Robert Spieker. 4 years: 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: Pingree GroveWebsite: Candidate did not respond.Office sought: Pingree Grove Village board, 4-year termAge: 39Family: Married with two childrenOccupation: Appliance Repair TechnicianEducation: High school/CollegeCivic involvement: Village of Pingree Grove Planning and Zoning Commissioner, Public representative for the Harrison property TIF district, Maintainer of a village bioswaleElected offices held: noneHave you ever been arrested for or convicted of a crime? If yes, please explain: noCandidate's Key Issues Key Issue 1 To reduce the burden on the taxpayers of the village by aggressively pursuing developers and businesses to increase revenues and balance the budgetKey Issue 2 Reduce or eliminate maintenance SSA's 4 and 9Key Issue 3 Work to improve infrastructure concerns within our village as well as continuing intergovernmental discussions with the city of Elgin with regards to hopefully reopening Highland Ave. and widening Reinking Rd.Questions Answers What makes you the best candidate for the job?For over three years, I have been a regular attendee of village meetings. I have a lot of knowledge regarding past and present village budgets, issues raised by village department leaders, and various village projects. As a planning commissioner, I've seen first hand the work involved in building a community. I am up for the continued challenges and opportunities.Given the delicate balance between the need for revenue and over-taxing local businesses, what is your opinion of your community's present level of local sales taxes? Is the tax just right, too low or too high? Explain.The local sales tax of this community is barely an issue at this point in time due to the fact that this village has only a handful of businesses that actually generate sales tax. At this time the tax rate is just right. As new development occurs, we should continue to review and adjust if appropriate.Talking with your friends and neighbors, what seems to be their biggest public safety concern? Explain the concern as you see it, and discuss how you think it should be addressed.Reinking Rd. between Route 20 and Wester Blvd. varies in width depending on whether the road is in Pingree Grove or Elgin, and in spots is barely wide enough for cars to pass each other safely. This needs to be resolved with an intergovernmental agreement with the City of Elgin.In these tight economic times, municipal budgets have to be prioritized. Where, if anywhere, could the current budget be trimmed, and conversely, are there areas the budget does not give enough money to?Since last year the village has cut almost every department to the bone. I don't see a lot of excess in the budget that can be removed without seriously affecting day to day operations. This is why we need to focus on bringing in commercial development to offset the deficit.What's one good idea you have to better the community that no one is talking about yet?Working with the police department and our charter school to come up with a solution to relieve traffic congestion during drop off and pick up times during weekdays