Lawrence 'Lawre' Weiner: Candidate profile

Bio

Name: Lawrence "Lawre" Weiner

City: North Barrington

Office sought: North Barrington Village Trustee

Age (on election day): 78

Family: Married, two adult children, and four grandchildren

Occupation: Attorney

Education: Harvard Law School, LLB, 1964, University of Miami (FL), Bachelors of Business Administration, 1961.

Civic involvement: Former Assistant U.S. Attorney. Served as a Hearing Officer for the Illinois Pollution Control Board as well as the Health and Hospitals Governing Commission. Former American Arbitration Association Arbitrator (Labor Panel). Elected to the Illinois State Bar Association's General Assembly. Served as the Illinois State Bar Association's Chair of Education Law and Chair of the Alternative Dispute Resolution Section Councils. Former member of the Board of Directors of the Appellate Lawyers Association. Former Vice-Chair of the Chicago Bar Association's Federal Civil Practice Committee. Member of the Lawyers Club of Chicago. Founding member and former Director of the Buehler YMCA. Village of North Barrington Police Liaison. Former Village Alternate Representative to the Barrington Area Council of Governments. Former North Barrington Plan Commission Member.

Previous elected offices held: Former Trustee and President of the Barrington Area Library District (1998-2011). North Barrington Village Trustee (1997-1999 & 2007-present).

Incumbent? If yes, when were you first elected? Yes, 1997.

Website: www.FocusedOnNorthBarrington.com

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Issue questions

What are the most important issues facing your community and how do you intend to address them?

Over the years, our quaint and tranquil community of North Barrington has come together to ensure that services are met for our citizens. A key issue and responsibility for the Village Board is to guarantee our public is safe. The Village has maintained a long-standing agreement with the Lake County Sherriff's Office, in coordination with the Village of Lake Barrington. Our community is one of Lake County's safest. Public services are also important for our Board. Whether it is road maintenance and snow plowing, garbage/recycling collection or addressing flooding and water purification, the Village Board has worked to meet our residents' needs. Lastly, supporting taxpayers and enhancing property values is a key role for a Trustee. I intend to continue focusing on each of these issues. We must maintain the good community we have become.

What makes you the best candidate for the job?

For many years, I have dedicated myself to our Barrington area and especially the residents of North Barrington. I was a founding member and served on the Board of Directors for the Buehler YMCA. From 1998 until 2011, I was an elected Trustee and then the President of the Barrington Area Library District. Finally, my tenure as the senior Trustee on the North Barrington Village Board dates back to my first election in 1997. I take serving the community seriously. I have decided to run for one last term as a Village Trustee, because I believe the experiences I possess, the knowledge I have gained, the relationships I continue to foster and the work of ensuring fiscal management for the village is worth my time. I know my qualifications and understanding of our community will serve our village well for another four years.

Describe your leadership style and explain how you think that will be effective in producing actions and decisions with your city council.

I would categorize my leadership style as collaborative. Over the course of my years as a successful attorney, negotiator, mediator and elected leader, I have found that the best results come by working openly and cooperatively with colleagues and the community. I have always believed in building consensus and striving to find common ground in order to create the best solutions. I have tried to consistently employ these communication and leadership attributes during my time in public service. Working collaboratively has produced buy-in with decision makers and stakeholders alike, bridging potential divides and resolving differences.

How would you describe the condition of your community's budget, and what are the most important specific actions the town should take to assure providing the level of services people want?

For many years, North Barrington has maintained a balanced budget with solid capital reserves. During my time on the Board, we have chosen to be very fiscally conservative. It is indeed a choice. We have a relatively small budget in a relatively small community. Budgets are fixed and dollars can be limited. Leaders have to be cognizant that every additional expenditure has a budgetary impact and potential consequence. In our village, deliberate and specific focus has been placed upon respecting taxpayers by holding the line on spending. By doing so, the Village Board has ensured that core services residents have come to expect are not diminished. Community members see several levels of government, whether county, state or federal, struggling with serious budgetary pain, resulting in reductions to services or requiring tax increases. In North Barrington, we have strategically maintained balance, focused on key functions and avoided expanding non-core programs. We believe that such stability is valued in the community. The best way for North Barrington to continue stability in services and budgetary certainty is by maintaining the fiscally conservative, disciplined leadership I have employed during my tenure on the board.

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

As the grandfather of four, I have come to realize the importance of text messaging and real time communication. I am aware that some communities are utilizing emergency text capabilities to instantly communicate with residents during a time of emergency. One thought that I would like to bring forward in my next term, is investigating the costs and benefits of an emergency text alert program for North Barrington. I would imagine such text alerts would be used rarely, but during an emergency or time of confusion, clear and supportive information could be of utmost importance to our citizens. I think the idea will be very helpful and cost efficient.