Activist Toolkit

1. What motivates you to seek this office? What skills, experiences, and perspectives would you bring, and why would those contributions be valuable in the office you are seeking?

The Park District of Forest Park is a resource and highlight to the Village of Forest Park. Being a frequent participant in programs, events and the facilities, to take a more active role as a commissioner was an easy choice. Over the past few years I have volunteered for the Park District to help in events and excited to be part of the decision making process for the park in the future.

2. When in the past have you had to balance competing interests? What process did you use? What did you learn?  

As an attorney, on a daily basis I deal with competing interests between those of my clients and the opposition. In life, and in my career, it is important to analyze all aspects of a topic, look at it from all perspectives etc. and that talent I intend to bring to the Park Board of Commissioners. 

3. What does transparency in government mean to you?  How would you put it into practice? 

Transparency in government is the ability for the public to have access to information. What is being presented to the government officials that decisions are being based upon and allowing access to this information to any and all residents. In this new age of technology, there is no reason why information can be obtained and shared with the general public.

4. As more of our local discourse happens in social media, what is your view on how local elected officials should communicate with and respond to constituents? How will you engage with the breadth of the community, and not only those on social media?

Elected officials need to be approachable and social media is a great way to reach the masses, but it cannot be the only way. Responsive to emails and phone calls is key to being an effective elected official.

5. What barriers do you see for community members who wish to engage with the Park District? How would you work to reduce or eliminate those barriers?  

The Park District has generous hours at the office, an on-line presence that is very good and facilities with many dedicated workers who are there to help and answer questions. If a community member feels there are barriers to talking to the Park District then I recommend (you) come to the facility, someone will be able to help you.

6. What do you feel are the three biggest issues facing the Park District, and how do you intend to address them? 

The three biggest issues the Park District will need to address in the future are:

1. Having a safe and healthy environment to continue programs in the age of COVID-19. Following the CDC recommendations and practicing safety precautions should always be paramount when making decisions in this regard. 

2. Expansion of the Park District with the “pocket parks” taken over from the Village of Forest Park.  The plan on how these parks will be expanded needs to be evaluated, discussed and public input before any long-lasting decisions are made. 

3. Programs that are interesting to the citizens of Forest Park and ever evolving programs for all ages, from our smallest citizens to our elderly. New ideas need to be tried and implemented but yet the standard programs need to also be kept.

7. How do you define equity? Have recent events and discussions in the larger community informed or changed your thinking? 

In order to answer this question, the difference between equality and equity must be given. Although both promote fairness, equality achieves this through treating everyone the same regardless of need, while equity achieves this through treating people differently dependent on need. The Park District of Forest Park needs to be a community hub where people, not matter what the need, are welcomed and embraced. It was important that the Roos Center was part of the backdrop for the Juneteenth event in the summer of 2020, I saw this as an example of how the Park District of Forest Park is inclusive and there to help the community.

8. How do you plan to solicit feedback from people who may be experiencing this community in a different way than you? What barriers do you believe may exist in this process?

9. Name an influential local community member. How did this person’s influence change Forest Park? As an elected official, what do you imagine your influence will be on the community?

10. Park districts make use of many different sources of funding, including property tax revenues, fees, and grants. Do you feel the Park District maintains the right balance of free and fee-based facilities and programming for financial sustainability and equity? What do you see as the tradeoffs?

11. Pass-through funding from the State of Illinois has been much less plentiful in recent years due to fiscal issues at the State level. What plans do you have for continuing to fund programing and facilities improvement?

12. How do you plan to keep up to date about best practices for environmentally friendly maintenance?

Sorry due to my work restrictions and commitments – I was able to answer only the questions above.

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[The above answers were supplied on 2/24/21.]