUST go to other suburbs and leave our tax dollars there. These stores do a major study of the demographics of the marketplace and would not even consider it unless it made economic sense. It still is an idea worth exploring. The Lowes brand is in alignment with the type of market we see ourselves as. I often wish Target would have occupied the space the Sears currently has instead of in Villa Park.

I am very disappointed by the fact that just a few people bother to make comments or be politically engaged. My writing is not about me, it is about genuine concern and interest about this community.

Darlene,
The argument is weak at best. The Sears Essentials is a minor variation of the larger Sears but constrained by space limitations. We would still benefit from having a Lowes instead of a Sears.
Sears had a limited number of shoppers this season but I spent large amounts of money at both Menards and Home Depot. I do not pretend to have all the answers to economic development and I am not running for office. I have no patience for long and drawn out meetings, the inevitable politics that takes place, or the lack of implementation of ideas. Having been in property management for many years I have an understanding of process except to be successful I had to take action and be competitive in the marketplace. I could not simply raise rents (taxes) before I sought every efficiency and created the best product I could. I see so much that could be improved but little discussion is initiated. I have no axe to grind and do not really like to keep writing about it. I only hoped to start the conversation.

I do not seek public attention nor do I wish to be the narcissist that I find so offensive. This is not MY town even I live in it. I wish to contribute in any small way I can to its betterment. I have found that our leadership during the years I have lived here to be somewhat insular and if you didn't grow up in town you were an outsider. I like being an outsider. It gives me a broader perspective and I do not have to "go along to get along" I would never want to be that politically correct. I am done writing for awhile but do appreciate the comments I have read.
Happy New Year,

Jim Court

wow this was a lot to absorb ,and i think more than 1/2 way thru flooding was not even talked about? funny to be outside the box and look in? well it was ss kresge before it was k-mart and then the king of home improvement "builders square" the chain that started them all

budgets? can a police officer use cameras to patrol or does he need a car ? 8.4% budget is vehicals ? gee talk about food shopping we all go 1 a week right what would that do to our streets if we took our garbage back to jewel or wal-mart and thru it in a waiting garbage truck they do it with pop cans in iowa ,would those costs be cut by 80%

gee the parks have no money hmmmmm seems if i had a bunch of land in a flood prone area wonder how much i could make selling water storage rights
all the empty garbage cans opened during a rain storm could hold a lot of water

here in des moines it is being brought out in the open that the des moines school board member were making $120,000 to near $240,000 a year for a 9 month job?

if we cut cunsulting work what will that do to the flood plan ,seems $1 000 000 study needs to be paid for by villa park that let wal-mart build in a swamp and oakbrook for over building and not leaving enough grass and open space

new homes in elmhurst , new tax rates for any builder that can build new homes that leave 10% more space to allow a sponge effect?

now here in iowa we have a caseys gas convenent store and was amazed at the hundreds of gift cards they were selling the hy-vee food store was the same ....... seems retailers dont really care you went to melrose park or OT to shop at Home depot ,they were going to share % with the chain that sold the gift card

why cant elmhurst do this? sorta like a retail expo convention center?

all of those big box names could all have a booth in the old builders square and sell people there goods with maybe 80% that could be bought online and just delivered .... if it was bought at the elmhurst location elmhurst could reap the tax benifit and it could be delivered from the melrose or OT location and elmhurst wins ,the elmhurst resident wins ....he /she saves gas time and energy but get there goods deliverd to them win win

if elmhurst could develope a local that could house 100 companies under one roof you could tax the revenue from one big box and times the income 100 times

too bad there is not a place like this anywhere in the country? well wait there is ,its your computor

we just are not all there yet and untill we are seems this concept seems like a great way to utilize a very valuble commodity ,space and time. elmhurst folks could go pay there water bill do some banking ,grab a bite ,shop for curtains ,order the oil for the car , watch a video on how government works , post a want ad ,read whats for sale , look at home listings , all under one roof , a new trend , like having 200 little stores (yorktown shopping mall of the 80's ) but in the tenth of the size of foot print ,you could give elmhurst business first chance of space and then offer big chains space and they would change with the times and the building stays the same

so in that one space you could have the big three lowes ,home depot ,and menards for the folks to choose from plus target ,sears ,saks ,and others

