Issues of Importance to Montgomery IL

Jobs and Economic Growth

Montgomery must do more to locate and land employers who will provide higher paying jobs and career positions. This is critical to our ability to provide community services, and it is critical to property values. I believe people live where the jobs are. More demand for housing helps everyone. Less demand hurts everyone. We must focus our economic growth efforts on companies that will employ 50 or more people, ideally 100 or more. How will we find such companies? First, by effectively serving the base of employers we already have. Economic development is not the result of a brochure, or an ad campaign, it comes often from word of mouth and personal experience.

I propose that we meet with every employer of 25 or more people in Montgomery each and every year. We should use that precious time to learn more about their business, how we might be able to help them grow, and what other businesses should be recruited to support their needs.

We must focus our recruitment of new employers on companies who can meet our employment goals. By focusing on those companies and opportunities that meet our specific growth goals, we will ensure that our precious time and resources have been devoted to the right conclusion. Our focus will help us achieve our goals.

Spending Restraint and Wisdom

Operating budgets and funds necessary to provide city services will be under great strain for many years to come. Critical decisions about spending will need to be made. As your Trustee I pledge to focus all my attention on spending which directly provides the key city services we all expect and need. When those needs are sufficiently met, then we may be able to look at other projects that "would be nice" or "would help us prepare for the future", but for now, we must be very focused and very practical in our spending. We must also hold the line on taxes and reduce them if at all possible. Opportunities for real savings will benefit our residents and must be found. Until times are better, budgets and spending must be carefully examined.

Responsive and Attentive Village Government

Many who know me already know of my desire to involve more residents in the decisions that make our community what it is and what it might be. And to enlist their help in accomplishing many of the goals we can achieve even without additional spending. Communities aren't "bought" or "built", communities are the result of citizen involvement in a shared vision for a better community. There is much more Montgomery can do to inform and involve its citizens and much untapped energy if we only take the time to learn what valuable people resources we have.

More And Better Citizen Feedback About Village Services

It is time to consider formal systems of evaluating Village response to citizen requests and calls for help. I think we need to ask residents who called upon the Police, Code Enforcement, Village President or Public Works Department for assistance or response - "Did you receive the response you expected?" "Did the response solve the problem?" With reliable information gathered from the "customers" of the Village of Montgomery, we will know how and when to recognize outstanding performance, and we will be able to identify areas where the response has not been satisfactory. Tactics commonly and successfully applied in the business world can work in the governmental arena as well.

More Innovative Procurement Practices

For the purchases Montgomery must make each fiscal year, I believe we can find policies and practices which might extend the benefit received for dollars spent at a minimum, and ideally we might reduce the Village's expenses. I also believe that businesses located in Montgomery need to be informed about and welcomed to compete for purchases to be made by the Village. More purchases need to be based on vigorous competition and requests for bid and proposal should be more extensively promoted. Competition benefits the private sector. I believe the benefit that competition provides to the public sector is even more pronounced and more important. As a Village Trustee I will bring some thoughts and experience to the table gained through familiarity with exemplary Federal and State procurement practices, and with more than 35 years experience in the private sector purchasing a wide variety of goods and services.