Geneva Ward 3 candidates differ on dining tax, hiring assistant administrator
Two women are seeking to represent the 3rd Ward on Geneva's City Council, as incumbent Mary Seno faces Becky Hruby.
With two years council experience, Seno said she feels ready to "really jump in to the deep end" of running the city. She is particularly interested in advancing the council's plan to develop an industrial park on the southeast side, east of Kirk Road and north of Fabyan Parkway.
Hruby once led an effort to get the city to repair a major alley through her neighborhood. The project had been repeatedly postponed, even though residents had said the pavement was dangerous.
Issues and interests
• Seno does not believe the city needs an assistant administrator. Not hiring a replacement, when the last one was promoted to city administrator almost a year ago, "was a great way to save from the budget and also not have to fire anybody."
Hruby disagrees. "I think it is just a matter of time before things (tasks) do fall between the cracks," she said and noted the city had justified the position for more than a decade.
If the city doesn't fill the position, Hruby said, the council should do a formal study of the organization and figure out how to disperse the responsibilities among other employees.
• The two also disagree about whether the city should charge a 2 percent places-for-eating tax on diners' bills.
Seno voted against it, and wants it repealed. She would prefer to have voters institute a half-percent citywide sales tax. The dining tax, she said, was unfairly implemented because city officials did not first consult with restaurant owners. "We need the transparency," she said.
"I do agree the initial communications about the tax were rushed," Hruby said. But, "If I go out to dinner and my bill is $100 ... at that point, I'm not even going to notice the extra $2."
• Hruby said she would have voted against creating the Riverfront tax-increment financing district No. 3. "I don't think the area is blighted by definition," she said.
Seno voted "yes," and is OK with the city borrowing some money to provide incentives, such as new sewer pipes. "Too many times our public works people are out there fixing pipes that are 100 years old," she said.