Wheaton mayor touts city's progress, fears state budget cuts

Wheaton has seen some encouraging development in the past year, Mayor Michael Gresk said Thursday during his State of the City speech at Cantigny Park.

Many new businesses have come to town, including Gia Mia Pizza Bar, Kimmer's Ice Cream, FTX CrossFit, Emmett's Brewing Company, Wheaton Bank and Trust, Fire It Up Tacos, Simply Thai Bistro and Escape For Fun.

The city issued 7 percent more building permits than in 2014 and 42 houses were built, he said. Businesses such as Luong Loi and Whole Foods, which is moving to the former Dominick's space in Danada Square East, are reinvesting in town.

Infrastructure improvements continue, too, with the dedication of more resources to resolving stormwater issues, the installation of nearly 300 LED streetlights, increased paving repairs and continued sidewalk improvements.

Leadership changes are occurring, with new council member Suzanne Fitch, new police Chief Jim Volpe and, in May, a new city manager, Michael Dzugan. Work on the downtown area strategic plan is moving forward. Updates are coming to the city's website and software system, which will give residents an easier way to pay bills and tickets. And the library is prepping for the opening of its new cafe next month.

While there are plenty of reasons to be optimistic, Gresk also told the crowd of about 180 community leaders and residents that the threat of losing money from the state is constantly looming overhead.

"Our biggest concern is the state of Illinois and what they're going to do," he said. "They could end up costing us a lot of money."

The state's proposal to reduce the amount of local government distributive fund money could result in the city losing more than $2.6 million a year, he said. In addition, the state has proposed freezing municipal property tax rates for at least two years, which would freeze 31 percent of the city's general fund revenue at 2015 levels.

Other sources of revenue in the city are trending relatively flat, which means the city will be limited in alternatives if revenue sources are cut or frozen by the state. Despite the uncertain times, the city has maintained Moody's AAA bond rating since 2010 and continues to maintain large reserves.

Gresk said that while it was a difficult decision, the council agreed to increase the property tax levy for the first time since 2009. Residents with properties assessed at $350,000 could see an increase of about $48 a year on their tax bill. The council can abate the increase in March if it decides it was not needed.

"Raising taxes is never a welcome decision, but the city saw a modest increase as a necessary response," Gresk said. "It was, for us (the city council), a spirited debate. It was that rare occasion where it was not a 7-0 vote."