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Health & Fitness

Vote for CHANGE: 'A Penny for Your Thoughts'

A fiscal conservative candidate's thoughts on a better city council. I humbly ask for your vote.

BOB KOLB for 5th Ward Alderman, Elmhurst  Vote April 9!

Hello, my name is Bob Kolb, and I want your vote!

Why I am running for alderman?

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This is my first run for elective office. I believe that competitive elections bring out the best in civic government. I was astonished to learn that over half of Elmhurst’s elected officials are running unopposed. The lack of interest in competing for positions such as Alderman suggests to me a high level of complacency, both among the electorate and elected officials. I am not a fan of big city machine politics such as we see in Chicago, where becoming an Alderman offers a post for life. I believe that in order to bring fresh ideas into city government we need new faces from time to time. I am a 26-year resident of Elmhurst; I understand our city, our strengths, and our challenges. And so I decided to run for Alderman of the 5th District, giving the voters a choice and (if elected) allowing me to contribute to the city council on the discussions and fiscal decisions that affect all our lives.

I am fiscal conservative, and I believe that the money collected and spent by government should be as carefully managed as it is in each of our households. While I applaud Acting Mayor’s Levin’s success in balancing the city budget and improving its fiscal reserves, I believe there is a more we can do. We should seek to eliminate waste, whether big or small, in each city department and agency. For example, a local politician was heard to remark that a disputed $600,000 in the city’s waste removal contract amounted to a “gumball a week for each resident.”  I do not consider $600,000 to be pocket change, nor would I allow such an expenditure to go unchallenged.

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My own background is in the IT industry, and using this innovative sector of our economy as a paradigm, I would seek to “think outside the box” in finding positive solutions to Elmhurst’s challenges in providing a high quality of city services at reasonable cost. For instance, it may be possible to offer an electronic billing alternative for the city’s water services that could save an estimated $100,000 in annual postage costs. Improving street lighting with retrofitted LED lights would be both good for the environment and good for the taxpayer in  terms of lower electric usage and associated costs. I have researched this oppurtunity, and the Phillips Co offers a solution, which is available, with no initial cost, the  electrical savings over a 5-7 year period, pays for the upgrade. This would be a green solution, that saves us greenbacks, and is a win/win; for the City, Residents, and increases service possibilities.

Like many of you, I am concerned that our downtown remain vibrant. I believe the city could take a more active role in recruiting merchants to locate in Elmhurst by offering tax incentives.  With the closure of Builder’s Square and two nearby Menards’, we might seek to attract another big box home store such as Lowe’s to meet this sector’s needs.  We could encourage small businesses to locate downtown by deferring property taxes for the vital first two years of operation.
Some changes I would like to see implemented are just common sense.  Currently we do not implement signage laws --with a consequence that a bewildering array of lawn signs detracts from the overall appearance of our community.  We do not enforce pet licensing laws, with the consequence that we have no assurance that the community is protected from rabies and pet owners stand a reduced likelihood of having a lost pet returned to them.  We have an outstanding public library, but non-city residents are not charged for its use.

A penny for YOUR thoughts

I also believe in citizen involvement in government. My campaign slogan is “a penny for your thoughts.” I do not believe that any candidate or any elected official has a monopoly on wisdom. Good government requires that the voices of all our citizens be heard. If you have a complaint about city government or a positive idea you would like to see implemented, if elected as Alderman, I will always keep my door open to you and do my best to see your complaint addressed or give a hearing to meritorious ideas on how to make Elmhurst an even better place to live in the future.

Inquiring  Minds:

Can we find a way to lower the operating cost of the Library, form its current cost of over $1,700.00 per hour ? Perhaps longer hours, additional services, nonresident fees?

Did we really need to spend $ 127,000.00 on approximately 100 lockers for the Police Station locker-room?

How often do we transfer large pieces of real estate for $5,000.00?

Why are there so many closed door meetings?

Is there a real need for spending $ 60,000, on a compensation study for non- union city employees? Think about the three possible outcomes, I call this the Goldilocks’ survey!!!

Are you familiar with the Chamber of Commerce’s “Got it” campaign? Not only does the city council fund $50,000.00 per year to it, the Chamber charges 10% to take our money.  I DON’T GET IT, I HOPE IT’S CUREABLE!

The park district ships playground equipment to Taiwan?

Other cities have services that include shoveling of the sidewalks, free lawn waste collection, street fairs, College of DuPage satellite classes, WHY NOT ELMHURST?

When aldermanic elections run unopposed, are we really electing the best person to represent us, or settling for the ongoing complacency?

I believe that city council needs to change its complacent ways. I think questions asked at the council’s public forum, should be answered, not smiled at and forgotten.

I want to be your next alderman!
A penny for your thoughts ! Vote Bob Kolb for 5th Ward Alderman on April 9.

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