Don Smith: Candidate Profile

Back to Des Plaines City Council Ward 7

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:BioQA Bio City: Des PlainesWebsite: noneOffice sought: Des Plaines City Council Ward 7 Age: 56Family: wife - Cheryl Smith three children - Colleen (26) Patrick (24) Kyle (22)Occupation: Attorney - private practice in Niles for almost 30 yearsEducation: B.A. Government - University of Notre Dame (1980) J.D. - Loyola University of Chicago (1984)Civic involvement: Current Member and Past Chairman of the Des Plaines Frisbie Senior Center Board of Directors Long time Niles Chamber Of Commerce Member. Former Board Member of Lattof YMCA. Former Member and Past President of the Niles Morton Grove Rotary Club. Former St. Emily School Board Member. Former Homeowner Association Board Member. Former Board Member of the United Way of Skokie Valley Current member of the Chicago Bar Association, the Illinois State Bar Association and the Northwest Suburban Bar Association.Elected offices held: Current 7th Ward Alderman - City of Des Plaines (by appointment) Des Plaines 7th Ward Alderman from 1997 to 2009Questions Answers What makes you the best candidate for the job?First, I am confident there are many 7th Ward residents who would make fine aldermen. My appointment as alderman is only due to the unfortunate death of Joanna Sojka last year. When the Mayor asked me if I would accept this appointment, I did not hesitate at all to say yes, believing that I have the experience, background, talent and temperament to represent the 7th Ward and the City. I recently looked back at some of my literature from when I first campaigned for alderman in 1997. I promised then that I would be independent, a good listener, responsive, a hard worker, open minded, sincere, and provide thoughtful respectful leadership on the City Council. I have gotten a bit older (and perhaps a bit wiser) since 1997, and Des Plaines has changed a bit too, but my values, my convictions, my approach and my goals for the City have not changed at all. I know without doubt that I lived up to the promises I made to the 7th Ward residents regarding what I would do, how I would do it, and how I would conduct myself. Certainly, no one will agree with every vote I made over the years (you can ask my wife), but no one should question my continued commitment to the City, and my goal of making Des Plaines a great place to live, work, and raise your family. I will not speak negatively about my opponent, but that is what makes me the best choice.Do you approve of the direction in which Mayor Bogusz is taking the city? Why or why not?Yes, I do approve of the direction that Mayor Bogusz is taking the City. And, I do not believe it is just the Mayor- it is also the City Council that should be commended. Without necessarily being critical of past administrations, of which I was a part, I believe the Mayor and the Council over the last several years have moved the City forward in a positive way. Real estate taxes being kept in check, a strong general fund reserve balance, reducing and restructuring of debt, increased use of technology, a more attentive and attractive business climate, a very good bond rating, an emphasis on maintaining and repairing our infrastructure, and many community wide family events, are all examples of the City moving in a forward direction. There may be grumbling at times about how some issues are handled, and the Mayor's aggressive and rather direct approach and style, but that is probably to be expected to some extent. The Mayor has certainly not been shy about expressing his plans and goals for the City and how he intends to achieve them. I have no problem with that at all, and I hope to have the opportunity to continue working with him and the entire City Council together after the election.Where, if anywhere, could the current budget be trimmed, and conversely, are there areas the budget does not give enough money to?The City Council and city staff have done a good job the last few years in streamlining operations and eliminating unnecessary staff. While you could go through the budget and find areas to be trimmed here and there, the only real way to make significant spending cuts is to either reduce personnel or forego major capital purchases or capital projects. I do not favor reducing capital investment or capital improvements as long as they are necessary and there is appropriate long term planning involved in making those decisions. Regarding personnel, if we can find ways to reduce our workforce by the outsourcing of some functions, finding regional solutions for the delivery of some municipal services, and maximizing the use of technology, I certainly would support that. We should also look for ways to reduce health insurance costs, and we must make sure that we will not be subject to the "Cadillac Tax" that will kick in in 2018 under the Affordable Care Act. Regarding areas where more money should be spent, one is for increased funding of social service agencies. The amount we allocate now is very small and could easily be doubled without a significant impact on city finances or additional taxes. That extra money would be extremely helpful to agencies already facing diminished revenue and budget cuts (and maybe even less State funding in the future). Also, if possible, we could certainly accelerate street repairs and alley improvements, and we can look at accelerating funding our pension liabilities.What is the single biggest problem in your ward not getting enough attention right now and what do you propose to do about it?Two issues in the 7th Ward (and really the whole city) are first, aging infrastructure, and second, the challenge of continuing to deliver municipal services in an efficient, cost effective manner. Actually, I do not view these as problems, but as ongoing issues that require constant attention. Des Plaines, like most inner ring suburbs, has been around a while, and our sewers, pipes, streets, alleys etc. are old as well. We need to continue to devote the necessary funds and manpower to maintain and repair them. Devoting a good percentage of casino revenue for that purpose is the right thing to do. Having a well thought out long range capital improvement plan is crucial. I have supported that and will continue to support that. The condition of our streets was one of the most frequent inquiries I received from residents when I was alderman previously. Second, providing municipal services (police, fire, garbage pick up etc.) in a cost effective way will be one of the biggest challenges we face in coming years. We should look for opportunities where we can provide services on a more regional basis which should payoff in cost savings. An example is the recent agreement reached with the Northwest Water Commission to bring an alternative water supply to the City. That will eventually save residents millions of dollars a year. We should continue looking at ways that technology and an improved website can help save costs and make interfacing with residents easier and more effective.What's one good idea you have to better the community that no one is talking about yet?I know that this has been talked about before in other areas of the country, and implemented in some cities, but I do not recall much, if any, discussion in Des Plaines. Wouldn't it be something to have a Municipal Wireless Network (Municipal Wi-Fi) for Des Plaines. I'm certain that there would be an awful lot involved with making that happen, and the costs for such a project might be high, but the benefits could be great, both in granting wireless access to those who otherwise might not have it,and perhaps reducing internet access costs generally for those who do. Even if initially only certain areas of the City (like downtown for example) were wired for access that could be a huge step forward for the City. In my answers to some of the other questions the Editorial Board posed, I brought up how I thought the possibility of providing some municipal services on a more regional basis could be more cost effective going forward. I can certainly envision Des Plaines partnering up with some of our neighbors to embark on a wireless network project.What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?One issue is to revisit the building of a fourth fire station on the City owned property on Central Road. This was discussed a lot when I was on the City Council previously, and for several reasons, it, as well as other proposals regarding the fire department, never went forward. The north side of the City would be much better served with a fourth station at that location. Also, we can and must do a better job of reaching out to our Hispanic community. This should be a priority. Somewhat related to that is the proposal regarding Our Lady of Guadalupe building a basilica on their grounds at Maryville. I believe that would be a positive move for the Church and for the City, and I look forward to hopefully working with the Church to make sure that if it happens, it happens in a way that is beneficial to everyone and respectful of the surrounding neighborhoods. I have received some criticism for not holding Ward meetings. A fair charge. I do believe though that throughout my time as alderman I engaged with a great many residents and received feedback and input in many ways - face to face talks, phone calls, emails, letters, neighborhood meetings etc. Trust me, I communicated with a LOT of people and they let me know what they thought. However, I do see the benefit of having ward meetings to keep residents informed, and will likely start having them periodically if elected.Please name one current leader who most inspires you.Senator Mark Kirk - for his perseverance in returning to office after his stroke and for his mostly moderate views in these overly partisan times.What's the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?If you can't say something nice about someone, don't say anything at all, and treat people the way you want to be treated yourself.If life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?I would have taken some time off after college and traveled extensively around the US and Europe.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?History (especially US history) - it taught me the importance of reading, and got me interested in current affairs and politics.If you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?The same advice my Mom still gives me all the time - say a prayer every day.