Tom Greenhaw: Candidate Profile

Back to Metropolitan Water Reclamation District

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: ChicagoWebsite: http://tomgreenhaw.comTwitter: Candidate did not respond.Facebook: Candidate did not respond.Office sought: Metropolitan Water Reclamation District Age: 29Family: My wife Michelle and I have been married for just over a year.Occupation: I founded a retail technology company, Cashier Live, in 2010.Education: Bachelor of Science in Political Science, Arizona State UniversityLeadership in Sustainability Management Certificate, University of Chicago Graham SchoolCivic involvement: Founder of sustainability advocacy organization Windy City SustainabilityCenter for Neighborhood Technology Young Innovators Board MemberOpenlands Communications Committee MemberNew Leaders Council Chicago Fellow, 2014Elected offices held: None.Questions Answers The board continues to be dominated by officials from the city as opposed to the suburbs. Do you support reforming the way the board is elected to ensure more balanced representation?I would not be opposed to reforming the way the MWRD Board of Commissioners are elected to ensure more suburban representation. While I am currently a Chicago resident, I know that flooding is a major issue throughout Cook County having been born and raised in the northern suburbs. It is important that adequate investments in our stormwater management and wastewater treatment infrastructure are made in all parts of Cook County, and having more suburban Commissioners would ensure that each part of the County would be represented as these decisions are made.The role of board members is described as part time, yet the salary associated with it is more than most people make in their full-time job. Should that salary be cut?There seems to be a disconnect between a Commissioner's pay and the minimal work required by law, and I would be supportive of bridging the gap by adding committee meetings and study sessions to the responsibility of attending two board meetings each month. The MWRD has Commissioners from all types of backgrounds and cutting the salary of a Commissioner could have the unintended consequence of discouraging those who are not independently wealthy from running to become a Commissioner.If you are an incumbent, what has your attendance been for board meetings? IF you are a challenger, have you attended any meetings? How many? Do you know the attendance rate of the incumbent candidates?Yes, I have attended multiple MWRD board meetings and study sessions. I have attended study sessions on the topics of pharmaceutical disposal as well as aquatic invasive species such as Asian Carp and the Army Corps of Engineers Great Lakes and Mississippi River Interbasin Study (GLMRIS). The study sessions I attended were very informative and I would encourage more public attendance at them as a Commissioner. I believe President Spyropoulos and Commissioner McGowan, the incumbent Commissioners up for re-election, both have an exemplary attendance record and I would follow their example as a Commissioner.How do you rate the MWRD on transparency and the public's access to records? If you consider it adequate, please explain why. If you think improvements are needed, please describe them and why they are importantRecords held by the MWRD should be more accessible. There is a wealth of information on the District's website, but it is not presented in a user-friendly manner. An example is the water quality data collected each month that is only released on an annual basis in a spreadsheet on the District's website. One of the data points within this report is fecal coliform levels throughout the Chicago Waterway System. With more recreation taking place on the Chicago River I believe that information which could impact the public's health, such as fecal coliform levels, should be made available in real-time.Please list any elected office you have ever run for and what the result of that election was. Have you ever been appointed to fill an unexpired term?I am a first-time candidate, and I've never run for office or held a government position of any kind. I am a technology entrepreneur and sustainability advocate, and I am a candidate for MWRD Commissioner because I am passionate about preventing flooding and protecting our environment and believe that my background would be a positive addition to the board.What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?My top priority would be flood prevention. In early-2015 I helped introduce a bill in the Illinois State Legislature that would provide a property tax exemption for installing stormwater-retaining green infrastructure, such as permeable pavement or a rain garden. I will be an advocate for flood prevention measures.I would also advocate for more opportunities to properly dispose of medication which is a health, safety, and environmental issue. As a student at the University of Chicago's Leadership in Sustainability Management Program I conducted research on the disposal of medication. I would be an advocate for disposal programs as a Commissioner.Please name one current leader who most inspires you.Elon Musk, for tackling enormous projects ahead of their time.What is the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?It's always easier to do the job with the right tool. Sometimes you have to invent the right tool! I learned that from my dad.If life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?I've learned from my failures, and even though a do-over would be nice on occasion, I'd be content without using any do-overs.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?History. Relating current events to historical events can help put things into perspective, or to think about a situation in an interesting way.If you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?The key to success is to always be learning.