Stephen Leonard
Wilmette village Board
responses to voter guide questions
1. Why are you running for Village Board, and what are your qualifications?
As a more than three decade resident of Wilmette and former Trustee, I feel passionately about the well being of the Village and have a personal commitment to the furtherance of good governance. I thoroughly enjoyed my first experience on the Board but unfortunately was forced to resign due to a professional commitment in Detroit. Now that I am back full time in Wilmette and partially retired, I have plenty of time to focus on the community and give back as much as possible.
My qualifications are numerous. With two degrees in finance and 35 years of professional experience in commercial real estate development, I am uniquely qualified to address many of the pressing issues facing the Village today.
Between Edens Plaza, Plaza del Lago, 4th & Linden, the Green Bay Corridor, Treasure Island, The Police Station Project, and others, broad and deep experience in maximizing opportunities of these type will prove invaluable when serving on the Board. My previous Board service provides me with the knowledge of how to work with Staff and Wilmette government to get things done efficiently and effectively.
2. What are your priorities for Wilmette and how will you work with the Board and Village Staff to address them?
The current Board has done an excellent job managing the very challenging projects presented in the recent past. As I see it, the state of the Village is in excellent shape. My goals for the upcoming four years will be to address the major projects that have been facing us for some time. For example, how can we convert the Treasure Island property from a non-productive eyesore to what it can be with proper stewardship? How do we make sure our largest commercial property, Edens Plaza, is fully redeveloped once Wayfair is underway in a way which benefits the Village residents and not just the out of town developer? How do we make sustainability a higher priority in the Village? Why don’t we have a higher level of participation in composting in Wilmette? All these issues are challenging, but I plan to make them my highest priorities if I am lucky enough to win election in April.
Nothing can get done in Wilmette without extensive cooperation and coordination with our very talented staff. I have always made it my business to establish a positive and respectful relationship with these individuals. They are highly qualified, very hard working, committed and quite honestly very nice people. It has been my pleasure to work with Mike Braiman and his team over the years and I look forward to doing so again in the future.
3. What, if any, are your environmental priorities for the Village?
Environmental policy is very important in my household. Although recycling has been well accepted in the Village, I worry about the low levels of actual use of the recycled materials which are collected. Composting has been offered for some time in Wilmette, but my perception is few households are taking advantage. We need to make it easy, simple and inexpensive for people to compost. There is work to be done on this issue. Also, green energy usage has been underutilized to the best of my knowledge. Many friends and neighbors have complained they fear scams in the industry and are unsure how to safely take advantage. Once again, communication is key on this issue.
4. Do you think Wilmette has successfully balanced development in the Village? Do you have any vision for future development in Wilmette?
As mentioned above, development and growth are essential for a healthy and fiscally successful community. It is my highest priority to insure proposed projects are properly conceived and executed to the mutual best interest of the private parties and the overall community. As a member of the original Downtown Wilmette Master Plan Committee, I am very proud of the planning work completed which set the stage for the major improvements made downtown and along Green Bay Road. There is much work left to do, but I do believe we are on the right track. I pledge to do everything in my power to push forward some of the stubbornly slow progress at vital locations within the Village.
5. Is the Village doing enough to maintain and/or improve infrastructure in Wilmette?
The current and past boards have done an excellent job in maintaining and expanding infrastructure projects in Wilmette. I was involved in the planning process of the stormwater management project when last on the board. With the leadership of our excellent engineering team, this project was executed masterfully, on time and under budget. Our roads are in good shape (always could be better of course) and our utilities are modern and healthy. The biggest infrastructure project to be faced in the near term is at the water plant which needs to replace the water intake mechanism. This will be expensive but is absolutely necessary and appropriate.
6. How to you feel Wilmette can best balance tax revenue and spending?
As we all know, taxes in Wilmette are very high. The stormwater project required an increase recently, while our road maintenance schedule cannot be completed without adequate funding. I feel strongly we cannot stomach materially higher taxes in the future. My solution to this challenge is to focus on maximizing revenues from development projects currently being contemplated or underway. Accelerating a development six months can mean huge increases in tax revenues. Focussing density properly can yield better revenues for both public and private parties, enhancing the community for all involved. If we seek revenue from project sources, we can avoid further increases in taxes from our residents.
7. Do you feel the various Village boards and commissions adequately serve Wilmette’s needs? Do you have additional ideas for how they can do so?
I am very impressed with the work being completed by all our boards and commissions. I am especially excited about the work being done by the Housing and the Human Relations Commissions. Both of these groups are focussing, among other things, on enhancing diversity and affordability within the Village. The more attractive we can make Wilmette to the widest range of residents, the better off we all are. Ethnic, income, religious, political, etc. diversity makes Wilmette a better and healthier place to live. I strongly support their work.
