Joseph Galvan: Candidate Profile

Back to Elgin Mayor

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: ElginWebsite: Candidate did not respond.Office sought: Elgin Mayor Age: 58Family: Teresa Galvan - Wife Jessica Kochheiser - Daughter Christina Galvan -DaughterOccupation: Principal Galvan and Associates, LLCEducation: BA University of IL 1979Civic involvement: Knights of Colombus St. Ignatius College Prep, Board of Trustees 2003-2009 Lutheran Social Services of Illinois, Board of Trustees 2009- Present Centro De Informacion, Board of Trustees City of Chicago Neighborhood Stabilization Advisory Committee 2009-2011 United Neighborhood Organization - March - October 2014Elected offices held: Candidate did not respond.Questions Answers What makes you the best candidate for the job?I am the best candidate for the job because I excel at Leadership which is lacking in the current administration. I have a proven record of Leadership and Excellence in the public sector. I understand good governance and public service. Elgin is at a critical point in its history and needs a Mayor that can share a vision for a prosperous Elgin, an Elgin with a positive self image, an Elgin where all the residents of the City feel attracted to visit and spend their dollars in the shops and restaurants downtown. An Elgin where the Hispanic community feels that it is part of government not apart from government. There is a disconnect between the current Mayor and the majority of the community. There is a disconnect between the Mayor and the City Council. As Mayor I will bridge the gap of inclusion for all Elginites. I will be a pro-economic development Mayor who will be involved and will be the face of the City in the attraction and retention of business. I will work to ensure that there is good governance of our tax dollars and I will work closely with all Council members because we all will represent the Citizens of Elgin. This election is not about who has been living in this city longer, but who has the Leadership skills to make this a better community to live. In this regard, I am the better candidate for this position.City Manager Sean Stegaall says that the city's property tax levy -- which is staying flat this year -- is projected to increase by 5 percent in 2016 and 2017 unless cuts are made to public safety. However, some believe public safety budgets are untouchable. What is your stance? Would you make such cuts? If not, what alternatives would you propose?Public Safety is a top priority. However, as Mayor I will undertake a forensic audit of our budget, an analysis of future revenue and expenditures of the City and with the assistance of an advisory board of citizens we will analyze the delivery of services to our community and make the appropriate recommendations at that time. Perhaps the best alternative to cuts is revenue growth through business development. I will be aggressive in leading the Elgin Development Team to attract and retain businesses. I will work to identify where we can excel in the attraction of business and make Elgin a better community to work and establish a business.The city of Elgin has invested resources into promoting arts and entertainment downtown, which Mayor David Kaptain and others believe can be a long-term economic engine . Do you agree with the approach? If so, why? If not, what would you propose instead?I believe in a diversified community and a diversified economy. The investment in arts and entertainment should be one prong of the redevelopment approach to the downtown community. One part of this strategy, the artists lofts were developed for starting artists, who traditionally do not have much disposable income to spend in the community. The City should perform a more comprehensive review of how we spend our City dollars and some measurable standards as we look at these programs and our return on our investment. The City should also encourage businesses to develop the back of their businesses that can open onto the riverwalk. We have spent many dollars in improving our riverwalk, but people going from one end of the City to the other pass through without spending any money because there is only one restaurant that opens onto the riverwalk. Successful River communities more efficiently utilized the river for business development. It is our greatest natural resource and should be an attraction for economic development.Describe your leadership style and explain how you think that will be effective in producing effective actions and decisions with your village board or city council.I am a person that communicates, advocates for the citizen, a leader who practices outreach, listens to constituents and I have a strong record in government. Our Mayor has been ineffective in communication to the citizens representatives because he refuses to reach out to all Councilmen. In one council meeting he called a Councilman clueless. This lack of respect for the Councilman also showed a lack of respect for his position and all the residents of Elgin whom all Members of the Council represent. I will not lead the City into lawsuits where the issues brought before the City are not ripe or lack an understanding of the merits of the issue. The TLC case was such a case where the Mayor lacked the leadership to stop this fight which cost the City time and money. Now we are being sued by neighbors of the medical marijuana facility because the case was rushed through the City council....when the State has yet to take the necessary actions to permit this industry throughout Illinois. I will lead the economic development efforts to strengthen the community to increase our tax base and provide jobs. The day after the last election, Mayor Kaptain said he would allow staff to do the outreach. In successful communities across the country it is the Mayor who is the face of the community, the number one salesperson who represents the City to the business community that says we are open for business and we are business friendly!What's one good idea you have to better the community that no one is talking about yet?I have several. One is greater outreach to the west elgin community to embrace them as part of the larger community. I would also explore creating a Regional Center along the I-90 corridor to create a cluster of development whether they be Information Technology driven businesses, green incubator businesses or international development zones. I would also inventory and auction off excess City land for development purposes.What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?A major issue for this office is the apparent lack of communication between the Mayor and Council members on issues outside of the council chambers. To be effective the Mayor must reach out to all council members who represent all the citizens of Elgin. Image is a problem for our community. The people from the surrounding communities do not make Elgin a destination spot to visit and spend money because of how they perceive our community. Historic Preservation of homes and working with state and federal agencies to find dollars for rehabilitation of the homes. Building Code Enforcement to ensure properties are kept up to code and not allowed to depreciate. Proper enforcement of building codes ensures life safety issues for our residents are met. We need to assess the impact of the revenue diversification program and the cost of living in Elgin for our citizens and the cost of doing business in our town. The Mayor spearheaded a drive to reduce property taxes only to more than replace the dollar amount of the reduction with other taxes and fees. Free and open competition is the best way to ensure lower prices for goods and services bought with taxpayer dollars. The Responsible bidders ordinance impedes free and open competition and may increase the cost of the acquisition of goods and services. This is not good governance.Please name one current leader who most inspires you.Pope FrancisWhat's the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?Faith, Family and hard workIf life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?I am a workaholic and I would spend more time on family vacations.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?History, it allowed me to study great leaders that inspired me in my lifeIf you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?Love each other as God loves you.