Christopher Abramson: 2025 candidate for Hainesville village board

Bio

Office Sought: Hainesville village board (Vote for 3)

City: Hainesville

Age: 48

Occupation: Information security architect

Previous offices held: None

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

One of the more pressing issues facing Hainesville in the coming years is financial sustainability, particularly in maintaining and improving public services while keeping taxes manageable. Attracting additional commercial development to the village would be one opportunity to help our financial base. Two core focuses I see for us as a village board:

Expand Economic Development — We need to do our best to help attract businesses and responsibly develop underutilized commercial properties, particularly along Belvidere Road. This would expand the tax base and provide revenue that supports village services without overburdening residents.

Smart Fiscal Planning — The board must continue implementing long-term financial strategies to reduce reliance on borrowing and ensure sustainable budgeting. This includes exploring grant opportunities, cost-sharing with neighboring municipalities, and prioritizing projects that offer long-term value.

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?

I feel our village has done a great job planning for long term financial health. But like many entities one event can derail that completely. Proactive infrastructure and public services investment must be a core function of the village. Maintaining roads, utilities, and emergency services to prevent costly, reactive spending in the future. A preventative maintenance approach will save Hainesville taxpayers money in the long run.

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?

Per Hainesville’s comprehensive plan adopted in 2024, our village would like to see many commercial and residential improvements over time. I see this as an important factor in allowing our village to provide that small neighborhood design.

Features that allow all residents to utilize walking and biking paths allowing them to visit our downtown area are key to allowing our business landscape to grow and reduce additional congestion in the village. As we look to make these types of investments, I believe it is essential to engage residents and local businesses in financial planning.

Looking at commercial tax base increases and grants as an opportunity for project income. But we need to be transparent, see public input through forums, and collaboration with both residents and businesses to ensure that budget priorities align with community needs. Putting some of these improvement projects on hold may be our only option, but I believe we need to first look at what we can do.

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.

Throughout my career as an information security professional in leadership roles, I have worked in cross-functional teams to develop policies that balance risk management, operational efficiency, and regulatory compliance. This experience translates directly into local government, where trustees must work together to set policies that balance community needs, financial responsibility, and long-term planning.

Additionally, my background in scouting leadership has given me hands-on experience in collaborative decision-making, program planning, and community engagement, all of which are crucial in local governance. I believe a good approach to collaborative working is:

• Listen First

• Fact-Based Decision Making

• Finding Common Ground

• Transparency and Communication

• Pragmatic, Results-Driven Approach

Taking the above approach will allow our team to make well-informed and practical decisions, avoiding unnecessary conflicts or inefficiencies. This will allow us to build trust in the community through transparency and engagement.

What makes you the best candidate for the job?

The political landscape of our country has changed drastically over the last three months. Opportunities we may have had before, will likely need to be reevaluated and thought will need to be put into how we may have to approach them. I view myself as a candidate who can help guide our community through this changing landscape and seek to guide us through the uncertainty that the next several years may present.

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

I have talked with families in our village, and I would really like to see more community engagement in Hainesville through village events such as our “Party in the Park” and Food Truck Thursdays. Hainesville has established beautiful community open space, and I see great opportunity to leverage those spaces for community activities. I see this as a great way for us to create a sense of community for the families of Hainesville.