James Hughes: Candidate Profile

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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: WinfieldWebsite: www.BuildingWinfield.comOffice sought: Winfield Village Board Age: 47Family: Wife Sue, Daughters Kristin, Pamela, Shannon, and Son Brandon.Occupation: Chief Executive OfficerEducation: Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer +ISA +IIS +Enterprise +TCP/IP +Internet. Artisoft TeleVantage (Digital PBX/VoIP). Microsoft Technical Sales Specialists. Microsoft Deploying Installing Certified. Red Hat (Linux Engineer). Network Engineer.Civic involvement: Currently Your Village of Winfield Trustee, Liaison Fire District, Liaison (ZBA) Zoning Board of Appeals, Liaison Bikeways Taskforce. I also attend nearly all other committee, commission and board meetings of the Village of Winfield. Past Civic Involvement: Winfield Riverwalk Committee where I designed the 1st annual Taste of Winfield and Family Fall-Fest. During my time serving on the Riverwalk I helped move the committee forward with new ideas and solutions to reach our goals while working to bring a team environment with open communications.Elected offices held: Village of Winfield TrusteeQuestions Answers What makes you the best candidate for the job?Winfield is a small town with an urban design home to many commuters that is beautifully nestled among the forest preserve. I'll help move Winfield forward while caring about all that is so important to our Village. I'm a resident of Shelburne Crossing in Winfield, and an independent candidate running for reelection as your Village Trustee; my goals are the goals of the people of Winfield with no past relationships or personal goals to achieve. I pledge to fulfill the growth and development plans outlined in the recent 2014 Comprehensive Plan, including a reasonable and fair approach to Roosevelt Road and Town Center. I pledge to preserve Winfield's special connection to nature - the open space, forest preserves, parks, trails, trees, and, yes, a future Riverwalk. I further pledge to identify and secure sustainable business revenues from sales taxes to ease the tax burden and Water Rates on Winfield residents. I pledge to properly fund and support our Police Department, and to keep working to repair and maintain our roads. I pledge to be forward thinking and optimistic about Winfield, advancing our community's interests with a steady hand and leadership. In sum, we pledge to keep "Building Winfield's Future!"What is your opinion of your community's present level of local sales and property taxes? Is the tax just right, too low or too high? Explain.Winfield has some of the lowest sales taxes in the area. We do need to look at them and bring them in-line with the current times for the right reasons, not just because we can. It's vital for Winfield to control its spending and its ability to raise any taxes - it has to be for the right reasons, be sensible, and be the only option or solution. I do strongly believe our Village needs to expand our business markets, and that by doing so will providing more sustainable revenues from commercial sales taxes vs. raising personal property taxes. I also support building and improving our relationship with our largest business in our Village, CDH (North Western Medicine) seeking new sustainable revenue opportunities that's fair and reasonable for all.Rate the efficiency of your town's police and fire coverage. Are the departments well prepared for the next decade? What, if anything, should be changed? Do you have specific public safety concerns?Winfield as many other towns in our area is going to have work hard to be able to cover the growing cost(s) of police protection and public pensions. This is an area where we need to be listening to our residents, our police staff, looking for all solutions to provide the best possible service we can while be the most effective and efficient with-in our means - We need to Keep our Local Police Department. We should be exploring modern ideas and technologies from public police aid/help, looking into better technology that can help lower the total cost of providing public safety and working with our Police Staff.Where, if anywhere, could the current budget be trimmed, and conversely, are there areas the budget does not give enough money to?It's vital for Winfield to control its spending and its ability to raise our taxes through bonding and any other measures including raising services such as Water and Sewer Rates. Our Village needs new sustainable revenues which I believe we can achieve by expanding our business markets, and that by doing so will providing more sustainable revenues from commercial sales taxes vs. raising property taxes and user fees. I also support building and improving our relationship with our largest business in our Village, CDH (North Western Medicine) seeking new sustainable revenue opportunities that's fair and reasonable for all.What's one good idea you have to better the community that no one is talking about yet?Communication and Technologies; seek new ways to inform and listen with our neighbors while improving government transparency. We can improve our technologies including our website to support our local Village more while using the proper communication channels and new technologies for maintaining the best possible costs out-come, yet be more effective and efficient - proactively sharing, and improving our open communications from the Village to us the Residents and businesses of Winfield. As our Village grows and expands with new development, having the right blend of technologies and solutions in place can also help improve code compliance, building permits, lower staff's time needed to complete their tasks and form better solutions for our Village.What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?I really enjoy giving back to our Community while serving our Residents. My Passions are completing our Roads and Funding our Maintenance Programs while keeping Taxes low, Keeping our Police Department while staffing it appropriately for the best Public Safety for our Village, Reasonable Smart Development that sensibly maintains our unique look and feel of our Village while providing Sustainable Revenues with the goal of lowering our Water Bills and funding our Village.Please name one current leader who most inspires you.Mitt RomneyWhat's the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?Be honest, hardworking, and take responsibility, not make excuses.If life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?I enjoy giving back to our community, church, and helping others - to have realized that at a much earlier point in life.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?Both Math and History was my favorites. Today I'm Computer Engineer and Village Trustee.If you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?Create your own opportunities, be honest, take responsibility, not make excuses - know God, keep a strong close family, and don't forget how to love.