As a more than three decade resident of Wilmette and former Trustee, I feel passionately about the well being of the Village and have a personal commitment to the furtherance of good governance. I thoroughly enjoyed my first experience on the Board but unfortunately was forced to resign due to a professional commitment in Detroit. Now that I am back full time in Wilmette and partially retired, I have plenty of time to focus on the community and give back as much as possible.
My qualifications are numerous. With two degrees in finance and 35 years of professional experience in commercial real estate development, I am uniquely qualified to address many of the pressing issues facing the Village today.
Between Edens Plaza, Plaza del Lago, 4th & Linden, the Green Bay Corridor, Treasure Island, The Police Station Project, and others, broad and deep experience in maximizing opportunities of these type will prove invaluable when serving on the Board. My previous Board service provides me with the knowledge of how to work with Staff and Wilmette government to get things done efficiently and effectively.
2. What are your priorities for Wilmette and how will you work with the Board and Village Staff to address them?
The current Board has done an excellent job managing the very challenging projects presented in the recent past. As I see it, the state of the Village is in excellent shape. My goals for the upcoming four years will be to address the major projects that have been facing us for some time. For example, how can we convert the Treasure Island property from a non-productive eyesore to what it can be with proper stewardship? How do we make sure our largest commercial property, Edens Plaza, is fully redeveloped once Wayfair is underway in a way which benefits the Village residents and not just the out of town developer? How do we make sustainability a higher priority in the Village? Why don’t we have a higher level of participation in composting in Wilmette? All these issues are challenging, but I plan to make them my highest priorities if I am lucky enough to win election in April.
Nothing can get done in Wilmette without extensive cooperation and coordination with our very talented staff. I have always made it my business to establish a positive and respectful relationship with these individuals. They are highly qualified, very hard working, committed and quite honestly very nice people. It has been my pleasure to work with Mike Braiman and his team over the years and I look forward to doing so again in the future.
3. What, if any, are your environmental priorities for the Village?
Environmental policy is very important in my household. Although recycling has been well accepted in the Village, I worry about the low levels of actual use of the recycled materials which are collected. Composting has been offered for some time in Wilmette, but my perception is few households are taking advantage. We need to make it easy, simple and inexpensive for people to compost. There is work to be done on this issue. Also, green energy usage has been underutilized to the best of my knowledge. Many friends and neighbors have complained they fear scams in the industry and are unsure how to safely take advantage. Once again, communication is key on this issue.
4. Do you think Wilmette has successfully balanced development in the Village? Do you have any vision for future development in Wilmette?
As mentioned above, development and growth are essential for a healthy and fiscally successful community. It is my highest priority to insure proposed projects are properly conceived and executed to the mutual best interest of the private parties and the overall community. As a member of the original Downtown Wilmette Master Plan Committee, I am very proud of the planning work completed which set the stage for the major improvements made downtown and along Green Bay Road. There is much work left to do, but I do believe we are on the right track. I pledge to do everything in my power to push forward some of the stubbornly slow progress at vital locations within the Village.
5. Is the Village doing enough to maintain and/or improve infrastructure in Wilmette?
The current and past boards have done an excellent job in maintaining and expanding infrastructure projects in Wilmette. I was involved in the planning process of the stormwater management project when last on the board. With the leadership of our excellent engineering team, this project was executed masterfully, on time and under budget. Our roads are in good shape (always could be better of course) and our utilities are modern and healthy. The biggest infrastructure project to be faced in the near term is at the water plant which needs to replace the water intake mechanism. This will be expensive but is absolutely necessary and appropriate.
6. How to you feel Wilmette can best balance tax revenue and spending?
As we all know, taxes in Wilmette are very high. The stormwater project required an increase recently, while our road maintenance schedule cannot be completed without adequate funding. I feel strongly we cannot stomach materially higher taxes in the future. My solution to this challenge is to focus on maximizing revenues from development projects currently being contemplated or underway. Accelerating a development six months can mean huge increases in tax revenues. Focussing density properly can yield better revenues for both public and private parties, enhancing the community for all involved. If we seek revenue from project sources, we can avoid further increases in taxes from our residents.
7. Do you feel the various Village boards and commissions adequately serve Wilmette’s needs? Do you have additional ideas for how they can do so?
I am very impressed with the work being completed by all our boards and commissions. I am especially excited about the work being done by the Housing and the Human Relations Commissions. Both of these groups are focussing, among other things, on enhancing diversity and affordability within the Village. The more attractive we can make Wilmette to the widest range of residents, the better off we all are. Ethnic, income, religious, political, etc. diversity makes Wilmette a better and healthier place to live. I strongly support their work.