Gerald Wolin: 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: Oak BrookWebsite: Candidate did not respond.Office sought: Oak Brook Village boardAge: 71Family: Married, three children, five grandchildrenOccupation: Retired. Previously worked for IBM in sales and sales management (27 years), Waste Management in marketing management (12 years)and Charter Consulting in business consulting (3 years).Education: B.S. in General Engineering, University of IllinoisM.B.A., Harvard UniversityCivic involvement: My civic involvement has included serving on the Oak Brook Plan Commission, the DuPage Mayors and Managers Intergovernmental Committee, the DuPage County Stormwater Committee, the Oak Brook Caucus, reporter for the Oak Brook Civic Association, the Elmhurst Caucus, and as Chairman of the Salt Creek Citizens for Flood Control.Elected offices held: Trustee, Oak Brook Village Board 2007 to currentAlderman, Elmhurst City Council, 1991 to 1998Have you ever been arrested for or convicted of a crime? If yes, please explain: NoCandidate's Key Issues Key Issue 1 Maintaining cost controls and a fiscally sound budget in a continuing difficult economic environment remains the top priority for virtually all municipal officials. All Village departments have been or will be evaluated for opportunities to reduce cost while maintaining high service levels. Staff reductions and staff reorganizations have taken place, early retirement programs have been initiated, expenses have been eliminated and a compensation study has recently been initiated. Legal expenses remain high and steps must be taken to reduce them. Cost control must be an on-going effort.Key Issue 2 Attracting new sales tax revenue sources has been and must continue to be a high priority. Sales tax revenue is the major contributor to our Village funding, and it has been relatively flat for over 10 years. We must expand our efforts to work with the Chamber of Commerce and local real estate firms to attract the right businesses to Oak Brook. Incentives should be provided when necessary.Key Issue 3 Having a Village board where the Trustees work together in a positive and professional manner is fundamental to success. Prior boards were characterized by in-fighting that was detrimental to our community. I have a proven record of 4 years on the Oak Brook Village Board and 8 years on the Elmhurst City Council of demonstrating my ability to provide positive leadership and productive teamwork.Questions Answers What impact do you think staff and budget cutbacks have had on village services? Are there any cuts you would restore? If more cutbacks need to be made, what would your priorities be?I do not believe that staff and budget cutbacks have resulted in any significant reduction in Village services. To maintain service levels we reorganized departments and learned to operate more efficiently.Should Oak Brook consider levying a property tax if sales tax revenues continue to be sluggish?No. For 2011 we have approved a balanced budget without the need for raising taxes. Sales tax revenue has been rising, and there is no indication that a property tax will be necessary.Oak Brook's firefighters have been without a contract for more than two years. Before that, the police worked without a contract for an extended time. How would you approach negotiations with public employee unions?I was actively involved in the successful negotiations with the Police Department that led to our current contract which is fair to both the police and to our residents. I am currently actively involved in negotiations with our Fire Department. Significant progress has been made, and I am optimistic that in the near future we will reach agreement on a contract that will be fair to our firefighters and our residents. A large part of the delay in firefighter negotiations is attributable to a change in unions which necessitated a major and complex contract revision.What is your opinion on privatization of city services to save money (for example, hiring more contract firefighters and dispatchers)?I am against ""privatization"" which is transferring ownership of a city service such as Chicago's sale of the parking meter business. However, I am in favor of outsourcing functions where appropriate. In outsourcing, Oak Brook retains ownership but utilizes outside services for the performance of the work. Most municipalities currently outsource at least some functions, and all municipalities must continually evaluate further outsourcing where expenses can be reduced while maintaining or improving service levels. For example, many municipalities in DuPage County currently use one of the centralized dispatch centers such as Du-Comm for 911 services. This type of outsourcing can provide higher service levels at the same or lower cost.What should the village do about rising pension costs?The regulations for municipal pensions are dictated by the State legislature. Oak Brook and most other Illinois municipalities successfully lobbied for the recent changes that will reduce pension costs for new employees. Most municipalities are actively lobbying the State legislature to make additional pension changes which are definitely needed for both new and current employees to better align public pensions with the changes taking place in private sector pensions.