Jodi Trendler: 2023 candidate for Naperville City Council, 4-year term

Bio

Town: Naperville

Age on Election Day: 55

Occupation: Executive director; adjunct faculty

Employer: The Resiliency Institute; College of DuPage

Previous offices held: None

Q&A

Q: What is the most serious issue your community will face in the coming years and how should the city council respond to it?

A: Complacency. Our biggest challenge is to avoid complacency and overcome our current paradigms to build resilient city systems that can react to a more rapid pace of change.

Naperville is a successful community built on a long history of successful business development, which provided living-wage jobs that have allowed people to live and work here. The city has grown significantly, and the assumptions which have led to its success are likely no longer valid.

One example is illustrative: the city has responded to a recent tornado outbreak with a lack of speed and reliability worthy of our community. Residents still find themselves with damaged homes a year later.

Changes related to climate, shifting demographics, pandemics, etc. will continue to impact all areas of our community: economic, environment, residents, businesses, and municipal operations. We need leaders who will not accept the status quo, and are willing to champion the effort to move our community forward.

Q: How would you describe the state of your community's finances?

A: Naperville's residents and leadership have made it an affluent community and as a result, the current budget is in relatively good shape. However, we cannot afford complacency. City government should be evaluated to ensure it is as efficient as it can be. We will need to plan for expensive changes to an aging infrastructure, changes to electrical power contracts, growing police and fire departments and other changes that will require funding. We must enable continued sustainable business development so that taxes remain affordable.

Q: What should be the three top priorities for spending in your community during the next four years?

A: Infrastructure: Modernization of waste water processing required to meet state phosphorus limits, as well as planning a transition to a net zero facility. We must also transition away from coal, while we increase usage and keep rates competitive. Naperville needs to leverage our smart grid technology to maximize alternative energy development.

Public safety: Retention of our highly trained and valued police and fire public servants and salary structures should be our goal by evaluating benefits and compensation to ensure we avoid losing them. We also need to complete planned upgrades to radio and data systems.

Affordable housing & redevelopment: Historically, developers purchased farmland and built subdivisions of single family homes. This approach did not allow for affordable housing. Now that Naperville is built out, it requires developing new strategies for (re)development, such as proactively creating public-private partnerships to maintain the needed revenue from development.

Q: Are there areas of spending that need to be curtailed? If so, what are they?

A: Our current budget is quite tight, with several positions that have not been reappointed since major cutbacks in 2008-9. However, leadership must continue to challenge budget assumptions. Mandates for reductions tend to produce short term gains.

Given the current state of the city finances, a review from the perspective of lean business processes, and future risks analysis would be instructive. More efficient processes and organization focused on city goals and potential risks beyond the current shorter-term focused risk analysis will produce the best long term result.

Q: What do you see as the most important infrastructure project the community must address? Why and how should it be paid for? Conversely, during these uncertain economic times, what project(s) can be put on the back burner?

A: The city has twin issues on waste water processing and electrical power, as I highlighted earlier. There is significant funding coming from the new IIJA and IRA bills the city should be proactively exploring.

Currently, there is not a designated grant manager position in the city, which is potentially limiting non-taxpayer funding opportunities. This position could be able to pay for itself as grant funding is acquired and current staff time is reduced on managing grants that are received. Another option could be to develop green bonds for these and other significant infrastructure projects that update our current infrastructure as well as prepare us for climate change impacts.

Q: Describe your experience working in a group setting to determine policy. What is your style in such a setting to reach agreement and manage local government? Explain how you think that will be effective in producing effective actions and decisions with your city council.

A: I am an active, collaborative, servant leader and include reliable experts to help inform decisions. Prior to my candidacy, I initiated and led the Naperville Environment and Sustainability Task Force, now the advisory body on sustainability for the city.

The group was composed of over 40 citizen volunteers, community organization members, and bipartisan leaders. I met with city staff, officials and expert community members to understand current conditions and reach agreement on specific initiatives for our report "Sustainable Naperville 2036" identifying ways to reduce emissions, prepare our community for the future and save taxpayer money, which we collaboratively produced.

This experience of effective listening, and consensus building with diverse sets of stakeholders, (similar to my work with the school district for a Zero Waste project), as well as with volunteers through my nonprofit will serve me well in effectively working with fellow council, staff, and community members.

Q: What makes you the best candidate for the job?

A: Experience. I am the only candidate that has spent 15 years in sustainable community development and working directly with our city staff and leadership to initiate change.

I have studied SCD deeply, including a master's program in sustainability through Harvard specializing in Sustainable Communities and Cities, programs in Community Adaptation, New Urbanism, Greenhouse Gas Emissions accounting, Collective impact, and others, which allowed me to apply the lessons in cutting-edge city planning that science teaches us, in our recommendations report, and through my community resilience building focused nonprofit organization.

I also have experience identifying ways to save taxpayers' money, as when I worked with local school district Indian Prairie District 204 to implement zero-waste programming which identified ways to save over $25,000, and I also identified and educated board members and staff about the $1.5 million cost-saving and educational benefits of solar, which they agreed to install.

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

A: One critical community component our city is lacking is an effective means for developing community engagement.

Although other candidates may mention community communication, I am suggesting tools that can be utilized to not only provide communication, but also drive engagement, which is foundational for improving citizenship and community resilience.

I also would like to revisit the idea of creating districts to improve community connection. Our city is very large and diverse which makes it challenging for all council members to be proactively cognizant of all the issues that are impacting different areas and by having representatives for specific areas this knowledge gap can be reduced and community issues more effectively addressed.