JoAnn Fletcher: Candidate Profile

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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:BioQA Bio City: BarringtonWebsite: Candidate did not respond.Office sought: Barrington Village Board Age: Candidate did not respond.Family: I have 2 adult children and 3 grandchildren all living in the northwest suburbs. My daughter completed a counseling internship at Barrington High School.Occupation: Retired School Administrator and Currently a small business ownerEducation: I received my PhD. from Loyola University in leadership and policy studies, my masters in curriculum and instruction from Concordia University, and my undergraduate degree in education from SIU. I worked in the public school sector for 35 years and retired from that profession to open a business supporting the Aging in Place population.Civic involvement: When my children were younger, I served on the PTA and worked on various committees with the Boy Scouts. I also did volunteer work with Holy Family Hospital. I have volunteered for the past 3 year at the Barrington Brew Fest, attended Barrington Chamber of Commerce meetings and functions and regularly attend the Barrington Village Committee of the Whole Meetings. I provide free seminars to the Aging in Place population on how to continue living in their home safely.Elected offices held: I am currently vice-president of Senior Professional Assistance Network;Questions Answers What makes you the best candidate for the job?My education and work experiences have provided me with the necessary skills, tools and opportunities to work collaboratively and creatively with others. I have been a school principal and have managed school budgets, hired personnel, and worked with varying personalities to accomplish tasks. I understand what it is to work as part of a team. As a new member to the Board i would bring a fresh perspective and a new lens to look at issues thru. I grew up in the northwest suburbs and always knew that Barrington was considered a vibrant community, and want to work to insure that it remains one.What is your opinion of your community's present level of local sales and property taxes? Is the tax just right, too low or too high? Explain.Property taxes are too high. Property values have been decreasing while taxes have been increasing, putting a strain on many households who struggle to afford their homes. The Village portion of the sales tax is 1% of the total taxes on sales, and Barrington needs to grow its sales tax base to generate more dollars for improvements. We need to draw new businesses into the Village, not move them from one street to another, as we are doing with the Hough-Main project. We need to support the current businesses in the Village, not compete with them, as we will do with the White House's room and building rental for meetings and parties.Rate the efficiency of your town's police and fire coverage. Are the departments well prepared for the next decade? What, if anything, should be changed? Do you have specific public safety concerns?With the recent reconfiguration of the Fire Department, there hasn't been sufficient time to access it's total competency in emergency situations. Many of the remaining firefighters are called to put in overtime to make up the deficit in the number of firefighters available, possibly making burnout a real issue in the long run. With regards to the police department, we need to continue move the force forward in the area of technology New monitoring systems are becoming more readily available and should be considered when looking at how to provide the best safety and protection for the Barrington residents.Where, if anywhere, could the current budget be trimmed, and conversely, are there areas the budget does not give enough money to?We need to stop spending money on legal fees for lawsuits against the railroads. Instead of filing lawsuits we need to work collaboratively with them to problem-solve ways to eliminate the tie-up of streets, especially during the traffic rush hours in the morning and evening hours We need to allocate more dollars to the repair of the sidewalks in the downtown area. Walkability is limited because the paver blocks that make up the sidewalks are broken and provide an uneven surface for people to walk or push a stroller on. We want people to frequent the downtown area shops, but don't make them safely accessible. These sidewalks needs to be repaired immediately.What's one good idea you have to better the community that no one is talking about yet?We need more people in the downtown areas to support our merchants. One way to accomplish this is to provide more housing in the downtown area. This will allow for the downsizing residents to remain in the Village as well as the young professionals who want to begin their adult lives in an area that has train access to Chicago an surrounding suburbs. Housing in the downtown area will provide the local businesses with consumers to support their shops. We need foot traffic in the downtown area and this is one way to provide it. We also need green spaces in the downtown area. There needs to be a park area with benches for children to play and adults to enjoy the outside space. We need bike racks to encourage bicyclers to ride to town to utilize the local merchants shops and restaurants.What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?Taking legal action against the railroads that run their trains through the downtown area was a total waste of tax payer's money. The railroad industry has been the backbone of this nation's growth, and to file legal action against them was futile. Instead of creating an adversarial relationship with the trains, we needed to work collaboratively with them to problem solve and create viable options for solutions to the trains blocking streets. I would like to open dialogue (not law suits) with the railroads in hopes of building that positive working relationship and finding workable solutions to the train problems throughout the Village.Please name one current leader who most inspires you.Bill GatesWhat's the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?Always be honest and true to yourselfIf life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?I would have earned my M.D. instead of my PhD.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?I loved Math because it always seemed logical to me.If you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?Mistakes are only that, if you don't learn from them and move forward.