Greg Marston: Candidate Profile

Back to Pingree Grove Village President

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: Pingree GroveWebsite: https://www.facebook.com/greg.marston.7Office sought: Pingree Grove Village President Age: 44Family: Married for seventeen years and proud parent of two children Samantha (13) and Jake (10)Occupation: Village PresidentEducation: MBA Aurora University BS Northern Illinois UniversityCivic involvement: Golden Corridor Family YMCA Board of DirectorElected offices held: Village President 2011-Present Village Trustee 2007-2011Questions Answers What makes you the best candidate for the job?When I began this journey in 2011, my vision was to strengthen Pingree Grove by restoring fiscal responsibility. Prior to becoming Village President, I served as a Village Trustee and used that experience to develop a plan for ensuring the village's future. With the help of the Board, Pingree Grove has successfully followed three guiding principles: Balanced Budget Transparency Prudent Growth Going forward, we will build on that success to create more opportunities for all residents of Pingree Grove with a focus on: Prudent commercial development that creates jobs and convenience for residents. Working to efficiently deliver village services. Supporting our schools. Our shared vision for the community is working, I'm excited about the progress, and we're looking forward to future growth.How would you describe the condition of your community's budget, and what are the most important specific actions the town should take to assure providing the level of services that people want?The village of Pingree Grove is in the best financial condition it's ever been. Since 2011, the budget has been balanced every single year ending years of over spending. The most important action is to create an environment which fosters sound economic development along route 47. That starts with offering reasonable economic development incentives. My proposal is for the Village to set aside $500,000 for this purpose. Priority should go to attracting long-term businesses that generate a significant return on our investment. This means generating substantial employment and sales tax opportunities while meeting the needs of local residents. I am grateful that the Village Board moved forward to hire an economic development consultant who will be a critical part of that process. Ultimately, economic development reduces the tax burden on residents and increases the level of services the village can provide.Where, if anywhere, could the current budget be trimmed, and conversely, are there areas the budget does not give enough money to?I would like to see future municipal (non-public safety and fire) employees contribute toward a defined retirement account instead of using the current broken pension system. Those savings could be used to reduce taxes and or improve services. We need to invest more in training and the equipment used by our excellent public works department. If we could bring minor street repairs like crack sealing, curb, and sidewalk replacement in-house it would save a lot of money in the long run. I'd also like to see Pingree Grove invest in community events. Even a small investment in that area would yield a significant quality of life return and create a greater sense of community.Describe your leadership style and explain how you think that will be effective in producing effective actions and decisions with your village board or city council.My leadership style emphasizes collaborative decision making, transparency, and fiscal responsibility. This approach has proven especially effective in the team effort required to fill village leadership positions. Establishing annual town hall meetings and encouraging social media outreach has increased transparency in village operations. Lastly, balanced budgets mean avoiding a constant crisis mode which makes it very difficult to effectively govern.What's one good idea you have to better the community that no one is talking about yet?I would like the village to foster a Pingree Grove small business association. There are a number of small and home-based businesses that would truly benefit from that organization. Small businesses account for 64 percent of new jobs created so we should do everything in our power to help them succeed.What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?My main concern is prudently sustaining the residential growth that drives our retail and commercial development. Smart residential development is the key to adequately funding the long-term needs of our community.Please name one current leader who most inspires you.Pope Francis, for two reasons. His focus on serving the poor and his recent quote of "who am I to judge?"What's the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?The only thing worse than losing is not tryingIf life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?Not sure if I would use the do-overâ#128;brvbar;my experiences, good and bad, made me who I am today.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?During my master degree studies I had the pleasure of taking a class called "Leading Teams". It was thought provoking and very insightfulIf you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?Life can knock you down but the true test of a person is how quickly they pick themselves up and move forward.