Terry Borg: 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: Maple ParkWebsite: Candidate did not respond.Office sought: Maple Park Village Board (4-year Terms)Age: 56Family: Married, two adult childrenOccupation: University AdministratorEducation: Bachelor of Arts in International Relations and Criminal Justice, Michigan State University (MSU), 1978 Master of Arts in Contemporary European Studies, University of Sussex, Brighton, England, 1979 Ph.D. in Higher Education Administration, MSU, 1991Civic involvement: Kaneland School District 302 Citizens Advisory Committee (2009 present) Rock Valley College Students In Free Enterprise Business Advisory Board (2004 2010) Kaneland School District 302 Finance Advisory Committee (2003 2009) Kaneland School District 302 Finance Facilities Committee (2001) Kaneland School District 302 Technology Plan Committee (2000 2001)Elected offices held: Board of Trustees, Village of Maple Park (2001 present)Have you ever been arrested for or convicted of a crime? If yes, please explain: No.Candidate's Key Issues Key Issue 1 Maintaining infrastructure with limited funding: Prioritization of needs utilizing reasoned judgment with data.Key Issue 2 Planning for the future: Establishing a plan, prioritization of Village investment, preparing for opportunity when confidence and the market returns for growth.Key Issue 3 Investing in Village personnel: With few employees, the Village needs to ensure that personnel are well trained, use good judgment and are resident focused in order to provide high quality service, making Maple Park a safe and outstanding place to live and raise a family.Questions Answers What makes you the best candidate for the job?Trustworthy, impartial and reasoned judgment are the hallmarks that I bring to the Village Board. I thoughtfully consider every issue, do my homework, and ask questions. I also seek input from residents and listen to their concerns. Having demonstrated these characteristics for 12 year on the Village Board, my track record makes me a known quantity who wishes to serve my community.Given the delicate balance between the need for revenue and over-taxing local businesses, what is your opinion of your community's present level of local sales taxes? Is the tax just right, too low or too high? Explain.Maple Park's sales tax rate is set at the lowest rate of both counties it resides within (Kane 7% and DeKalb 6.25%). This is intentional as we wish to encourage business investment. Having the competitive advantage of the lowest sales tax rate permissible, will encourage business investment when the economy strengthens. The opportunity cost of this low sales tax rate is minimal for a Village like that of Maple Park, as we have few businesses currently.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.Vandalism of personal property appears to be the largest public safety concern in Maple Park. Most vandalism is perpetrated by juveniles. This situation is being addressed by the Maple Park Police Department under the leadership of Chief Acosta. Chief Acosta's approach is one of creating a relationship and developing mutual respect while holding all accountable. His approach, and his modelling for, and training of, all officers, has made the Maple Park Police Department a valued and respected organization, appreciated by residents.In these tight economic times, municipal budgets have to be prioritized. Where, if anywhere, could the current budget be trimmed, and conversely, are there areas the budget does not give enough money to?The Maple Park Village budget does not have the size/capacity to permit areas to be trimmed or supplemented. Our budget is bare bones with each department's director finding economies to maintain basic services. The creativity of Maple Park employees coupled with the inter-department teaming approach, provides solutions to daily challenges and enhancements to our quality of life.What's one good idea you have to better the community that no one is talking about yet?To create savings in our village budget, interest among quality developers, and a sense of community in our residents, we must look to leverage "going green," technology and resident energy and commitment. Specifically, by the Village Board and employees utilizing tablets, e.g. iPads, this will save the village dollars in printing costs and be more environmentally friendly. Furthermore, we have a great resource running adjacent to I-88 waiting to be developed, i.e. the fiber-optic cable for Internet II that NIU has installed. We need to identify and provide incentives to developers to help us exploit this resource in creating new jobs in environmentally friendly industries. Finally, we need to capture the genius and energy of residents to commit to help us to accomplish this vision. Resident commitment is key to all initiatives from courting the best developers to the sweat equity needed in offering quality recreational events.