Grossi announces bid for Mount Prospect mayor

Mount Prospect village Trustee William Grossi announced Saturday that he is running for mayor in the spring 2021 election.

Grossi, an attorney specializing in estate planning and taxation, said he is running on a platform of protecting residents and providing excellent services so people want to live and work in Mount Prospect.

In particular, he said, he opposes defunding police.

"I would never defund our first responders," he said in a news release. "The village has procedures in place that identify the best candidates for each position and identify those currently employed who need to be disciplined or removed from their posts. For this reason, our police and fire departments are well-run and every man and woman who serves this community is well-trained."

Grossi, a 30-year resident of the village who has served on village board since 2017, said he will work to keep village real estate taxes low.

He said every dollar the village spends must be justified, especially during the time of COVID-19.

"The pandemic is affecting the revenue that the village receives from sales and other taxes, so the current board has deferred projects and reined in spending," he said. "However, the uncertainty of future revenues for the next year or two make it imperative that spending continue to be controlled."

Projects must be prioritized and any new projects that cannot be paid for without outside funding must be postponed, he said.

But that does not mean, he said, that the village must be stagnant.

"Standing still is not an option. The only way to succeed is by 'Moving Forward Together Responsibly,'" Grossi said in the release.

Grossi said the village must continue to focus on bringing new businesses in and, at the same time, work to preserve existing businesses, with a major focus on Randhurst Village and continued downtown redevelopment. Increasing the tax base will provide tax savings, he said.

Trustees Paul Hoefert and Colleen Saccotelli also are running for mayor. Incumbent Mayor Arlene Juracek is not seeking an additional term.