Northwest suburban mayors look ahead to 2020

Every year around this time, we reach out to Northwest suburban mayors and village presidents and ask them to tell us something their community accomplished in the year gone by and something they hope to accomplish in the year ahead. Earlier, we shared their answers to the first question. Here's what the town leaders hope to see in 2020.

<h3 class="leadin">Tom Hayes, Arlington Heights

As we begin a new decade in 2020, we again look forward to working together with all of our community partners to further enhance the quality of life we enjoy in Arlington Heights. With so many residents and businesses looking to build or remodel/reinvest, our focus is to ensure that our building and life safety approval processes are as fair and customer-friendly as possible. We remain committed to the success of all of our businesses, including Arlington Park. Ultimately, our goal in the years ahead is to ensure that a welcoming and increasingly diverse Arlington Heights remains a great place to live, work and play.

<h3 class="leadin">Karen Darch, Barrington

In 2020, infrastructure projects like the construction at Hart Road and Route 14, bringing much-needed and long-awaited gridlock relief and pedestrian safety, will occur. We will complete our comprehensive plan, as well as a new village strategic plan. Also exciting for 2020 will be our third annual Barrington Town Warming in January, followed by many and varied cultural and community events, as Barrington's White House continues in its fifth year since opening.

<h3 class="leadin">Martin McLaughlin, Barrington Hills

In 2020, the Village of Barrington Hills is beta testing a "virtual gated community" security camera program, which will be in an evaluation phase.

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Kevin Wallace, Bartlett

During 2019, the Village of Bartlett was encouraged by the entry of new businesses and the increased economic investment throughout the community. We look toward 2020 with the anticipation of even more development coming to Bartlett. On the horizon is MORE Brewing, which will begin building a beautiful two-story brewpub along Railroad Avenue; McKesson Surgical, which selected the Cook County portion of Brewster Creek Business Park as the ideal site to build its 400,000-square-foot Midwest warehouse and distribution center; and the continued transformation of downtown's former Bartlett Plaza into the new and exciting Streets of Bartlett shopping center.

<h3 class="leadin">Beverly Sussman, Buffalo Grove

For 2020, we have many exciting projects on the horizon, including the beginning of the Link Crossing development, redevelopment of the Cambridge Commons shopping center, construction of the new NCH Medical Group building on Lake-Cook Road, and many regional and local infrastructure updates for water, sewer and streets. As a result of working together with other units of government, we are excited to see programs and services developed to make Buffalo Grove a great place to live, work and raise a family.

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Craig Johnson, Elk Grove Village

Next year, residents can look forward to the launch of the village's new website. The existing website is over 10 years old, and the new design is focused on making it easier to find information and request services. Residents can also look forward to the opening of two new bicycle/pedestrian crossings into Busse Woods along Arlington Heights Road at Northwest Point Boulevard and Oakton Street. The new 85-acre Elk Grove Technology Park will officially open in 2020, with completion of the western portion of the development. They have already announced their first tenant - Broetje, an international aerospace leader, which has chosen Elk Grove Village as their new hub for U.S. operations. This development is bringing over 1 million square feet of clean, high-tech industrial, with an estimated investment of over $1 billion. Construction on the first phase of the redevelopment of the former Elk Grove Hotel site will begin in 2020.

<h3 class="leadin">Rod Craig, Hanover Park

In 2020, I am looking forward to the continued construction at our new Village Center, which will establish well-connected public open spaces that link the existing Ontarioville Park to a beautiful new Ontarioville Plaza with future larger-scale park spaces oriented around natural features. Adjacent to the Metra station, these open spaces will become the hubs of activity for day-to-day gathering and communitywide events, complemented by a variety of new housing types, as well as enhanced retail and entertainment uses in the area.

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Bill McLeod, Hoffman Estates

In 2020, work will continue on the redevelopment of the former AT&T campus into Bell Works, a mixed-use "MetroBurb" featuring office, retail, hotel, services and residential components. This unique reuse project will contribute to economic growth in the village, adding new businesses and a significant number of new jobs. Additional 2020 economic development activities will include undertaking a new comprehensive plan, implementing the Roselle Road Business District Plan, planning for the 53-acre Hoffman Technology Park on Lakewood Boulevard, and fostering growth in the 59-90 Entertainment District. The coordination and implementation of the Barrington Interchange Planning Study also will help steer economic and planning efforts near the recently completed interchange and Pace Bus Rapid Transit station.

<h3 class="leadin">Jack Tatooles, Inverness

Looking ahead for 2020, Inverness will continue to be fiduciary responsible by operating a conservative financial plan and investing in our community's infrastructure.

<h3 class="leadin">Kevin Richardson, Lake Barrington

At its foundation, Lake Barrington's financial plan starts with the premise that residential property tax funds are not the village's money but, rather, the residents' money. It is for this reason that the board of trustees has always worked hard to keep residential property taxes as low as possible. Looking forward, the village is committed to maintaining this strong financial position as well as providing services such as garbage and recycling collection that many communities in the north and northwest suburbs no longer provide. Additionally, the Village of Lake Barrington looks to expand its economic base with new business development initiatives.

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Arlene Juracek, Mount Prospect

In 2020, significant factors will contribute to the economic health of our community. We are looking forward to consolidating our police and fire pension funds with the other downstate funds. This new paradigm for fund management enabled by state legislative action will ultimately relieve the largest source of upward pressure on municipal property taxes without diminishing public safety pensions. We will see continued success with downtown redevelopment and some exciting additions to our restaurant and retail mix throughout the village. Our relocated police and fire operations will not only create operational efficiencies but also will free-up an essential piece of our downtown revitalization efforts.

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Tom Dailly, Schaumburg

In 2020, I am looking forward to all the new development taking place at 90 North, including a signature 12-acre park, and to the village selecting a developer to work with on the Entertainment District in front of the Renaissance Hotel and Schaumburg Convention Center. I also look forward to the infusion of an additional $2 million in funds for street improvements that Schaumburg will be making in the coming year, bringing the grand total to $23 million, including $10 million for local streets. This is surely an exciting time in Schaumburg's history. Lastly, I am pleased with the support of a fine village board that approved a 5% reduction in the 2020 village property tax levy that will give back $1 million to taxpayers.

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Billie Roth, Streamwood

Our focus for 2020 is continued work on implementing our comprehensive plan, which promotes connecting and investing in our community. Throughout 2020 we will be rebuilding Fire Station #31 and our public works facility, improving our water and sewer infrastructure, and maintaining our annual roadway program. We will finish the work on the Irving Park Road expansion that includes a multimodal path. This path is key to a larger villagewide effort to connect our community with a robust pathway system. We will also work with our intergovernmental partners to improve communications to our community. We're proud that, once again, we are able to accomplish these goals with no new taxes or fees.

<h3 class="leadin">David Parro, Tower Lakes

In 2020, we are entering the detailed planning phases for some critical aboveground infrastructure projects, including energy-efficient upgrades to our oldest buildings.