To all the candidates for the Hampshire Village Board. Here are my questions I’d like to have answered.
1. How are you going to change the dynamic of the board which currently appears to be highly divisive and dysfunctional to the point nothing is getting done?
2. I’ve been told that part of the reason nothing is getting done is that the village has no money. What ideas do you have for generating revenue for the village?
3. Speaking of money. What is your opinion of the village’s Economic Development Committee not meeting for 18 months?
4. How do you see the new Business Development Commission fitting in with the Economic Development Committee? Should there even be a business development commission or an economic development committee, or should Hampshire follow the lead of other villages in the area and hire the Chamber of Commerce to do economic development?
5. What’s your viewpoint of lifting the housing construction moratorium that was implemented by the board before the 2007/2008 economic crash?
6. Kane County announced that they will begin providing developers with a 10% discount on impact fees in an attempt to qualm the complaints about the cost of building in Kane County. With the village in desperate need of funds, what is your viewpoint on impact fees in the village?
7. I recently read that the Coon Creek Committee has requested that the village board provide a guarantee that they will not begin any construction on a new village administration facility on the land currently held for its purpose for 3 years so they can use that property for the annual festival. Providing a 3-year guarantee would mean that the village would have to operate out of its current location for at least another 5 years, especially when it will take approximately 24 months to build a new facility, and I hear the building is not in the best shape. What is your opinion of providing such a guarantee, especially when the land was purchased the new building was to have been built by now and how much longer can the village operate out of its current facility?
8. I was told that the village was going to wait 4 years to ‘rebrand’ itself while at the same time attempting to make a major push on bringing new business to town. Marketing 101 states that before making significant business development pushes its necessary to have your brand clearly defined and in order. Don’t you think it would be wise to rebrand the village NOW so that when it’s attempting to sell potential businesses on moving to Hampshire, the message is consistent with the vision for the future because a business isn’t making a decision for today but for the future?
By the way, search Google for “Proud Past, Promising Future” you’ll find over 1.2 million results. Most of those results are for municipalities. Would you want to make a major business/economic development push with a ‘me too’ slogan/position? Don’t you think it is time for something unique that differentiates Hampshire from the surrounding communities? Don’t you think it is going to be necessary to be unique, especially when Huntley is tearing down the mall and redeveloping the land for an office/industrial park and on the NW corner of I-90/Rt 47 there is a lot of construction going on currently?
9. Speaking of differentiation and branding. In your opinion, what makes Hampshire unique compared to the surrounding villages? Why would someone want to live here, work here, or have a business here?
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