Tom,

I mentioned an idea that may be similar to what I think you are saying. IF gifts cards originate taxes from the place they are sold and not the place they are used, the City itself could sell Elmhurst gift cards that are similar to a credit/debit card. They could be used everywhere for anything and taxes would stay in Town. Perhaps David Dwyer could comment on this?

well Jim I think its a great idea to house many stores in one locale ,gives people a choice and when the residents see the HUGE gain by shopping with them or at a venue like this I am sure the results will be a benifit , someday another town will do this ,

today ya have to think outside the box and if one had a super location and something unique to draw people in where vendors would COMPETE for business

get the word out ,set up a web site inform people that if you can buy a wal-mart gift card the tax stays in elmhurst and they can still go to villa park to shop

call them "Leaves of Elmhurst" ......"dont leave home without one" .........capture the taxes that are ROOTED in your hometown , why support the next town over

"buy here ,spend there and you and Elmhurst Wins "

taxes are collected when a card is utilized for purchase...NOT when the card itself is purchased...so having a store that "sells" nothing but various gift cards would add nothing to any local economy unless those gift cards were in turn utilized for purchases in the same locality. some locations that "sell" various gift cards but charge a fee for "activation" are merely doing that...they are charging you...the purchaser of the toys-r-us card purchased at walgreen's in town "A"...which had a face value of $25 and walgreen's charged you and additional $2.00 to "activate" it (essentially run it through their machine) is not collected by the town "A" but instead, by the store. if that same toys-r-us happens to be in town "A" (same as the walgreen's), then yes, that town would collect the tax when the $25 was utilized...however...use that same gift card in town "B" and it's town "B" that benefits, not town "A" from the tax revenue.

Darlene,

I pretty much assumed this to be the case but I simply wondered if any loophole might exist to create the scenario I described. So many tax dollars are lost to internet purchases as well as money spent elsewhere. Elmhurst does not have a significant retail presence of big box stores and so our tax dollars are lost elsewhere. Internet sales of vehicles takes a further toll. We do not have a large entertainment venue. Some people won't agree with me but I am glad every time I see an old wore out house with minimal taxes contributed to the City ,replaced with a modern home that will pay significantly more property tax. That may be the only way we can operate the City while not excessively increasing property taxes. Of course, we should continue to look at methods to increase all possible efficiencies. Does anybody have any other suggestions ? The current citizens of town only have so much disposable income. Unless we can increase the amount of tax revenue by the method I described, what are we to do? Change is inevitable. Lets make it change that is positive.

Well then maybe a year round EXPO may be the next NEW thing Elmhurst can try

if there was a place where people could go and see 100 kinds of stores under one roof maned by 1 person or 2 depending on flow of people ,elmhurst could offer up a tax incentive for improvments to there space and have a few samples on hand or a limited amount of items and use lowes,home depot ,sears ,macys etc web site for more purchase's then the tax rev can stay in elmhurst?

seems many companies will jump at that , to gain sales and not have to spend millions in infastructure exps. so take lowes for example ,many residents are now going to home depot ,if lowes could offer people in elmhurst a local to veiw its products and make Purchases thats a win for them because home depot gets less

an old building like the old builders square could give you 2 pluses , its centered location and large space , some may want 2000 sq ft while others may need 1000 sq ft and others may use 3000 sq ft , if all goes well then supply and demand kicks in and could create a huge demand as big box companies will compete for space

I did help set up a sears home and garden show in another state one year , this is the same type of concept ,sure it has its risks and downfalls but it should be looked upon a wave of what the future should demand ,imagine if people could walk ,bike , bus to these expos and buy items and have them sent right to your home? if just 10 people did that look at the 10 cars OFF the roads replaced by one delivery truck = less fuel used ,less ware & tare on our roads ,more free time for the people

so major companies would jump at the chance to reach out to customers make sales with a fraction ..... A FRACTION of building costs to establish a store front in the city

fridges,stoves, furniture ,carpet ,windows ,doors ,curtains ,all can be sold this way as well as the services to install them and let the 100 companies COMPETE for there DOLLARS all under the ONE ROOF a city can,may, make available

Random thoughts

When something is bought on the internet from outside vendors, no tax is derived for our community.

