Keith Evans: Candidate Profile

Back to Hoffman Estates Park Board

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: Hoffman EstatesWebsite: None at this timeOffice sought: Hoffman Estates Park Board Age: 59Family: Wife - Susan Son - Jason Hoffman Estates (other residence) Son - Jeff Holiday Hills IL Daughter - Nicole Honolulu Daughter Megan (lives with Sue I)Occupation: President of Independent Insurance AgencyEducation: BS Finance CLU (Chartered Life Underwriter) ChFC (Chartered Financial Consultant)Civic involvement: 8 years as HE Park Commissioner including 3 as Board President with various other board positions and committee chairs. Just completed 2 years as Chairman of Hoffman Estates Chamber of Commerce, now serving as Past Chair. Serve on several committees (Legislative, Membership, Celebrations/Awards), as well as committee that chose new Chamber President. Serve on Board of Schaumburg Business Association and chaired Legislative Committee until 2014. Serve on Village's Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee. Served as Hoffman United Soccer Club Chair until 2007. Boy Scout Troop 297 Committee Chair until 2001. MacArthur Elem PTA Treasurer 2 Yrs in 1990's.Elected offices held: Board of Commissioners - Hoffman Estates Park DIstrictQuestions Answers What programs aren't paying for themselves? Would you keep, eliminate or change them? How and why?I reject the assumption that all programs must "pay" for themselves. If that were true, then we better put admission gates on every park entrance. That being stated, we (commissioner/staff) review every program each year at budget time to see if the interest and enrollment numbers are strong enough and if there should be changes to our offerings. With a larger view, we also consider the finances of each facility. I have been an advocate to identify and review specific capital costs in addition to operating margins of our facilities. I was a financial analyst in Corporate America for 27 years before opening my insurance agency. The district has a challenge in keeping our golf course, Bridges of Poplar Creek, financially healthy. Weather is a big factor and can severely curtail income in a season. Delayed spring thaw, early winter and rainy weekends combined with nationwide declining interest in golf has us working to control costs and attract younger golfers, more women and minorities to the sport. We are also considering (but no action yet, calm down, golf tradionalists!) alternatives like soccer golf, and adding a short course. To a lesser extent, our full service health club, Prairie Stone Sports and Wellness Center, has had its challenges, especially with the recession. We are seeing excellent growth in membership and a bright 2015. My hat goes off to staff who have managed to keep our programs and facilities operating beautifully despite these challenges.Is there any additional open space the park district needs to acquire? Please describe.Any open spaces currently under consideration are confidential until negotiations are complete as specified in the Open Meetings Act. That being stated, I am a big fan of acquiring open land that is useful to the district and our residents. Of course, the land must also be affordable and fit into our strategic plans. Acquisitions for open space (parkland, natural areas, playing fields) are valuable for our district, but we need to be cognizant of the available capital we have to invest. We can't spend money earmarked for facility, playground and infrastructure improvements. Development is picking up in the community and I expect the district will be heavily involved with developers.Are there any unmet recreational needs? If yes, what are they and how would you propose paying for them? Or, should they wait until the economy improves?One thing is certain, whatever programs we have today, many will change over the next few years. A few years ago, I had never heard of Pickleball. It is now a very popular sport, played on some our converted tennis courts and at PSSWC. We reviewed the district's tennis usage and determined we could leverage our scheduled resurfacing of our courts and convert half of the courts (Highpoint/Fabbrini Park) to Pickle Ball. Next year, I imagine there will be a new opportunity and as demand develops, our creative staff will find a way to address the need. We completed our district attitude and interest survey and identified community wants which we have planned for over the next 5 years. I am excited at the prospect of developing Chino Park to address our residents in that area. Our district is aWould you support sharing/pooling resources (i.e. printing, vehicles) with other local governments (school districts, village, etc.)? If so, what areas would you consider combining or merging to save money or improve efficiency?We already work closely with Hoffman Estates and Schaumburg, Schaumburg Park District, SD54, SD15, U46, D211, Cook County, Harper,Elgin, Elgin CC, Barrington schools, Schaumburg Township, STDL, State of IL and IL Tollway Authority among others. So yes. District staff is very resourceful and finds inventive ways of bringing opportunities to our residents. I am particularly proud of the cooperative venture among the village, county forest preserve district, tollway authority and our park district. We are building a bike/pedestrian link from Rt 59 and Shoe Factory to the CN tracks and north, under I-90 into Prairie Stone Business Park. This link was a key missing to join our community and parks East to West. Mike Kies, HEPD Director, was on the committee for the Barrington Rd full interchange. Besides the driving convenience factor, commercial opportunities, safety factor with hospital access, there will finally be safe pedestrian and bike crossings over I-90 for our residents North and South of the tollway. I can't wait to be able to ride to Black Bear Park or to Willow Rec Center without the harrowing routes I need to use now. The after-school programs we run with the elementary schools are great examples of our cooperative ventures. We host a teen program at Vogelei Barn with the village providing trained staff. Teens who are not in sports are traditionally underserved by parks. Based on educational sessions I attended last fall and last week, I will be working on addressing this issue.If you are a newcomer, what prompted you to run for the park board? If you're an incumbent, list your accomplishments or key initiatives in which you played a leadership role.President of the Board of Commissioners 3 years of the 8 served as commissioner. As a commissioner, district has been awarded the National Gold Medal for Excellence in Parks and Recreation. HEPD has been recognized for Excellence in Financial Reporting, National Accreditation (CAPRA), IL distinguished Agency, IL Sunshine Award, Chamber Public Sector Partner of the Year, Green Business, and several more. All these awards mean that staff is motivated and enabled by the board to achieve excellence. These awards are mainly the result of meeting rigorous criteria to even be considered for recognition. We pride ourselves on best in the industry practices. I will not claim credit for any of these awards, but proudly share in the recognition because I have been a leader on the board, providing direction to the executive director and helping build consensus among board members, carefully nurturing resident input and creating the environment for park district professionals to excel in their roles. I have also taken specific action by being a member with staff on the district's Green Team Committee, working on ways to save money while be more environmentally friendly. I am the only commissioner to serve with staff on an employee based committee. Green issues are a big success story at HEPD. We have taken advantage of green incentives from the state, fed and ComEd. Our expanding natural areas are adding to the beauty of our parks, helping clean our waters and save time/fuel on not mowing difficult areas.What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?HEPD is recognized nationally as a top flight organization. Our management team is highly motivated, intelligent and skilled. As a continuing commissioner, my role will be to continue to work the formula that has been successful - review, suggest, innovate and manage policy for the district. In the next few years, HEPD, depending on some personal staff decisions, may face some key retirements. My business experience, parks savvy, industry contacts and relevant education will allow me to be an important part of the process to replace these key personnel.Please name one current leader who most inspires you.Elizabeth Warren - she is an advocate for many without a voice on the national stage.What's the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?My mom instilled in me a sense of responsibility that still informs my drive to follow through on commitments.If life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?I would like to see what would have happened with my career if I had not stayed with the same company for 22 years.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?There were several subjects I really liked, History, Statistics, Spanish, but foremost - History, because it helps with everyday perspective and understanding.If you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?For their personal life- "Be kind" For understanding the world - "Follow the money"