Mark Boyle: 2023 candidate for Lisle Village Trustee, 4-year term

Bio

Town: Lisle

Age on Election Day: 65

Occupation: College professor

Employer: College of DuPage

Previous offices held: Lisle Village Board trustee for 12 years (2007-2019)

Q&A

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

A: The realities of municipal worker's pension funding are an ever-growing responsibility. Understanding current employee's retirement benefits and the growth of that liability to the village needs to addressed. The full impact of "new hires" on the village's long-term fiscal responsibility needs to be made an integral part of the decision-making process on employee hiring.

Q: How would you describe the state of your community's finances?

A: A budget should continually be reviewed and re-reviewed. Lisle is fortunate that we have had great stewardship. Staff and elected officials made sure that the budget and the level of services matched.

What is important today and tomorrow is that economic growth is needed to make sure that future monies match future needs. Increasing real estate taxes is not the answer to balancing budgets. Continued economic progress is what's needed to balance those future budgets.

Education of the residents on the Village of Lisle budget helps in agreement on its future direction. Remember that the village is responsible for the following: police, water, public works, and economic planning and development.

Q: What should be the three top priorities for spending in your community during the next four years?

A: • Development of a long-term strategic policy on "new hiring" so that pension fund liabilities are developed in a wise manner. Smart spending on employee assets.

• Further develop the "safety team" assets so that the citizenry of the village have a comfort level within their community. Have our police force at full staffing and continue to develop the Community Service Officers group. Continued development and funding of a robust plan for community safety with continued community outreach.

• Lisle needs to fund the message of economic development. The village, meaning all of its residents, employers, and employees, must continue the progress that it has made in developing the best town in DuPage County. This is an ongoing process of development and redevelopment. Economic development begets tax revenue generation which begets funding for the village budget.

Q: Are there areas of spending that need to be curtailed? If so, what are they?

A: The elected officials of this village have been very prudent in the balancing of services with costs. Over the last 20 years, the village officials and staff have been great in "creative frugality." Spending is at the levels needed to maintain the quality of life for our citizens.

Q: 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?

A: A very important infrastructure project that must be addressed is the areas that are in the floodplain. A unified policy on its future is important. Currently, some homes are being bought out with federal funding (never to be built upon again) while other homes are being raised above the high water marks and being improved.

The inconsistencies from lot to lot need to be addressed. This is not healthy for a neighborhood. Long-term directional policy needs to be addressed. These are people's home and dreams and it is also the village's neighborhoods.

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

A: My approach is as follows: Listen, then listen again. Discuss, then discuss again ... Keep moving forward till successful agreement can be made. Don't waste opportunity but rather make opportunity.

My civic experiences have been very broad based, from sitting on the board of directors of the DuPage Mayors and Managers Conference to being a professor at the College of DuPage, as well as others.

Every audience can be different. I have strived to understand the commonalities as well as differences of my conversation partners. I will bring this insight to the Lisle board of trustees.

Q: What makes you the best candidate for the job?

A: You cannot have an interest and knowledge in just a single issue: a multifaceted (economic development, budget, safety, environmental, etc.) comprehension of issues is needed to successful serve the citizens of Lisle. I have those interests. I am the best candidate for the job because of the following:

• I believe in listening and working together in this town.

• I am committed to fiscal judiciousness while keeping a full range of services to the citizens.

• I understand the challenges and the opportunities of economic development - from what drives successful businesses to what economic growth can do for our community.

• I believe in civic duty and in serving the people of Lisle.

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

A: The Village of Lisle government needs to continue to be diligent in "using" its land use plan for downtown and it needs to be supportive of private sector development. It needs to be able to deviate from its master plan by understanding that the private sector needs to be able to be creative in implementing appropriate economic projects.

But, remember that the biggest land owner in downtown Lisle is the village itself (streets etc.). We need to look at downtown Lisle as an all-inclusive opportunity. Not everything should be "set in stone" except for the positivism of Lisle and its future.