Carol Rauschenberger: Candidate Profile

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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: ElginWebsite: www.carolforcouncil.voteTwitter: Candidate did not respond.Facebook: Carol Rauschenberger for City CouncilOffice sought: Elgin City Council Age: 64Family: I am married to Reid Travis and have three children, Zoe, Bo and Sam.Occupation: Occupational TherapistEducation: I have a Bachelor of Science Degree from the University of Illinois and a Master's in Business from The American Graduate School of International Management (Thunderbird Campus).Civic involvement: I have been involved in every community in which I have lived. For example, I was a Village Trustee in Chelsea, Michigan. In Elgin, I was elected to the Elgin Township Board and Elgin City Council. I am a graduate of the Elgin Chamber's Leadership Academy and I founded the Community Science Fair which is now known as the School District U-46 STEM EXPO for grades kindergarten through High School. I am a volunteer for Shared Harvest, the Elgin Food Cooperative.Elected offices held: Village Trustee, Chelsea, Michigan;Township Trustee, Elgin, IL Township;Elgin City Councilperson, Elgin, ILQuestions Answers The Downtown Neighborhood Association of Elgin is funded by a $135,000 yearly contract with the city, and future funding will be discussed by the city council. The DNA could continue to be funded by the city, or by a new special tax imposed on downtown property owners, or by a special sales tax increase for downtown only. Or by a combination of all three. How do you believe the DNA should be funded? Please explain.It is prudent for the DNA to diversify its sources of funding as it moves forward. Elgin is lucky to have a historic and beautiful downtown that gives our city a unique 'commons.' A vibrant downtown that draws residents and visitors, can benefit all citizens, not just downtown businesses and building owners. Therefore I feel the City of Elgin should continue funding the DNA at some level. Additionally, it has been suggested that an SSA (Special Service Area) Tax be applied to downtown building owners to support the DNA. Recent feedback by the downtown building owners was not positive about the SSA; however a significantly smaller 'ask' as a part of a more diverse funding structure may be more acceptable to them. Finally, the DNA can raise more funds through membership, fundraising and grants. I am not in favor of a special sales tax at this time.Elgin straddles Cook and Kane counties. Cook County approved increasing the hourly minimum wage from $8.25 to $10 effective July 1. Elgin, as a home rule community, can opt out. Do you support opting out or allowing the $10 minimum wage to take effect? Why?To be consistent across our city boundaries, I would opt out of the Cook County minimum wage increase at this time. However, I would not rule out passing our own minimum wage ruling sometime in the future after careful consideration and input from our business sector.A task force told the city council in summer 2015 that the Hemmens Cultural Center should be expanded with a new performance space for up to 450 patrons, new restrooms, dressing rooms, a box office and more. The cost hasnÃcirc;shy;t been estimated but it would be in the millions. Do you believe an expansion is necessary? Please explain.The Hemmens, like the Tower Building, is an iconic building in our town. It is Elgin's cultural heart and home to our professional orchestra and other performing arts. The building remains in good structural shape, has architectural significance and can be modified for expanded use. I believe it is a cultural and economic driver for our downtown, and planning for expansion should be a priority of downtown development in the future. I would hope the expansion could be done in phases as sources of funding are identified.The city council set a policy of gradually spending down the cityÃcirc;shy;s reserves to 30 percent of operational expenses. By the end of 2017, the general fund will have $37.9 million in reserves, or about 32 percent, as per this yearÃcirc;shy;s budget. Do you agree with the policy? Or do you believe the city should be more prudent with reserves? Or should it spend down reserves even more? Why?I agree with the current policy of spending our reserves down to 30% and holding it there if at all possible. Elgin has been a prudent steward of its finances and holding reserves at 30% will support our excellent financial standing. Though in these unsure times at the state and national level, policies such as this should be reviewed frequently.The city is working on a creating a Ãcirc;not;code compliance academyÃcirc;® for residents who want to find out more about property-related regulations, and help keep an eye on problems. Do you think this is a sound approach? If not, what is your alternative?If done properly, a code compliance "Ëœacademy' can be a positive program for Elgin neighborhoods. If we can educate all citizens about the content and value of neighborhood codes, then we can proactively avoid violations and work together to resolve any issues in a neighborhood. Other cities have similar programs, with free classes for citizens. In addition, easily accessible online information as well as visuals can be helpful in conjunction with our 311 program and staff. Additionally, Elgin has the opportunity to partner with the many existing neighborhood organizations to support the success of this kind of program.What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?1. As we are still in the midst of dysfunctional Illinois and with possible changes on a national level, our strained financial resources require tough decisions in the next years. Our limited resources need to be allocated where they can provide the most good for the community. The new council will need to look for cuts and well as other sources of revenues.2. We need to do more to assist our existing businesses and to attract new businesses to the downtown. For example, I support continuing to bring more residential development and mixed-use development to the downtown in order to help businesses attract more customers. The Tower Building and Artspace steps in the right direction, but we will need to do more before the downtown is fully revitalized. Small changes, like focusing on public spaces, can make downtown an interesting and walkable community attracting retiree and millennials alike. A concentrated investment in the "built environment" (as we have done with the Tower Building) can be more cost effective than looking only expansion (sprawl) out west. 3. I would like to see more rental and landlord oversight. The primary complaint I have gotten since I became a councilperson is about rental properties. I disagree with the recent move by Elgin to put landlord training online. We need landlords to show up in Elgin to do this training. And if a landlord has numerous code violations, he/she needs to have an increased accountability. Good neighborhoods need good landlords.Please name one current leader who most inspires you.All women leaders out there on a local, state, national level. They work a little harder and smarter to make their difference in the world.What is the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?My mother and father impressed upon us that if you are going to do a job, do it right. No matter what the job was!If life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?I wish I had been more confident in myself as a young college student and gone into the sciences.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?My favorite subject at school was reading and literature. I continue to be an avid reader of all sorts of newspapers, magazines and books.If you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?Spend your time, energy and money on experiences, not things.