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Lori Solyom: Candidate Profile

Lombard Village Board District 5

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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: LombardWebsite: Candidate did not respond.Office sought: Lombard Village Board District 5 Age: 54Family: I first moved to Lombard on January 1, 1989, two days before my eldest child [Ashley Solyom, daughter, 26] was born. We moved in first owned Lombard house on April 1, 1995, where Ashley and her sisters [Rachel Solyom, daughter, 23 and Hannah Solyom, daughter, 21] were raised. An interesting family note is that my 72 year old mother-in-law, Arlene Sheridan Solyom, has lived her entire life on the same Lombard block.Occupation: marketing, communications and development consultantEducation: BA, Valparaiso University '81 MBA, Concordia University Chicago '13Civic involvement: I currently serve on the Village of Lombard Community Promotions and Tourism Committee. I am a York Township Precinct Committeeman and a York Township Women's Organization member. As the founder and spokesperson for Lombard Families First, I successfully led the effort to keep video gambling out of Lombard. Additionally, I helped debut the Concordia University Chicago College of Business Ethical Leadership Summit, as both a member of the Executive Committee and the Marketing Team. I also work with the Board of Directors of Voice of Care, a west suburban not-for-profit equipping churches to serve people with disabilities and their caregivers.Elected offices held: - Village of Lombard Community Promotions and Tourism Committee, member - York Township Committeeman, Precinct 78 - Concordia University Chicago College of Business Ethical Leadership Summit, Executive Committee - Voice of Care, an Illinois 501(c)3, Marketing and Communications Consultant with the Board of DirectorsQuestions Answers What makes you the best candidate for the job?As a longtime Lombard resident, I'm familiar with the issues that affect Lombardians. I've talked to people in my district; I know what they love about Lombard and what concerns they have. Recently, I successfully led the fight to keep video gambling out of Lombard. That gave me a bird's eye view of the board in action. I currently sit on Lombard's Community Promotions and Tourism committee. A couple of months ago we pushed through new ethics guidelines governing who is eligible to receive grant money from the village. Personally, I'm experienced in getting things done. On a daily basis, I help clients achieve their media and development goals - whether that objective is to get a spokesperson on network news or to train a not-for-profit board to effectively run a capital campaign. I believe that my MBA has given me a good working knowledge of the finances a village board must manage. It is important that the trustees foster and practice good stewardship on behalf of Lombard and that is something to which I am firmly committed. While I've served on numerous commissions and committees in both the private and public sector, this is my first run for elective office. I feel a calling to get involved, and I'm answering that call. I live, work, play, and worship in Lombard. I've raised my three children, Ashley (26), Rachel (23), and Hannah (21), here. It would be an honor to serve my chosen hometown in the role of Village Trustee.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.Of course we all want our property values to remain high and our taxes low - that's the ideal scenario. Unfortunately, it is not always the reality. I strongly advocate that if you are raising taxes you had better have a justifiable and watertight reason for doing so. Lombard has been receiving less than eight cents of each dollar paid toward property tax in Lombard, making the village the smallest taxing body on our homes. That's good. What's bad is that the four returning board members just voted to levy an almost million dollar tax increase for no current need - simply to set aside as reserves. The village finances are basically sound and following last year's tax freeze with an unnecessary hike, however incremental, sets a bad precedent. The village will receive about $33 million in taxes this fiscal year, about $11 million from sales tax. Lombard sales tax is at the non-home rule limit of 1%, and because we are a non-home rule municipality, State law dictates that it may only be used for property tax relief or infrastructure improvements. I'm okay with that because it keeps the village from having to find an alternative revenue source for that $11 million.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?This is important, because when you get down to the basics, public safety is the primary responsibility of the Village Board. Effective law enforcement, appropriate emergency response, and well-maintained roads are key indicators of good government and the first responsibility of our tax dollars. Lombard's Fire Department is now staffing a third medic unit and currently boasts a 90% success ratio in delivering service within the six minute national response standard. My brother is a fireman/paramedic in another state and one thing that impresses me is that our fire department uses almost all cross-trained firefighter/paramedics, about 60 of them, along with a handful of firefighter/EMTs. According to the National Fire Academy, FEMA, and my brother, that is not the standard, but should be. Lombard is ahead of the curve. I know that Lombard's police and fire facilities are aging and we'll undoubtedly need to deal with upgrades and improvements to the emergency infrastructure soon. I know the village will also have to address the