Schaumburg voters should explore their options

Thoroughly discouraging is how I would describe my recent visit to “Coffee with the Council,” the monthly event that Schaumburg Village officials host to, ostensibly, gather feedback from residents.

As a 23-year resident of Schaumburg, I welcomed the opportunity to discuss vital civic issues with our elected leaders in this open forum. Deep concerns that I and many others have about rising local taxes, including the recently imposed village property tax, motivated me to attend “Coffee with the Council.”

However, when I was derided by a trustee for suggesting that the village should ease the tax burden by spending more responsibly, it became clear that this “listening session” is really more of a public relations farce. Village expenditures have increased 97 percent in five years, and cutting spending is jeered?

That’s when I began taking local politics seriously and discovered that we have an alternative to business as usual in Schaumburg.

Brian Costin is challenging Al Larson in the April 5 election. Brian is advocating lower taxes, disciplined spending and ethics reform. These should not be revolutionary ideas, rather standard operating procedure for all public servants.

Personally, I’ve found Brian Costin to be honest, intelligent and a straight shooter. Despite my physical disability, I’ve been letting people know about his efforts to empower citizens and make our local government more responsive: his Taxpayer Protection Act, which would require referendums on all tax hikes; his successful efforts to improve village website posting; his pushing for village meetings to be broadcast on Schaumburg’s local access channel.

Schaumburg’s village leaders have clearly gotten too comfortable in their ivory towers. I urge Schaumburg residents to explore their leadership options. It is time for a change on April 5.