Green Oaks candidates discuss redevelopment and new business
Green Oaks is a small town, but a lot is happening there with a redevelopment program along Route 176 in progress and the first year of comprehensive road repair work set to begin.
And for the first time since 2011, incumbent village trustees are being challenged, with four candidates vying for three, 4-year seats in the April 2 election.
Trustee John T. Wagener, an attorney, first was elected in 2007 and is seeking a fourth term.
"We've got a good group of trustees and we're all very dedicated to making Green Oaks a better place so that's why we do it," he said.
Trustee Richard Glogovsky, an engineering executive, was elected in 2003, but lost a coin flip after a tie in 2011 and was knocked off the board. He was reappointed about a year later to fill a vacancy and was reelected in 2015.
"We've gotten a lot of things done in a short period of time, but there's a lot more work to do. That's why were so excited about running and winning re-election, because we have so many projects that were into we really want to support the village and help the village grow in the right way," he said.
Trustee Dan Sugrue, an attorney, was elected in 2011 and is seeking a third term.
"We've gotten a lot accomplished in the last few years and I want to keep doing it. I want to keep helping out," he said.
Incumbents say they are running because of their love for the village and desire to continue building on accomplishments of the past few years.
Newcomer Bob Madland, president of a remodeling and carpentry contracting firm, is the only candidate who lives on the far east side of town. He said a recent proposed annexation and rezoning left many in his Glenmore Woods neighborhood wanting a voice in village decisions affecting that area.
The candidates discussed why they're running and thoughts on the special financing district established to improve what is known as the Rondout area.
Madland says he lives in the only residential neighborhood bordering that tax increment financing (TIF) district and that future projects could have a big impact on the daily lives of residents along Route 176 and Bradley Road.
"It is important that those most affected by the village's decisions have both exposure to and a voice in those decisions," he said.
TIF is a mechanism to divert taxes on increasing property values into a special fund for projects within the district. Green Oaks' TIF district is anchored on either end by new senior living facilities that are providing revenue to be used for infrastructure and other projects.
This TIF redevelopment is at a critical stage, Madland says.
"It is crucial that these projects are critically evaluated for their ability to generate additional incremental tax revenue as well as for their impact on the residential neighborhood immediately adjacent to the TIF district," he said.
Glogovsky says the TIF district has been "extremely successful." With the senior centers as bookends, the focus will be on road, drainage and other work in the "rough" area between. Elements that don't fit in the village plan are slowly being eliminated, he added, and there are "great opportunities" for new businesses in the works.
Sugrue said the Route 176/Bradley Road area within the TIF "holds a lot of promise." The village is considering a proposal for a truck cab sales business called CIT Trucks LLC and TIF-fueled improvements east to Waukegan Road will attract new business.
"There's no reason why it shouldn't be a vibrant commercial area," he said.
Wagener said TIF is meant to be a pay-as-you-go mechanism and that seven to 10 projects have been prioritized to jump start the area. A $500,000 project to extend storm sewers recently was completed, he said.
"It's a good district," he said. "If the district works and we create economic development, then we're going to generate more retail sales."