William ("Bill") Grabarek: 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: ElburnWebsite: noneOffice sought: Elburn Village Board Age: 75Family: Ivanka (wife - 74); Scott (son - 47); Heidi (daughter - 45); Svea (daughter - 40); Paul (son - 39); Grant (stepson - 43); 9 grandchildren (ages 2 to 22); one great-grandson (age 2)Occupation: LawyerEducation: B.A. - Roosevelt University (1968) J.D. - John Marshall Law School (1975)Civic involvement: Present Involvement: - Friends of the Town Country Public Library Director/Treasurer Founding Member - Fox Valley Wildlife Center Director Past Involvement: Lazarus House Director/Secretary Founding Member (1998 to 2013) 2006 Recipient of the Studs Terkel Humanities Service AwardElected offices held: Village of Elburn Planning Commissioner 1993 - 2003; Planning Chairperson 1995 - 2003; Village Trustee 2003 - 2015Questions Answers What makes you the best candidate for the job?I will let our voters determine who they believe are the best candidates, but I know that experience and critical thinking skills, along with a healthy dose of common sense, inter-personal skills, a desire to serve others and a love of my community, matter. I trust that a review of my record supports this.What is your opinion of your community's present level of local sales and property taxes? Is the tax just right, too low or too high? Explain.As Elburn is not a home rule municipality and Kane County is a PTAX county, we have very limited authority to increase sales tax rates or property tax revenues. While we have limited statutory authority to slightly raise our current sales tax rate, I would not presently consider this. I do not want to further burden our folks who do shop Elburn first and who instead may shop elsewhere. When you review the portion of our total real estate tax bill that is allocated to the Village to fund its operations, it is only 4.50 percent of your total bill. With our population of approximately 5,700 residents, Elburn receives the equivalent of about 40 cents per day per resident in property taxes, This revenue must be used to provide the basic municipal services, including police, administration, and for pubic works to snowplow our streets and to maintain and mow our parks and parkways. As Kane County is a PTAX county, we must carefully budget to insure our municipal "needs" are responsibly met before any "wants" are ever considered. In all cases, the Village Board must always consider whether it may be imposing any undue burden on our residents who are on fixed incomes or otherwise may be financially struggling.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?As the Elburn and Countryside Fire Protection District is a separate taxing body, we, as a Village, have limited influence on its operation beyond mutual cooperation. As a governmental entity, however and as a village resident, I support its mission, its careful budgeting and the overall professionalism of its members. Regarding our Police Department, and while praising their professionalism in keeping Elburn a very safe place to live, I am much concerned over the looming police pension crisis. Absent passage of a referendum authorizing a real estate tax increase to more fully fund our present and projected police pension obligations, the actuarial shortfall must be taken from our general fund which we otherwise need to support our day to day Village operations. Suspecting that such a referendum would not be successful, the Village Board must soon look for creative ways to address this financial crisis. PUBLIC SAFETY CONCERN - With the large number of trains going through Elburn every day, I am concerned with our ability to respond to a major derailment which could involve hazardous or highly flammable materials. The railroad, the FRA and ICC, as well as the Village Board and Fire Protection District, all acknowledge these hazards and should work together to insure any response would be rapid and effective in minimizing losses to person or property. This would likely include assimilating 21st century technologies in resident notification and response efficiency.Where, if anywhere, could the current budget be trimmed, and conversely, are there areas the budget does not give enough money to?Until we can successfully address the police pension issue, we will need to carefully manage our available monies so we can continue to provide the basic village services to our residents. I would like to continue to support our faÃsect;ade grant program and budget for some other small public space improvements.What's one good idea you have to better the community that no one is talking about yet?I believe it is presently unlikely we could induce some large corporation to relocate its corporate headquarter or a large manufacturing facility to Elburn. Consequently, I would like to institute as many small inexpensive improvements to our public spaces. It can be as simple as a picnic bench, an information kiosk downtown, a bike rack here and there, a walking tour brochure of the old part of Elburn, historical plaques on significantly historic buildings, perhaps a farmer's market or juried art show. All of these efforts would be to enhance our sense of community and could involve many of our organizations, from Boy Scouts, the Library, its Friends group, the Lions, the Community Center, our Townships.What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?To make Elburn more attractive, particularly for late "Generation X" members and early members of the "Millennial" generation, it would advantageous to work toward making Elburn a Giga Village through the laying of fiber optic lines. Shodeen's representative, Dave Patzelt, has met with our Village Administrator and ATT to explore the possibility of such a project.Please name one current leader who most inspires you.Though I am a lifelong Lutheran, I very much admire Pope Francis' candor and his message of love and inclusion.What's the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?Play nice, share and don't be cruel to other people or helpless animals.If life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?I would worry a little less about the early days in my career and spend more quality time with my family.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?The study of the sciences (particularly physics and chemistry), as well as English literature, sharpened my critical thinking skills.If you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?It takes a lifetime to build a good reputation and a one stupid moment to destroy it.