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1. Focus: Beginning immediately I would
form a task force of civic and community leaders and city council
members along with myself to develop a short-term and long-term plan
of action. This group would focus on public safety issues,
infrastructure needs and develop a plan of action along with
recommendations on how improvements would be paid for. This plan
would be revisited regularly during my tenure as mayor for
alterations or enhancements. I think for the short-term I will work
very hard to control spending to build reserves so we can have
resources available to grow the city when opportunity arises.
2. I would use my 30-plus years of
experience in the utility business to work on upgrading the street
lighting in the city. With juvenile crime being up significantly and
the prevalence of drugs, this, I think, is an important issue. It is
a known fact that with enhanced lighting, crime numbers go down and
accidents can be reduced. I intend to make public safety a No. 1
priority. [See news release below.]
3. My strengths come from 30-plus
years of marketing and supervisory training in the utility business,
10 years on the LCHS school board, four years on the Logan County
Board, two as chairman. I have been involved in many civic
organizations in the community and feel I have my finger on the
pulse of the community and with my education, work experience and
leadership skills am the best prepared to lead the city the next
four years.
[to top of second
column in this article] |
4. Economic development partnership:
I am a working member of the economic development panel and believe
we have finally put together a cohesive group to develop plans and
seize upon opportunities for good, solid economic growth. Rob Orr,
our director, working with the county coordinator, and other
individuals are beginning to bring exciting opportunities to us.
With the ethanol plant to be soon built, Corn Belt Energy's plans to
build a generating plant and possibly a warehouse distribution
business, hope and opportunity are on the horizon. All of these are
directly related to the economic development partnership and Rob
Orr's work.
7. Remembrance: I would hope it
[mayoral term] would be remembered for restoring hope and
opportunity to our city and bring a future with jobs that reduce our
high unemployment numbers and help retain some of our youth or bring
them back after college. I want our city to achieve a cleaner look
and have a safer community to raise a family and own a business.
[From Lincoln mayoral
candidate Dale Voyles]
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I have
requested and received the actual statistics from the Logan County
state's attorney's office. Following is a history of juvenile
reports filed by the Lincoln Police Department as the arresting
agency (no other arresting agencies included in these figures):
|
Year |
Number |
Change |
| 2000 |
108 |
|
| 2001 |
177 |
+61% |
| 2002 |
212 |
+20% |
| 2003 |
263 |
+24% |
| 2004 |
203 |
-23% |
| Total |
963 |
|
Complete
figures:
| |
Lincoln Police
Dept. |
Logan County
Sheriff's Dept. |
Other |
Total |
| 2000 |
108 |
35 |
31 |
174 |
| 2001 |
177 |
43 |
39 |
259 |
| 2002 |
212 |
49 |
23 |
284 |
| 2003 |
263 |
46 |
40 |
349 |
| 2004 |
203 |
82 |
26 |
311 |
| Totals |
963 |
255 |
159 |
1,377 |
[to top of second
column in this article] |
This confirms to me a significant
problem exists in our community. Besides the evident problems
associated with these cases, the financial costs related to
policing, prosecutions, court and probation departments are draining
resources that could be put to better use in our community.
If elected, I would work with
members of all of these departments as well as other local agencies
to attempt to reduce these statistics.
[From Lincoln mayoral
candidate Dale Voyles]
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1. What will be your
main area of focus as mayor?
My main area of focus
as mayor will be city administration. I believe that the best thing
the city of Lincoln can do is to improve those areas that only the
city can fix. These include a thorough review of zoning, ordinances,
taxing structures, fees and other incentives the city can offer to
accomplish economic development goals. By reviewing ordinances you
can clean up neighborhoods and generate revenue in the form of
fines, as well as improve the overall look of the community. By
looking at zoning, taxing structures and fees you can focus on the
industry that is already here in Lincoln, and in my opinion mostly
ignored by current programs, to encourage growth and expansion,
which means more revenue and jobs.
2. What are other areas that you will
develop and maintain?
I come from a small business
background. I look at the politics in this town and I see other
important issues like:
-
Fiscal and
administrative management of the city itself, which includes a
more nonpartisan way of making sure that the best people are
working in top city positions.
-
A long, hard look at
the community's school system. We need to reopen the debate as to
why we need four school districts in Lincoln.
-
How to best combat
the rising crime rate in our community. Have we given the police
everything they need to be the most effective force possible; can
we improve our community by revitalizing Neighborhood Watch
programs not being addressed currently by those running our
community.
3. What are your
strengths to lead this community?
-
Graduate Lincoln
Community High School
-- 1989
-
Graduate Illinois
State University -- 1993, bachelor of science degree in biology
-
Over 10 years
experience in management of employees
-
Experience in
developing marketing programs to sell not only products but
services as well
-
Developing,
insurance, safety and risk management programs for clients,
tailored to their specific needs, including both short- and
long-term planning
-
Experience
negotiating between employers, employees and government bodies,
and their attorneys
-
Creating, adjusting
and working within a fixed budget
-
Developing new
sources of income and revenue
-
Running
executive-level meetings, including a working knowledge of Roberts
Rules of Order
[to top of second
column in this article] |
4. What is your
position on working with the Lincoln/Logan Development Partnership?
Frequently, newcomers
to politics speak of change, and there does need to be change, but
you cannot have change without learning to work with the people and
systems that are in place and to include new people and new systems
in the overall process.
It appears that the
main focus of the economic development partnership is new business.
I think the city should continue to work with the partnership to
promote itself to new business. At the same time Lincoln needs to do
what it can to promote the growth of industry and business that are
already here.
