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Lake County Board Dist. 5 GOP hopefuls oppose tax hike to buy land

Editor's note: To clarify a Feb. 6 story about the Lake County Board District 5 Republican primary race, information about candidate Denise Rotheimer of Ingleside should have included that she is the founder of Mothers on a Mission to Stop Violence and that she authored and worked to pass two victims rights bills in the General Assembly - Jasmine's Law in 2011 and the Victims' Rights Sign-Off Sheet in 2013.http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20160101/submitted/301019864/

Voters should not be asked to replenish funds to buy more property for forest preserves, the three Republican candidates for the Lake County Board District 5 seat agree.

Lake County Board members double as forest district commissioners and have a say in the operations of both. Former board member Judy Martini of Fox Lake and attorney David Zipp and activist Denise Rotheimer, both of Ingleside, are running for the seat held for 20 years by Bonnie Thomson Carter, who is not seeking re-election.

Responses are from candidate questionnaires and interviews.

District 5 is in the western part of the county and includes Fox Lake, Lakemoor, Volo and parts of Round Lake, Wauconda, Antioch and Lake Villa.

Martini, 63, served as a county board member and forest commissioner from 1994 to 2008, representing District 1. The former real estate agent moved to Kentucky in 2012 but returned in 2014. She also serves on the Fox Lake planning commission and is a commissioner with the Lake County Housing Authority.

She said people can't afford more property taxes.

"I think that a referendum would not be appropriate. I think they need to focus more on doing connections to the existing preserves and seeing if they can do some conservation easements through other land owner's properties rather than go out for a referendum," Martini said.

The focus on remaining large parcels should be on commercial uses, she added.

Rotheimer, 44, a victims rights advocate, ran as a Democrat in 2008 when she lived in Barrington. She also intended to run for the state 62nd House District in 2014 but did not make it to the ballot after her petitions were challenged.

She said she would oppose a tax rate increase to borrow money and would use only existing revenues to fund resident priorities.

"What I'd like to do is thoroughly evaluate the budget, our spending, the costs, prioritize what's in the interest of the people and ensure we are being fiscally responsible as well as honoring our fiduciary duty," she said.

Zipp, 41, served in the Marine Corps and has been on the Gavin Elementary District 37 school board for five years. He also is the founding executive director of the Illinois Boaters Association, which seeks to protect boaters rights and advocates for the Chain O' Lakes region.

He noted 3 percent of a tax bill goes to the forest district and said there should be money available to showcase and develop forest preserve land without further borrowing. A tax rate increase for land acquisition is "absolutely not needed," Zipp added.

"I love the forest preserves. Right now though, our priorities have got to be restoring some hope and some money back to the taxpayers of the 5th District," he said.

Zipp said the practice of "overpaying for vast amounts of land that in many cases could never be developed should be retired."

The winner of the Republican primary will face Roger Smith of Fox Lake or Gloria Charland of Ingleside as the Democrat opponent in the November general election.

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