North Aurora candidates discuss bettering business

In the year-and-a-half Christopher Sparks has lived in North Aurora, he has noticed the empty buildings that once housed businesses, some in downtown and some on the west side.

“Why isn't an entrepreneur going into those?” he wonders.

Ronald Lau thinks it is because the town is not business friendly, especially after it rejected a plan to build a Walmart on Orchard Road in 2007. Several trustees at the time said they did not like the amount of incentive money Walmart was requesting. Nearby residents also protested.

“That gave us a big black mark” with the business community, said the 40-year-old Lau.

Lau and Sparks are among the six candidates seeking three four-year terms on the village board in the April 5 election. Five of them recently discussed the village's business environment at a Daily Herald endorsement conference.

Trustee Mark Guethle, 52, who leads the board's development committee, contends North Aurora is doing better lately than its neighbors to the south and west in attracting stores and restaurants, noting the recent additions of a sushi bar and a Sherwin-Williams paint store.

The village already offers tax incentives, including in two districts along Route 31, he said, and the village president and staff attend national shopping center conferences trying to get businesses to come to town.

“We've done everything we could possibly do,” Guethle said.

Downtown North Aurora, along Route 31 from Interstate 88 to State Street, is a mishmash of stores, offices, bars and eateries. Burying ComEd's electrical transmission lines would improve its looks, but the cost is expensive, Guethle said.

Laura Curtis, 38, wonders if it should be considered North Aurora's “downtown” anymore. What it needs, she said, is an attractive large anchor business. But “I do not think taxpayer money should be used for beautification,” she said.

Ryan Lambert, 35, a lifelong resident, said that entryway to the village does not reflect the beauty of the rest of town. He favors offering tax incentives to attract businesses, but believes existing businesses should be helped also.

“Let's worry about the struggling businesses too,” he said.

Lau said the state's fiscal situation, including the recent increase in personal and business income taxes, won't allow any money to be spent on beautification.

“Independent business owners are more qualified to make improvements,” based on expected return on their investment, he said. If the village were more business friendly with lower tax rates, new businesses would come in, forcing existing businesses to improve in order to compete, he said.

Curtis noted a vicious cycle: The lack of development and the presence of abandoned developments “does not reflect well on the village” when potential business owners visit the town.

She suggests the village consult commercial real estate brokers and landowners, asking them what their incentives are to get properties moving, she said.

Sparks believes there are people who want to open businesses, and suggests the village needs to find out what those people specifically need to succeed, such as a change in zoning or maybe a grant to improve a facade.

Trustee Robert Strusz, 49, did not attend the endorsement conference, but in a questionnaire he called for balancing commercial and residential growth.

He said the village should continue offering incentives for improvement through its tax-increment financing districts, including building sidewalks along Route 31 to make it pedestrian-friendly and reviving a business advisory committee for that area.