Derek R. Bromstead: 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: WheatonWebsite: http://www.Bromstead4Council.comOffice sought: Wheaton City councilAge: 42Family: Married to Victoria Bromstead, 4 children: Jonathan, Joshua, Julianne and Jordan, and one grandchild.Occupation: Entrepreneur-Genghis Grill, The Mongolian Stir Fry in Downtown Wheaton, IT consulting.Education: Bachelor of Science in Business, emphasis in Marketing. Northern Illinois University, 1992.Civic involvement: Economic Retructuring Committee, Downtown Wheaton Association, Wheaton Chamber of Commerce, volunteer for Wheaton Park District and District 200 schools for various groups including Wiesbrook PTA, Hubble PTA and Wheaton-Warrenville South Dance Team.Elected offices held: Downtown Wheaton Association PresidentHave you ever been arrested for or convicted of a crime? If yes, please explain: Candidate did not respond.Candidate's Key Issues Key Issue 1 Budget-doing more with lessKey Issue 2 Economic Development throughout the CityKey Issue 3 Continuing to add public safety, event and entertainment, green space, etc. services in a fiscally conservative manner for Wheaton to continue to be a great place to live.Questions Answers Should the city take an active role in the restoration of the Wheaton Grand Theater? Please explain why or why not.Yes, I think it should. In my mind, there is nothing that could feasibly go there, whether it is a live entertainment theater, movie theater, toy store, restaurant, circus, or anything else that may have been considered, without a private/public partnership. It is just too expensive these days to expect a private entity to come in and foot the bill for everything, it is highly unlikely. I guess some of the other candidates would rather see a pile of dirt than take the risk, just like what happened with the Lombard theater, but I am of the opinion that the WGT is a potentially vital method of energizing our downtown quickly, and if done right, at a relatively low risk and relatively little cost to the taxpayers. I also think that if we can spend roughly $100,000/year for our wonderful municipal band which brings joy and a solid amount of foot traffic in the hundreds every Thursday night to downtown, we should be able to spend $150,000 to potentially bring in thousands of people every day to the downtown. Remember, there is also a risk in doing nothing, and my philosophy has always been to take a calculated risk if there is a greater benefit to be had. I believe in this case the potential rewards and benefits to the community are definitely worth the risk, if managed carefully.Should the city restore annual funding Wheaton's Center for History? Please explain why or why not.I think we should look at all the options, including how the Center can generate additional revenue on its own to become more self-sufficient. Exploring partnerships and potential income sources would be good for the Center's survivability in the long run.How would you like to see the former Hubble Middle School property in downtown Wheaton redeveloped?As a ""Gateway to Downtown"". Ideally, this means that we are providing structures and services that will attract the people of this town to come downtown to enjoy the many wonderful events, shops and people the downtown provides. Hopefully, this will also attract people from out of town to also enjoy the same.How should the city deal with issues related to flooding?I think the City is on the right path now. However, there may be an opportunity to be more strategic about doing so. I will need to look closer at the plan to see where the greatest effort should be made. As a downtown business owner, we have had to close a number of times in the last 3 years, but the situation has gotten significantly better due to the efforts that have been in place, and we need to continue and/or accelerate that.What effort should the city make to encourage the sale and redevelopment of the former Jewel site in downtown Wheaton?I think the City should levy the taxes of the Jewel property based on what the asking price of the building is. If they truly want $3.25 million for that, then let's get some benefit from it. Hopefully, this will incent SuperValu to re-evaluate their asking price and come back down to earth on this, so that a reasonable and fair offer can be reached, and we can start looking at reall opportunities there.