Terri Gens: 2021 candidate for Mount Prospect Village Trustee

Four Candidates - Three 4-year terms

Bio

Hometown: Mount Prospect

Age: 60

Occupation: Development/Fundraising

Employer: Lutheran Social Services of Illinois

Civic involvement: Former Girl Scout Leader; Prospect Marching Band Volunteer; League of Women Voters; Deputy Voter Registrar

Q&A

Q. What is the primary reason you're running for office? What is the most important issue?

A. I envision that Mt. Prospect will be a welcoming and inclusive community, and a suburban leader providing excellent services, thriving development, and cost-effective sustainability. Residents should be able to prosper while they live here, raise a family, and achieve their American dream. As a second generation of immigrant grandparents, I heard firsthand how difficult it was for my grandparents to put food on the table, and work long hours while growing up next to polluting factories which impacted their health. Because of my parent's sacrifices, I was able to go to high school and get a college degree. Quality of life, a safe and caring community, access to education, and ability to follow your dream are all values we share. But for more than a year now, Mt. Prospect families and businesses have struggled because of the pandemic and economic downturn. I'm running to help our village overcome these challenges and become stronger. My career background uniquely equips me to bring a much-needed outside perspective, marketing experience, and collaboration skills to village governance. We need to ensure that the newer development projects create a unique environment to competitively position Mount Prospect. There are new ways to create revenue like allowing cannabis sales and not let other suburbs pass us by. Through collaboration and out of the box thinking, we can increase the value of our services to our residents, rather than cut them.

Q. How do you view your role in confronting the pandemic: provide leadership even if unpopular, give a voice to constituents - even ones with whom you disagree - or defer to state and federal authorities?

A. Confronting the pandemic requires building alliances with public partners (schools, fire dept., police dept., park districts, library, etc.) to educate our community. This involves listening to constituents to try and mitigate any effects that safety precautions have, while providing leadership to work through difficult measures. Crises like this can be an opportunity to build civic engagement if the Mayor and board provides effective leadership. Promoting wearing masks and social distancing, have been proven to lessen the chances that this deadly virus will spread, are at the forefront of such leadership.

Q. Did your town continue to adequately serve its constituents during the disruptions caused by the pandemic? If so, please cite an example of how it successfully adjusted to providing services. If not, please cite a specific example of what could have been done better.

A. Nobody has ever dealt with a situation like this in our lifetime. Information was changing rapidly as scientists and medical professionals learned more about the pandemic. Mt. Prospect continued to adequately serve its constituents in spite of many challenges. I think more can be done to assist restaurants and small businesses struggling. There can be coupon discounts given to residents encouraging them to do take out, where the village could reimburse the restaurant for the discounted portion. Another example is to create some restaurant areas closed off to traffic, develop outside seating, and encourage patronage during the summer. (105 words)

Q. In light of our experiences with COVID-19, what safeguards/guidelines should you put in place to address any future public health crises?

A. The village should have current contact information with Il Department of Health, the CDC, and other key stakeholders. We should use a successful proven model like the CDC's Public Health Emergency Preparedness (PHEP) program to build infrastructure. This program lays out how to mobilize staff during an emergency, design a command center system, identify point-of-dispensing sites, and have storage and distribution capacity for key medicines and supplies if needed. Part of being prepared is to also build resilience with all members of the community, which is diverse in Mt. Prospect. That should include communications in different languages, and ongoing relationships with all populations of the village.

Q. What cuts can local government make to reduce the burden of the pandemic on taxpayers?

A. Many of the services that our village provides are even more important during a crisis such as the pandemic. Our core services are police, fire, and public works, which maintain the safety and infrastructure of the village. What money is used for social services supports those who are being hit the hardest by the pandemic. While it is always possible to find ways to be more efficient, maintaining our quality of life requires identifying new revenue streams such as allowing adult cannabis sales, as well as aggressive, sustainable development efforts that increase the tax base.

Q. What do you see as the most important infrastructure project you must address? Why and how should it be paid for? Conversely, during these uncertain economic times, what infrastructure project can be put on the back burner?

A. Flooding issues are the most important. That has to be a priority. If elected, I would focus on developing practical solutions and partnering with other state and federal agencies to help fund needed improvements. A thorough look at the infrastructure projects would have to be done in order to determine any changes.

Q. Do you agree or disagree with the stance your municipality has taken on permitting recreational marijuana sales in the community? What would you change about that stance, if you could?

A. The board should have approved recreational marijuana sales in Mt. Prospect the first time it had the opportunity in 2019. The residents overwhelmingly voted in a nonbinding referendum to allow recreational marijuana sales. Some board members refused to follow their oath of representing the residents by voting against that. Mt. Prospect lagged behind, while neighboring suburbs approved sales, and began reaping the additional tax revenue. It took another referendum, and another vote, for the board to narrowly approve recreational sales in the community. I'd like to see the village board be composed of members who are engaged with their residents and not ignore them.

Q. What's one good idea you have to better the community that no one is talking about yet?

A. Developing a brand niche for Mount Prospect to be the leading suburb in sustainability efforts. This can be a program all residents can get behind on, and work toward together. Mount Prospect is part of the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus Greenest Region Compact. Mount Prospect has an award winning public works department, which has received the Tree City USA Award for 36 years. The Mayor has renewed efforts to participate in the Monarch Butterfly Mayors Pledge. The board has made sustainability one of the key goals in the comprehensive plan. We need to create a Sustainability Committee to incorporate the program comprehensively, and bring in leading experts and volunteers that are eager to help. Use the comprehension plan as a guide to map out goals and actions. Collaborate and engage with the schools. A lot can be done to help the community learn about and access native landscaping, solar energy, rain gardens, flood mitigation measures, and more. That is just the tip of the iceberg!