Arlington Hts. may re-think marketing campaign

Arlington Heights needs a new brand or identity, and the Discover Arlington campaign should be rethought, several trustees are suggesting.

Studying the effectiveness of the program that promotes businesses, organizations and events is one of the new ideas the Arlington Heights Village Board came up with at a recent special meeting.

Mike Sidor and Carol Blackwood, the two newest trustees on the board, brought up the issue.

“What am I supposed to discover about Arlington?” said Sidor. “A more effective campaign might tell what Arlington is about. Arlington Heights has an identity crisis.”

Blackwood said perhaps a new campaign would make the identity of the village clearer.

“What Mike’s saying is, ‘Who are we?’” said Blackwood.

Village President Arlene Mulder replied: “The downtown is alive; people notice that it’s not a shopping center. We should be proud.”

Discover Arlington’s website is www.discoverarlington.com. The program has been active for about five years, said Village Manager Bill Dixon.

The three groups working on promoting and retaining businesses — the village, the Chamber of Commerce and the Arlington Economic Alliance — should coordinate their efforts better, the board agreed on the recommendation of Trustee Bert Rosenberg.

Jon Ridler, executive director of the Arlington Heights Chamber of Commerce, agreed it would be a good idea to bring the three groups together for a brainstorming session so each can contribute its strengths without duplication.

“Like any other business in town, the village and business community need to re-evaluate their identity. Who do we want to be and how do we want to get there?” he said.

The board’s objectives are steps to reach goals trustees have set for categories including business development, transportation planning, essential services, low crime rate, affordable private housing and green-based policies and services.

Other objectives besides rethinking the brand campaign include:

Ÿ Urge an upgrade of electrical services to the Arlington Heights community because of the length and extent of recent power outages.

Ÿ Explore the possibility of volunteers, including retired police officers, working in schools to get youngsters acclimated to police officers as friends. Trustee Joe Farwell recommended this, since the police department dropped the Too Good for Drugs program due to budget issues.

Ÿ Promote online payment for all village licenses and fees.

Ÿ Explore creation of motor scooter parking at the train stations.

Ÿ Explore encouraging residents to turn off their engines when they are waiting somewhere such as to pick up students or commuters.

Ÿ Encourage Metra to improve communication and education of residents and patrons, especially about safety.