1. Why did you decide to run for trustee? Many of my neighbors I have spoken to feel that time and time again they are not being heard. I’ve decided to run because I feel it’s important to fill the Trustee position with people that have a willingness to make a positive change with the collaborative decisions, of the Village Board of course. I want to represent the people of Peotone and allow them to have their voices heard. I feel we need a change to the board, Trustees that will listen to the community vs. doing what they want.
2. Have you held public office before? I’m new to politics and so no I have never held public office before.
3. What is your background? I have been a resident of Peotone for 15 years and graduated Peotone High School in 1991. After high school, I graduated from Eastern Illinois University, with a Bachelor’s degree, in Communications. Professionally, I am a Manager of a Global Client Engagement team for West Corporation and have been with this amazing company for 24 years.
4. What community involvement, organization, affiliations, or club memberships do you have? I have two daughters that have been in the Peotone School District since kindergarten and have been involved in a multitude of sports such as cheerleading, volleyball, track and field as well as cross country. I have coached cheerleading for 5 years and sat on the Peotone Blue Demons board for 3 years. This role has allowed me to learn more about the community and gives me the ability to assist and help families find an organization to love! I love this community and being an open and active participant.
5. What characteristics, qualifications, or experience do you feel you possess to be a trustee? I’m new to politics and so I am not a career politician. In my experience with my career, when faced with what appears to be insurmountable tasks, I have the ability to look at situations with an open mind and an understanding of people’s needs. I have been able to listen to multiple viewpoints and understand what is important and work to find a solution that helps everyone. I also face challenges head on with integrity and courage. I will do the same for the residents of Peotone.
6. How can the village board improve? In talking with residents, we all feel communication is key! Many people feel they are given details after the fact, so residents are in a constant reactive mode. I love that we have social meeting, I love that the notes are printed in the Vedette but open communication between all residents and departments is key, and we need to figure out the best plan to ensure all residents are kept in the know.
7. What are important issues you’d like to address and how will you address them? Code Enforcement and my example for this is trailers. Trailers are needed in this town for the livelihood of some of the residents. I own a trailer and have been ticketed and fined so I would like to ensure we revisit this ordinance, but we also want to keep things neat and clean. This plays into why a Code Enforcement Officer is needed vs. contracting a third party. One of the first steps in helping to shape our community is an Officer. Officers do cost money, but we need to maintain and protect our small community feel, but still grow in the same token.
8. Do you support the downtown streetscape plan in its current state and if not, what would you change? I applaud the downtown street scape, but there is always room for improvement so one of the changes I would push for would be parking. I have talked to some local businesses and a suggestion that was mentioned would be to keep the parking as-is, but assign a parking spot to said businesses during daytime business hours. I feel it’s about listening to the community and bringing their feedback to the board.
9. Raising chickens in village limits has been a topic of discussion. What are your thoughts? If someone within village limits wants to raise chickens, let’s openly discuss this. I would first suggest we create a survey for the residents so we can hear their opinions verses what is posted on social media as many residents are afraid to voice their opinions in this manner. I would suggest we do limit the number of chickens per household and that we limit this to chickens as the doors could now open to other livestock. Allowing chickens with regulations such as no roosters, proper fencing, no coops above the fence line and most importantly cleanliness and this can all be outlined as we progress.