Has anybody considered a TIF for the building of new homes with a tax freeze for several years, no more, to induce people to build and buy ? Future increased property taxes would increase out tax base and make the town nicer.
I cannot understand why the Park District insisted on tearing down the old Fire Station.
There is no available public facility for teenagers and adults to play basketball in the winter. I have been told they go to Bensenville and must pay. Many other uses were possible. I believe it was a premature decision.

I have seen little documentation of actual cuts or methods to improve efficiencies within any Government taxing body.

Why not place digital signs by the underpass instead of sending city workers to tie banners up?
Franklin Park does this along Grand avenue. Potential for income exists.

Hahn Street seems dead but we continue to fund it. What is the plan ?

New people on Boards is not all bad. We need fresh perspectives and new ideas.

Why is there no conversation about methods to improve traffic flow because of trains that essentially divide the town and waste significant commuter time. West avenue would be relatively easy. Are we stuck with this forever? It seems so.

I have commented on the need for shelters at all of our Parks but never heard any comments from the Park District. Is it a bad idea? I do not think so?

GEEZ sounds like a stuborn german "its there way or the highway" take the blinders off

and if OTHER cities ARE NOT DOING SUCH..............?

other cities drastic measures?...........like giving SEARS a tax incentive to locate in elmhurst just to CLOSE

lets not make elmhurst a follow the leader type city ,..........elmhurst needs to be a leader and have Representation that thinks that ALWAYS not some step and fetch .......well lets see what there doing

what fire house was torn down? I remember touring with my dad things for the park and used to always tell him .....you cant tear down the old depot .used to be used as the old park garage years ago

what if the library tore down its old place?

Tom,

I haven't quite figured out what you are saying but it was the Firehouse on South York Road that was torn down.

It is not about "follow the leader" but instead it is about incorporating the best practices of those who have succeeded. We do not exist in isolation.

My way or the highway ? Never...it is not my style.

By the way, how will you be leaving? Just kidding !

How much remodeling would be required to convert the old firehouse into a teen center? It was very functional for the Fire Department, just not large enough. I really do not believe the claim of excessive cost.

I would like to see Elmhurst become the next Hinsdale. I make no apologies.

Every "coach" creates his own team. There are many changes that the Library could implement that would make it better. If the current Board is so good we would have had better parking. Before it was built I suggested creating parking under the building and elevating the building slightly. It looks like it is sunk into the ground as the building sits below the land elevation and parking is inadequate. I visit the Library very frequently. I am very familiar with the place.

The sign space could generate revenue and even though the City might not charge to place banners, it consumes manhours, vehicle cost, wear and tear. Check out Franklin Park

The train is a pain. Nice to have but impedes traffic flow and wastes huge amount of time.
We could use several overpasses or underpasses.

Shelters are an obvious improvement and benefit. I think it is a case of "not invented or thought of here" There can be no other reason. Even when budgets were flush with cash they were not considered. Perhaps I spend more time than I should commenting. Very few people probably read this

Dan,

Have you EVER seen a government bureaucracy that did not justify all expenditures or revert to previous expenditures in light of changing revenues?

I would like to compare expenditures prior to the bubble and what is currently being spent.

During boom times government typically expands staffing and budgets. They can always justify it.
It is amazing to think we functioned fairly well prior to real estate bubble. Our population has not increased significantly. We have added a few new roads but not an overwhelming amount.

We can never probably be a Hinsdale as our topography is not as desirable nor are the adjacent Towns as desirable. The closer we get though, the more I would like it. The influx of section 8 housing is dragging down our school scores and gives a bad impression of our schools even though it is not the fault of the administration. I realize it is not politically correct to say this, even though it is true. I wish we would encourage the conversion of apartments into condos. Addison has huge gang problems because of all the apartments. Maybe we should add additional taxes on apartments if it is possible. We must prepare ourselves for a future of disappearing revenues. New homes seem to be the best solution.