Thomas Poynton: Candidate Profile

Note: Answers provided have not been edited for grammar, misspellings or typos. In some instances, candidate claims that could not be immediately verified have been omitted. Jump to:BioKey IssuesQA Bio City: Lake ZurichWebsite: http://poynton4lzmayor.wordpress.comOffice sought: Lake Zurich Mayor (4-year Term)Age: 66Family: Married (wife Janet); 3 children (Tracie, Kim, Chris (LZHS 2005) 3 grandchildren (Nathan, Morgan, Olivia)Occupation: * Retired Consumer Products Sales and Marketing professional * Former small business ownerEducation: * Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management, State University of New York at Buffalo * United States Army, Viet Nam era veteran; Honorable DischargeCivic involvement: * Elected to Lake Zurich Board as Trustee in April 2007 * Elected to Lake Zurich Board as a Trustee in April 2011 * Current: Liason to Park and Recreation Department * Current: Village of Lake Zurich Representative to SWALCO (Solid Waste Agency of Lake County) Board of Directors * Current: Member of Downtown Redevelopment Committee * Past Member Village of Lake Zurich Finance Committee * Past Liason Finance Committee * Past Chairman Village of Lake Zurich Public Safety Committee * Past Liason Police Department * Past Liason Building and Zoning Department * Past member CPAC (Citizens and Police Advisory Committee) * In first class to complete Citizens Police Academy Course * Member Lake Zurich Citizen Corps * Member Lake Zurich Chamber of Commerce * Member Lake Zurich Chamber of Commerce Government Affairs Committee *Booster and Volunteer to: Sarah Adams School, Lake Zurich Middle School, Lake Zurich High School, Lake Zurich Quarterback Club, Lake Zurich and ELA Soccer *Volunteer to Lake Zurich Park and Recreation Department activities: Kids Kingdom construction, Haunted House, Arbor Day, Easter Egg Hunt, Independence Day Family Fest, Lake Zurich Triatalon, Relay for Life * 28 year resident of Lake Zurich * Member St. Francis DeSales Parish * Countryside Subdivision Representative *Elected offices held: * Trustee, Village of Lake Zurich Board of Trustees 2007 * Trustee, Village of Lake Zurich Board of Trustees 2011Have you ever been arrested for or convicted of a crime? If yes, please explain: NoCandidate's Key Issues Key Issue 1 Providing the leadership lacking the past four years. This is a two part answer for me. I intend to work to build consensus and collaboration and to increase communication between the mayor's office and the Board. I will promote the sharing of ideas, responsibility, communication and cooperation with the Board and staff. I intend to develop and bring forward programs and policies to address problems and find solutions and I will take an active role in Economic Development I am notconflicted?. Additionally, I will establishmeaningful? committees in order to give the Board the benefit of thecommunity brain?. I intend to challenge Trustees to do more than just attend Board meetings. It will be important to develop and maintain a close working relationship with the Village Manager and Staff. I will use a facilitative approach to promote positive interaction and a high level of communication among all officials in village government and the residents. Lake Zurich needs to create a government atmosphere that gives residents and businesses confidence, increases customer service and is consistent and predictable to both residents and businesses. We will increase customer service levels to residents and businesses and establish Lake Zurich as a desirable place to do business by making our processes helpful, consistent and predictable.Key Issue 2 Increase the emphasis on developing our downtown and increasing our economic vitality village-wide. The village needs to hire an Economic Development Manager. In addition, there is a need to establish an Economic Development Advisory Board to assist and advise the Village Board and Staff in the review and implementation of Economic Development efforts. The Village can obtain a birds-eye view and first-person understanding of our strengths and weaknesses as they relate to business growth and the attraction of new businesses. This input and perspective is currently missing yet it is essential for refining our strategies to position the Village with a more competitive edge. I will continue to support the RFQ/RFP process strategy which is designed to identify qualified developers who will bring forward realistic, actionable opportunities.Key Issue 3 Providing an affordable, stable and sustainable balanced budget without significantly reducing Village services I support moving forward with the Organizational Review to make the Village more responsive and more efficient. Equally important is locating sources of new revenue WITHOUT putting any additional burdens on residents and businesses. Additionally, STATE obligations should be paid for by the State and not the local municipalities. Lastly, I will speak openly and realistically to the residents about our financial options. We may be at a point where austerity doesn't pay for itself.Questions Answers What is your position on what needs to be done to jump-start downtown redevelopment and how soon does this need to get happen?As noted above, the most critical issue impacting downtown redevelopment has been the Village's lack of a dedicated Economic Development Office with sufficient resources and authority to aggressively market the Village to the developer community. Presently, our economic development activities are buried within the Building and Zoning Department and are limited to part time coordinating of redevelopment area plans, corridor plans, special censuses, courtesy reviews, administrative approvals, and programming. With the recent departure