Cindy Hebda: Candidate Profile

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:BioKey IssuesQA Bio City: Vernon HillsWebsite: Candidate did not respond.Office sought: Vernon Hills Village boardAge: 54Family: Married, 1 daughterOccupation: Early Childhood Educator, Vernon Hills Park DistrictEducation: BS, Communications, Purdue University, 1978Civic involvement: Lake County YMCA Corporate Board memberDistrict 128 Foundation memberElected offices held: Trustee - Village of Vernon Hills, 1993-presentHave you ever been arrested for or convicted of a crime? If yes, please explain: NoCandidate's Key Issues Key Issue 1 My number one campaign issue is to make sure that the Village stays financially strong during these very difficult economic times and avoids getting into a deficit spending situation. This will enable us to retain our high bond rating and allow us to maintain our infrastructure and services into the future. We are not going to spend more than we can afford.Key Issue 2 My number two campaign issue is to make sure we maintain a strong relationship with our business community and to continue to have an environment where business can not only survive but thrive. We want Vernon Hills to continue to be a place where business can succeed. With a large portion of our revenue coming from retail sales tax this is a necessity in order for the Village to continue to provide great services and amenities to our residents.Key Issue 3 My number three campaign issue is to ensure that the Village continues to be the home of outstanding schools and amenities, safe neighborhoods, community spirit and no Village property tax. These are the items I most often hear about from our residents. To this end I will work to build strong relationships with other taxing bodies like the school districts, county board, park district, library board, fire protection district. And with our area state legislators who represent us down in Springfield.Questions Answers Should the village continue to offer incentives to fill building vacancies?Absolutely, as long as a need has been demonstrated by a particular business. I have supported incentives in the past and will continue to support them in the future. It is critical for the fiscal health of the Village to keep the businesses we have as well as encourage new business to come into the Village. If a need-based incentive is required to do this I will support it, there will be benefit to the Village in the long run. And smaller tax revenue from a business for a few years is certainly better than no tax revenue at all, now or in the future.If state funding drops, how do you propose making up the difference? Would you consider a village property tax? Explain your answer.State funding has already decreased and we have made up the difference for this year by reducing our budget by 15% from previous years, making some tough trade-offs such as eliminating the resident subsidy for recycling (saving almost $400,000 a year) while maintaining funding for our roads and infrastructure. We offered early retirement to several Village employees thus reducing the number of full time employees and associate costs; we have asked employees to share job responsibilities so we can avoid hiring additional or replacement staff; we have eliminated our annual employee recognition dinner among many other reductions. On the revenue side we now have four cell towers on Village property which is a consistent source of new revenue, we are aggressively promoting the benefits of the Village as a good place for business as evidenced by new store opening such as Dick#146;s Sporting Goods, and soon to open Mariano#146;s Fresh Foods, we benefit from the associated sales tax revenue.I will not consider or support a Village property tax. Residents pay enough taxes (and now more to the state!) without having to worry about a new property tax from the Village. That is why it is so important to continue to manage our budget and work to increase business in our community. What can the village do to convince the owners of Westfield mall to make improvements?The Village staff and Board have been working with Westfield management since their initial proposal to upgrade and expand the mall and we are encouraged by some of the new tenants that have recently been added. The current economic environment makes it difficult for any business to invest in renovation and expansion. However I believe the Village should be ready to offer appropriate incentives to the mall if that is what they need to pursue renovation. And by keeping our fiscal house in order and spending appropriately we will keep our community a desirable shopping destination. We offer Westfield a vibrant and successful community in which renovation and expansion of the mall would make good business sense.What do you regard as the most pressing transportation need in the village?The most pressing transportation issue is the widening of Rt45, a major east-west traffic artery thru the Village, along with the extension of Rt 53, both important in easing congestion. Also, increasing the number of Metra service times thru our community would help reduce the number of cars traveling through the Village and surrounding communities.What suggestions do you have for increasing revenue and/or decreasing expenses?As mentioned earlier, the new budget for 2011 has been reduced from previous years by reducing or eliminating many expenditures, we have eliminated the annual employee recognition dinner, we offered early retirement to several Village employees thus reducing the number of full time employees and associate costs, we have asked employees to share job responsibilities so we can avoid hiring additional or replacement staff. On the revenue side we now have four cell towers on Village property which is a consistent source of new revenue; we are aggressively promoting the benefits of the Village as a good place for business as evidenced by new store opening as such as Dick#146;s Sporting Goods, and soon to open Mariano#146;s Fresh Foods. And we need to develop the business corridor on Milwaukee Ave.