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Candidates offer opinions on village spending levels

Six people seeking three Carpentersville village board seats in April have different views on the village's spending priorities and whether the fire department and village hall are properly staffed.

Incumbents Don Burroway and Paul Humpfer are each seeking another 4-year term, while newcomers Humberto Garcia, Sara Miller, Jeffrey Sabbe and Christopher Scholl are hoping for an opportunity to serve.

Humpfer says the village has cut about 30 positions in the last seven years as the overall property value in the village has dropped due to the recession.

"We're at the bone right now. We've cut everywhere we can cut," Humpfer said. "The next place is union jobs - police and fire."

Burroway said he believes the village is spending the right amount on staffing.

He said he's received complaints that the village's tax rate has spiked, but said that's a necessary result of the taxable property in Carpentersville losing 17 percent of its value.

"Right now, we're right about at the right amount," Burroway said. "I don't see anywhere at the present moment where we can cut anything."

Garcia said cuts can be made at the village hall, where he believes there are too many "assistants to assistants."

"We've got too many chiefs and not enough Indians," Garcia said.

Garcia also pointed to a $239,000 savings on a fueling station in 2012 that was later used to build a salt dome. Garcia said the fact trustees and staff members were initially considering a more expensive plan is evidence money could and can be spent more wisely.

Miller said she has not yet delved into the village's budget.

"Of course, there's always room to trim things here and there," she said.

Sabbe said he has no qualms with village spending and would not want to cut anything from police and fire department budgets.

"We have excellent police and fire. We need public safety, that's huge," he said.

Scholl, a village firefighter, says the fire department is not adequately staffed and needs up to 15 more people a day to deliver better coverage. He said response times can be deceiving and noted that firefighters and police who are often first at a scene cannot act until backup arrives. Scholl advocated hiring part-time firefighters to make up for deficiencies. He also wants to cut administrative jobs and use that money to hire firefighters.

"The truth is our ability to protect our residents has been compromised," Scholl said. "We exist in a gamble."

The election is April 7 and early voting begins March 23. Visit kanecountyelections.org for polling places.

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