Mayor Tully Highlights Stewardship, Innovation in Address

It’s difficult to summarize and encapsulate an entire year in 30 minutes, Mayor Martin Tully said at the beginning of the annual “State of the Village” address given during Tuesday night’s council meeting.

He said he wanted his address to highlight the successes of last year, so he decided to emphasize three facets: stewardship, community investment and innovation. 

STEWARDSHIP

“We have a great deal entrusted to our care,” Tully said.

“When it comes to public finances…your village is a responsible steward,” he said, explaining that the long range financial plan has enabled the village to reduce operating costs by $5 million. Also, the FY 2012 budget has a balanced general fund and the property tax levy was reduced by $393,104.

There has been continued infrastructure investment as well, and “in short, ladies and gentlemen, your village is well positioned for the future.”

Tully said the village was also able to secure $1.27 million in grants in 2011 for everything from street light repairs to FEMA money for last winter’s blizzard cleanup. 

“Despite the challenging economy we are seeing some major expansions,” by major corporations, Tully said, using and the dental and medical facilities they're building on Lacey Road as an example.

“One cannot be a good steward without good vision,” and being a good steward takes good planning, Tully said, referencing the Comprehensive Plan which was passed this year. It was 46 years in the making, he said.

Tully also mentioned the Downtown Parking Study and improvements that are being made in that department, the weekly ComEd reliability report, and the village’s efforts to be environmentally friendly. 

COMMUNITY INVESTMENT

“Investment for the general public rather than for financial gain in things such as schools and roads,” was the definition Tully displayed in his presentation.

The village put $3.6 million towards roadway maintenance and another $11 million in 2011 for stormwater and other infrastructure projects.

Tully said the Belmont Underpass Project was funded with no village money—it’s paid for by Metra—and is ahead of schedule. It’s estimated that all four lanes will be open around June of this year.

INNOVATION

“To truly advance…we must constantly change and continually innovate,” Tully said.

The definition of innovation is “a new idea, method or device,” and, Tully said, “2011 has been a showcase for those types of things.”

He referenced the consolidated emergency call dispatch center. Downers Grove and Westmont share operational expenses and each year save $300,000 and $220,000 respectively.

And if people wonder whether the quality of service has been compromised by the consolidation, Tully said because the villages are cooperating the response time has actually been reduced for residents along the eastern border of the village.

Other examples of innovation given by Tully were the recent fleet maintenance agreements with and as well as the ability for commuters to pay for parking by using their cellphones.

Tully closed with a quote from MuniNetGuide, a site for municipal-related research, in which they praised the village.

“Innovation is not just a fancy buzzword in Downers Grove; rather, it has become an official ingredient in the village’s recipe for success.”

OTHER BUSINESS:

After the address, the meeting continued in normal fashion.

The consent agenda passed unanimously.

The lone item on the active agenda was the ordinance for the village to vacate a portion of Prince Street adjacent to .

In doing so, would pay approximately $74,000 to the village—half of the market value.

Commissioner William Waldack was unhappy with the price reduction, though he supports the project in general.

"We can’t give away the property just because they’re another public body," he said, adding that knocking off half the price would set a bad precedence going forward.

He said that he would not vote in favor of the ordinance unless the stipulated price was amended to the full amount. 

Tully agreed that precedent was important, but said this was a unique situation because it was the first time another public body requested land like this.

Tully said he was struggling how to do it and then came up with the idea of charging half the price because about half of the students at the high school do not live in the village.

The ordinance passed 5 – 1.

On the first read agenda:

Public Works Director Nan Newlon presented a resolution to continue to participate in the Suburban Tree Consortium and authorize 450 tree purchases and plantings in 2012 for $163,200. 

Moving on, the council discussed at length the Human Service Commission recommendation to “create and maintain an interactive, searchable website to direct residents to available social services. [Also,] create awareness of existing services using marketing and communication venues.”

Commissioner Marilyn Schnell said she agreed it was necessary to have that information available to people, but wondered if it creating and maintaining a website was the best use of the village’s resources, seeing as the commission estimated the site to take about 20 percent of a full-time employee’s time.

Some commissioners were concerned with the cost, others with the usefulness of such a site.

Others suggested simply putting a list of links on the village’s current site.