5. What lines of
communications with other governing entities -- state, county,
nearby cities?
Federal-state: We need
to keep improving the communications with senators, representatives
and other government officials to promote our relationships and the
needs of Lincoln.
County: We need to
strengthen this relationship so that we can promote further
cooperation between Lincoln and the county and minimize the
competitive atmosphere.
Nearby cities: We need
to formalize these relationships in order to share our ideas and
concerns and to help each other achieve common goals.
6. How do you intend to
build more revenues for the city?
As I stated in the
answer to the first question, Lincoln should encourage growth and
expansion of those industries and businesses that are already here.
A plant expansion at the bottling company is worth just as much to
this community as a distribution center being built. In addition we
need to ask ourselves: "What can we do for smaller businesses in
Lincoln? When IGA expands do they get tax breaks like Wal-Mart?"
7. What would you like
the time of your administration to be remembered for?
Putting politics aside
and doing what needs to be done in order to improve our community.
8. How will your
leadership inspire community spirit?
Hopefully, my
leadership will inspire others to start taking a realistic, hard
look at Lincoln and look past all the different groups and agendas
to find common ground on which to improve our city.
[From Lincoln mayoral
candidate Tom O'Donohue]
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Credits:
- Two years county board member
- Two years Logan County Animal
Control chairman
- 28 years Kroger employee
- Present employer: Eaton
Corporation
- Co-chair Alcohol Tobacco and
Other Drug (ATOD) Task Force
- Member of Youth, Disability,
Senior Citizens, Minority Committee for the city of Lincoln
- Union steward for Local 550 for
five years
- Member of union negotiation
committee team for Local 550 of United Food, Commercial Workers
Union
- Past or present member of Lincoln
Jaycees and K of C
- Past Lincoln Bowling Association
officer for two years
- League secretary for 20 years,
Elite Kickapoo League
- Past instructor for Young Bowlers
Alliance (YABA) for two years
- Past member of UFCW and present
member of Teamsters and Machinist union
Responses to LDN questions:
1. My main focus as mayor is to
revitalize the community. I believe we are suited for a
bedroom community, with a strong educational foundation, grade
schools through colleges.
I, as mayor, will work strongly with
our four colleges on any expansion plans, increasing courses to
choose from, etc., to attract more students. Having 4,000-plus young
people for eight-plus months a year is a very appealing market for
retail, service-type jobs coming to Lincoln.
Second: Affordable housing. Will
strongly enforce city codes to upgrade properties that are boarded
up and unlivable. To which there are 30-plus such houses that can be
available for people to live.
Third: Tourism. This is a booming
market for us. We need to really be ready to capitalize on this.
With the new Lincoln Library opening up soon [Abraham Lincoln
Presidential Library and Museum in Springfield], there will be an
overwhelming number of people traveling through or by Lincoln. I
will work with tourism to help promote, market or advertise Lincoln
in any way possible.
With these three issues I firmly
believe will bring much-needed growth to Lincoln.
2. Other areas that I will
develop or maintain: First off I will strive to
reinstate the laid-off city workers, firefighters and police to full
capacity, ending citizens' concerns for safety issues. I will seek
to eliminate one city workshop and city council meeting a
month. This could save up to $18,000 a year of taxpayers' money
while still getting done what needs to be done.
[to top of second
column in this article] |
I will work to re-establish the
Neighborhood Watch program, holding town block meetings throughout
Lincoln, appointing a chairman for each area to organize volunteers
to assist police in fighting crime.
3. My strengths to lead this
community: I believe to be my personality and character. Anyone who
wants to know what type of mayor I would be, just look at my two
years as Animal Control chairman. The proof that I can take a bad
situation and turn it around in a matter of a few months as
evidenced with the success we now have at the shelter. I can do this
for the city of Lincoln.
4. We're only as strong as we can be
if we work together. So, it is important that the mayor and
Lincoln/Logan County Development Partnership and the county board
put all egos aside and work together for the betterment of Lincoln.
5. Lines of communication: This I
believe is my strong point. I'm a great motivator and can get people
to jump on board with my beliefs. Open-door policy is very important
for one thing, and to develop a strong pattern of being someone that
you can work with, which in turn will create a good relationship for
all parties involved.
6. Besides the first part of my
platform, I'm also prepared to offer a property tax incentive break
for property owners choosing to upgrade or add onto their property,
providing they provide proof that they will invest $10,000 or more
and that 75 percent of material and labor comes from Lincoln, Logan
County. Then I propose waiving their property taxes for three years,
the fourth year paying what they paid before the upgrading, with the
fifth year paying the new assessed tax increase.
This I strongly feel will greatly
increase our tax bases, sales wise, as well. As property taxes are
added to the increased value of property, it will also give many
people a chance to clean up and make badly needed improvements. This
should also greatly clean up the community, increase overall market
value of all property and attract interested parties to come to
Lincoln to buy. I strongly believe this to bring in something
between $200,000 to $500,000 a year much-needed revenue.
7. I would like to be remembered as
a man of action and also a man of my word, as well as a cherished
role model for our youth.
8. I'm a very positive person and do
not like to dwell on negative situations. I totally believe in
myself, the community, our young people, and it shows.
I'm a very happy person who really
appreciates who I am and where I come from and really love sharing
my optimism with everyone involved. I really believe a strong
outlook on things will achieve more than negativism. I will set that
example each and every day of my term in office.
[From Lincoln mayoral
candidate Pat O'Neill]
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