Lake Zurich residents invited to first state of the village address

Lake Zurich Mayor Thomas Poynton will co-host an inaugural state of the village program for residents next month.

Officially called the "2015 State of the Village Address: A Conversation With the Community," the program is set for 6 p.m. Monday, March 9, at Ela Area Public Library in Lake Zurich.

Poynton said the evening will be designed to be informal and informative.

"We'll go until there are no more questions, but the library closes at 9 and then they'll throw us out," he said Tuesday.

Officials said now is a good time to let residents and others know about Lake Zurich's story that includes special events, government innovation and greater transparency - all detailed in the village's first report. Village Manager Jason Slowinski said he and Poynton will give a short presentation, but all department heads are expected to be in attendance and available to answer questions.

"The village has made it a priority to be transparent in its actions, as well as to engage the community on issues of importance, and we wanted to develop a program that would advance those objectives," Slowinski said. "I believe that attendees will find this event to be very informative."

Lake Zurich's longtime effort to revitalize downtown is a subject that officials expect to arise at the March 9 program. Most recently, Pennsylvania-based Toll Brothers Inc., known for building luxury homes, was given until early May to craft a detailed plan for condominiums and retail on a 2-acre, village-owned waterfront site.

While the state of the village program is new to Lake Zurich, other suburbs have annual updates for residents in a variety of forums. For example, Gurnee Mayor Kristina Kovarik touched on village topics in her annual speech at a business luncheon at KeyLime Cove Indoor Waterpark Resort in 2014.

Poynton said he wants Lake Zurich's state of the village address to be interesting.

"I've seen them (other officials) go with great detail," he said. "Some of that stuff puts you to sleep after a while."