of the Village's Planning Manager, we have the opportunity to immediately create the Office of Economic Development and to retain a professional Economic Development Manager to lead that office. One of her/his first duties will be to create a complete inventory of the Village owned properties within the downtown area and develop marketing materials for the development blocks and for individual parcels. Upon completion of the marketing materials these materials should be mass mailed to developers, contractors and anyone else we think can assist in moving us forward. The Economic Development Manager should also be charged with reaching out to and staying in contact with private property owners within the downtown area and the village, and assist them in the marketing of their properties if they seek assistance from the Village.What are your views on any kind of financial incentives to attract future development? Do you have any concerns about offering breaks in the wake of those recently received by the developer of Mariano?s?Whether we like it or not, economic incentives have become an effective tool for municipalities in attracting new businesses. We have heard from developers that a lack of economic incentives can often be a deal breaker. Some neighboring communities such as Vernon Hills, Palatine, Mount Prospect and others apparently agree and have offered economic incentives to spur successful development. Economic incentives are not new to Lake Zurich. A previous Board approved a significant economic incentive to bring Peapod to the industrial park. Giving economic incentives or reductions of fees are not the perfect situation and we should continue to explore ways to keep more of this revenue in the village. When the Village Board has been approached about economic incentives, my fellow Trustees and I have made sure that the economic incentives have limited timeframes and amounts, and that the incentives are used to reimburse developers for public improvements that would not otherwise be built but for the particular development project. Lake Zurich is a great place to do business; we all need to get aboard and communicate that message.In these tight economic times, municipal budgets have to be prioritized. Where, if anywhere, could the current budget be trimmed? Conversely, is there something that should be reinstated or have resources directed toward?Over the past 4 years, my fellow Trustees and I have aggressively pursued prioritization of all Village activities and expenses, not just in the various departments, but across the enterprise as a whole. Unfortunately, under the current Mayor and prior Village Administrator and Finance Director, this prioritization was never done, and presentation and Board discussion of proposed budgets were greatly curtailed. In fact, only now, in preparation for the Village's next budget and with a new Village Manager and Finance Director, is the long-demanded organizational review exercise being done. As I said above, we may be at a point where austerity doesn't pay for itself. And to use a well-worn phrase, we may have to spend some money to make some money, especially in the area of economic development . Although I think it is premature to suggest the types of strategic budget cuts needed to deliver a balanced and sustainable budget, until the prioritization plan and proposed Fiscal Year 2014 (May 1, 2013 April 30, 2014) budget are delivered to the Village Board in February, I do feel there are some cost cutting opportunities to look at such as possibly combining inspection services and the creation of a Public Safety Department with an eye toward possibly combining some overlapping functions. Most of the low hanging expense fruit has been picked. We need to continue to re-evaluate the way we do our business and adjust as needed.What's one good idea you have to better the community that no one is talking about yet?Over the past 4 years under the current Mayor, we have seen a dramatic reduction in public discussion of issues vital to the Village. Board Committees that previously afforded the opportunity for in-depth discussion and pubic input have been eliminated. The use of official advisory Boards and Committees that are approved by and held accountable to the Village Board have been replaced by mayoral Task Forces that are accountable only to the Mayor. We have a tremendous amount of talent in our community in a variety of occupations, from marketing and finance, to organizational and project management. We need to tap into that talent and get them more involved in running the Village ... they all have expertise and opinions. When elected, I will restore the channels through which our residents can have greater participation and impact. On Day 1, I will begin the process of creating an Economic Development Board to work with the new Economic Development Director I discussed in a previous response, to jump-start downtown redevelopment.Talking with your friends and neighbors, what seems to be their biggest public safety concern? Explain the concern as you see it, and discuss how you think it should be addressed.During my time in office, I have remained acutely aware of the impacts of budget cuts on Village services, particularly as they relate to public safety. In resident surveys and in conversations with residents around the Village, our public safety operations always received high marks and praise. One issue that does come up in conversations with residents is the increase in alcohol and drug abuse in younger populations, and from what I see, I agree with them. Working effectively with the School District, I would consider committing additional public safety resources to provide assistance in alcohol and drug abuse awareness as the School District may request.