issue of escalating risk management costs - in particular, health insurance, which comprises a significant portion of emergency services spending. To that concern, Village Manager Scott Niehaus has said that "The Village continues to explore opportunities for partnership, consortiums and resource sharing." I believe that's an attitude the board would do well to adopt in any number of arenas, but it is important that it be done with transparency and for the purpose of good stewardship.Where, if anywhere, could the current budget be trimmed, and conversely, are there areas the budget does not give enough money to?Some of the largest expenditures, as in any municipal budget, are liability insurance ($1.1 million), social security payments ($1.4 million), and pension funds ($6.7 million). Those are fixed expenses that we can't touch. We are not about to allow a government shutdown here in Lombard. We have got $11 million budgeted fairly well across multiple capital projects. Some of the largest single line items are for street maintenance, patrol services, and fire and rescue services - all primary responsibility areas we would be foolish to tamper with. I believe I would want to look closest at the $29 million in the Enterprise Fund to ensure that these "pass through" expenses are the best deals for our residents. I've heard a lot of complaints about water bills. Are our waterworks and sewage services competitively priced? Do we have options? Could we update parking system equipment and achieve ongoing lower operating expenses for commuters, even if it meant a greater outlay up front? If I wasn't on Lombard's Community Promotions and Tourism committee, I might question the $2 million in the Hotel/Motel Fund, but I've already seen those grants and tax rebates pay off in the form of new business and sales brought into town. The funds are healthy, but I don't see a lot of fat to be trimmed. I will continue to look for opportunities to carefully reduce village spending, as did Representative Peter Breen, who was then able to return money to our residents by eliminating the vehicle sticker.What's one good idea you have to better the community that no one is talking about yet?Lombard has a board that has been business-friendly. I'd like to continue seeking options that encourage Lombardians to eat, play, and shop here, but also support creative ideas that draw others to the Lilac Village to partake of the offerings of local enterprise. My involvement with the Village Community Promotions and Tourism committee has fostered a deeper understanding of how we can partner with both corporations and small business to create ongoing destination appeal in Lombard. I'd like to see us create a Shop Local incentive program, something that combines the appeal of Small Business Saturday and the savvy of Groupon. Blending loyal customer rewards with can't miss special deals means that I don't think twice about where to get my morning coffee, Sunday brunch, or Italian pizza. I already know it's a win-win to go to the Corner Spot Coffee House and Capone's on St. Charles Road or to visit Maxfield's after church. (And of course those birthday cupcakes are coming from Carlos' European Bakery on Westmore!) Keeping the business of Lombard residents is part one. Generating business that brings others into Lombard to shop and dine is the rest of the equation. If we can entice neighbors from Elmhurst and Glen Ellyn to come try the green soup at Shannon's deli, order the Schroeder's Supreme White pizza from Gianorio's, or even shop at Eastgate after renewing their license plate stickers, we're moving in the right direction.What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?My district is primarily residential, so I know that my chief responsibility lay in being an accountable liaison between my neighbors and the board - something I've already had practice doing. As I've been talking to people in my district, I've been listening to their concerns. When the board considered lifting the ban on video gambling in Lombard last spring, my neighbors and I thought that was a bad idea. I took the initiative to let the board know how we felt and encouraged other Lombardians to do the same. The board listened. As a Trustee, listening to the residents in my district would be of utmost importance. I'm not naÃmacr;ve enough to think that I can solve every problem, but I owe my neighbors in District 5 every opportunity to have their concerns heard and considered. I plan to provide my constituents (aka neighbors) with multiple avenues of communication, such as neighborhood meetings and vehicles like the Lombard Pride available via the village. It's not about MY issues - it's about the issues of District 5 residents and business operators.Please name one current leader who most inspires you.I respect DuPage County's own Evelyn Sanguinetti, our new Illinois Lieutenant Governor. She's an achiever, an overcomer, and a role model for young women.What's the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?Do what's right. We moved across the country when I was 11 because my father quit his job rather than perform unethical work.If life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?I don't have regrets, but I've lost some special people. If I could go back and spend more time with each of them, I would.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?Honestly, I loved it all. I believe in lifetime learning. The pursuit of knowledge is a worthy exercise that I will never tire of.If you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?Be faithful to yourself and your beliefs. Hold fast to what you know to be true and don't ever discount yourself or doubt your worth.