Defending Winfield road referendum

I am writing in response to a letter submitted to the Daily Herald by Tony Reyes on Sept. 29. Sadly, Mr. Reyes has decided to use Winfield's road referendum as a tool for his political ambitions. In the process, he is knowingly misleading residents.

First of all, Mr. Reyes claims the severity of the road conditions were not discussed before the 2009 election. Tony ignores the fact that the road study was completed in 2008 and that he himself debated road funding options such as whether to reinstate vehicle stickers during his campaign for village president. Mr. Reyes then rants that the village is printing “propaganda messages" about the road referendum.

No, Tony, the village needs to provide the facts to its residents even more so when you are telling people that the average resident will have to pay $1,000 more in property taxes if they vote for the referendum. Mr. Reyes knows this is not true. The fact is that a resident with a home assessed at a market value of $300,000 would pay an additional $253 on an annual basis if both referendum questions are approved. Tony Reyes needs to start telling the truth. I could go on disputing all the lies in his letter, but I will not waste readers' time.

Please take a moment to read the village's special edition of the Winfield Word on our website www.villageofwinfield.com. Personally, I believe that the residents of Winfield take pride in their town. Better roads increase home values, help attract new businesses and are safer to drive on. I am going to vote yes because working together, with all of us paying our fair share, we can change Winfield for the better. I hope you join me in voting yes on the road referendum Nov. 2.

Deborah Birutis

Winfield village president