Don Wilson: 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: GurneeWebsite: Candidate did not respond.Twitter: Candidate did not respond.Facebook: Gurnee Trustee Don WilsonOffice sought: Gurnee Village Board Age: 45Family: Wife Debbie (Warren Class of 87) Daughter Samantha (Warren Class of 14) Daughter Ashley (Warren Class of 19)Occupation: Senior Sales Account ExecutiveEducation: Radio Broadcast Engineer classes, Warren Class of 90Civic involvement: Former Rotarian, Former Exchange, Donations of entertainment with DJ business to several local charities.Elected offices held: TrusteeQuestions Answers Urban Land Institute makes several long- and short-term suggestions on how to improve the East Grand Avenue business corridor in a report issued in 2016. What ideas do you see as realistic and can be done as soon as possible to help boost the area?We should adopt aa similar plan as Zion has to inspect all rental properties. Gurnee should also be more aggressive when it comes to properties such as the Hotel and former Handy Andy. Both draw in people that are bad for our neighborhood.Gurnee is one of the few Illinois municipalities without a property tax. Do you have any concerns this will need to change at some point or is this a commitment the village must continue? Please explain.I am opposed to a property tax. We must be tight on the budget and protect our retail assets. That means making our town welcoming. The scam artist panhandlers who are not homeless have a negative effect on the Gurnee Experience. We also need to be very careful in who builds on the open 2% of land left to build on in Gurnee. It needs to be properties that create sales tax dollars.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?Gurnee stays very up to date. It has to with Gurnee Mills, Six Flags and our busy intersections.Where, if anywhere, could the current budget be trimmed, and conversely, are there areas the budget does not give enough money to?Most of these decisions happen in Executive Session. I have asked questions and held my ground where I felt we could. Also ULI was a waste of money offering ideas that no resident in East Gurnee wanted.What is one good idea you have to better the community that no one is talking about yet?We could make most of the panhandlers disappear tomorrow and stay within the ACLU's arguments, Constitutionality while being compassionate to these individuals who all have been offered help but have declined.What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?I am the last chance for a balanced board for Gurnee. Other than one other board member the rest of the board have gone with the mayor's agenda 100% of the time.Please name one current leader who most inspires you.Congressman Trey GowdyWhat is the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?You are responsible for you.If life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?More time with my children growing up.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?History. To find the answers for challenges in the future often you can find the answers in our past.If you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?Set goals today. Short and long term.