Brent C. Bluthardt: 2025 candidate for Antioch village board

Bio

Office Sought: Antioch village board (Vote for 3)

City: Antioch

Age: 57

Occupation: Logistics and trade compliance manager

Previous offices held: Currently serving first term as village trustee; past member Antioch District 34 school board

What is the most serious issue your community will face in the coming years and how should the village board respond to it?

I believe the primary issue that we are facing right now is the future of our parks and recreation system. The past four years we have steadily increased funding for capital improvements to our parks systems.

We built the new Sequoit Creek Park and have recently received a $600k matching grant to allow us to rehabilitate Centennial Park. This is just the start, we need to continue to find funding, whether through state or federal grants, corporate partnerships or by cooperating with other government entities to not only provide top quality facilities, but to also offer the best programming we can.

I am 100% behind continuing all our recreation programs here in Antioch, especially Camp Crayon and our summer camps. We all need to work together to find solutions to any obstacles and we must think outside of the box. We need to listen to our residents and their concerns and keep progressing so that at the end we are all proud of the parks and recreation opportunities in our community.

How would you describe the state of your community's finances? What should be the top priorities for spending during the next few years? Are there areas of spending that need to be curtailed?

Financially the village of Antioch is in good shape. We are tackling well overlooked and due infrastructure projects and planning for long-term capital projects, all without any impact to the taxpayer. We need to continue to find ways to complete all these overdue projects. I believe it’s the government’s responsibility to have accountability in spending to ensure our tax dollars are used wisely and effectively. I will continue to work to help secure state and federal grants for Centennial Park and other capital improvement projects, so taxpayers aren’t impacted.

I will continue to hold the line on property taxes and keep our tax levy from increasing so residents can keep more of their hard-earned money.

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

The most important long term infrastructure project that will need to be address is the desire for bringing Lake Michigan water to our community. The costs are huge, but if we can start planning now, hopefully we would be able to obtain federal and state grants to help offset this cost. This issue will never go away and will need to receive the buy in from the residents and everyone working together to make it happen.

Before I was elected trustee, Antioch had stagnated. Infrastructure, capital improvements, and expansion for economic development had gone nowhere. For decades, ideas were talked about, but nothing ever happened. Under my leadership, progress is being made, and you can see it. Vacant lots were turned into parks.

Design, land, and funding have been secured to replace our aging public works facility and village hall. For the first time, Antioch is set up for success in the future.

Describe your experience working in a group setting to determine policy. What is your style in such a setting to reach an agreement and manage local government? Explain how you think that will be effective in producing effective actions and decisions with your village board.

Listening to our residents is necessary. Their input is helpful when the board faces any policy decisions. We are your representatives. I have appreciated all the feed back and ideas given during various town-hall type events the village has hosted. These events and forums allow us to hear directly from the residents. As your trustee, I can then bring those ideas directly to the board on your behalf.

A notable example of this is when I was contacted by a few of the members of The Woods of Antioch HOA regarding the condition of their streets. I immediately went and toured the streets with the residents and in turn helped streamline the process and solution with the village administrative team. Other board members and I worked hard to find an immediate solution and I am proud to say that the reconstruction of those streets has already begun, and we hope to have them 100% complete by the end of 2025.

What makes you the best candidate for the job?

I am the best candidate for the job because I bring common sense to my decision making. I am willing to help build consensus and make decisions based on what’s best for all of Antioch.

In addition, my overall career, education and elected office experience allows me to bring in a wealth of knowledge to the equation. My goals are to make Antioch the premier place to live, raise your children and run a business. I have a proven record of accomplishments that has helped Antioch progress forward.

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

I am a proud son of a career police officer. The Antioch Police Department has been doing a tremendous job, and I believe that the residents would like a way to say thank you. I have discussed the idea prior, but if given the honor of being reelected I plan to pursue the development of a memorial honoring the police officers of our community.

This memorial would help beautify the downtown district all while allowing us to say thank you to the men and women that have and currently serve and protect us. I would like to see this done without the use of village funds. It would be a wonderful way of thanking them for their service to us all.