Activist Toolkit

1. What motivates you to seek this office? What skills, experiences, and perspectives would you bring to the Village, and why would those contributions be valuable in the role of Park District Board member?

There are two primary motivations for me running for another term in office.  First, I want to see the Park District through the current pandemic and return to a financial state where we are at 50/50 when it comes to funding via taxes versus revenues.  We were at this point for the last couple of years prior to Covid taking over.  Part of a commissioner’s responsibilities is the budget.  I will continue to work with the Park District to have our 50/50 goal reality again.

Second, we are in the process of funding a Community Recreation Center (CRC).  I was on the board when this concept was first discussed.  I was in favor of it then, and am even more invested in seeing the CRC up and running.  I said all along I would only back this if we did not ask for additional funding via a referendum.  Besides some funds that we had already, a very large portion of this project will be privately funded.  It will be a great asset for all the residents of Oak Park once opened.  I want to make sure that this becomes a reality and offer any support that it may need.

2. What are the three biggest challenges or opportunities you expect the Park District to face in the coming years, and how would you work with your colleagues to address these challenges or realize these opportunities?

Two of the big ones is described in Question 1.  Insuring financial stability during the pandemic, as well as down the road after we get back to “normal”, is huge.  We, as a board, are aware of the need to return to where we were prior to 2020, and are actively seeking solutions to get there – sooner than later.  The second concept of the CRC is both a challenge, as well as an opportunity.  We have vetted this plan over the last several years, and worked with many partners within the community, and outside of it, to ensure the proper steps are being taken to make the CRC a reality.

A third opportunity is social equity. We have a Social Equity Policy in place to address the Park District’s focus on serving all residents with our programming and services.We had a retreat with our board and senior staff members in 2020 where we invited Reesheda Graham-Washington to lead a discussion regarding the need for enhanced public awareness surrounding equity.The time spent with her was truly eye-opening and allowed us to become more familiar with ways in which to work with all of our residents.

3. How will you balance competing interests, such as your own deeply-held values and opinions, input from Park District staff and fellow board members, and diverse views from the community? How would you describe your leadership style and your decision-making process generally?

I take all of the various forms of feedback into account when making decisions about anything related to policy or budgets. An example of this goes back to 2019 when we heard a good deal of feedback regarding budgeting and the taking of TIF funds that were coming off of the board. After careful consideration, I decided to vote no to taking these funds. I did so after reading numerous emails, as well as hearing from residents in-person, regarding the need to help Oak Park residents with their property tax bills. My leadership style is one that I really do try to take into account all perspectives of any given topic, and make an informed decision based from what I believe is the best decision for all and not a select few. I really do look out for the entire population of Oak Park. Sometimes the decisions are difficult ones. But, I can honestly say, that my voice is one that speaks to the betterment of the Park District, and the residents for which it serves.

4. What values would you bring to the budgeting process? What changes do you favor in the process by which the Park District conducts its budgeting and fiscal planning?

Seeing that I am currently a board member, I can speak of how I currently work with the budget process.  We review our upcoming year’s budget each October.  I really get into this process (just ask any of my colleagues on the board).  I go line by line trying to understand what it is we are spending our monies on.  I usually go into each of the two sessions with about 50 questions regarding the budget.  The Executive Direct, as well as Finance Director, usually have the answers I need.  One focus I have is have we cut enough during moments when reducing the dollars spent is necessary.  

I currently feel that our budget process is a very solid one.The information presented to the board is thorough and is understandable.I am always open to hear ideas from our residents and experts with ways to improve it.

5. How will you balance the community's desire to decrease the property tax burden with the Park District’s mission of providing services and recreation opportunities and the need to maintain facilities?

Even though we only take less than 5% of the total tax bill (second lowest agency in terms of taxes in Oak Park) we still have a responsibility to all of our residents to manage our use of tax dollars wisely. Being that we have been at a 50/50 tax to revenue split (as previously mentioned) this makes it a little easier to manage. We took a step this year to help decrease funding via taxes by taking a 1.5% levy versus the approved CPI amount of 2.1%. I am very aware of the enormous tax burden for Oak Park property owners. We do look at ways to reduce costs with every major decision we make. Annually, the Park District identifies ways to streamline processes to better serve all residents while potentially reducing costs – while at the same time striving to not negatively impact our programming or facilities.

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

I did address some of this with Question 2. It is all about fairness for all people. Everyone has the right to receiving similar treatment and services by our government. Do we have that? No unfortunately. The Park District strives to have a focus on equity with all that we do. Are we perfect? Again, no. But, we do look for ways to become better each day. We work in partnership with local individuals and groups to help us better understand what we are doing right, and where improvement can take place. My views on equity have certainly evolved over the past year. I am hoping that any ignorance that I have possessed over time will diminish as I try to have a better understanding of this very relevant and important cause. And I try to keep an open mind with equity, and welcome those who wish to share their thoughts, feelings and experiences with me.

7. How do you plan to solicit feedback from people who may be experiencing Oak Park’s Park District programming in a different way than you? What barriers do you believe may exist in this process?

This is a great question. There are a couple of means to achieve this. First, I am the liaison for the Park District Citizen Committee. This group of volunteers report back to the Park District regarding what they are seeing and hearing regarding the Park District. They are a great group of volunteers who supply honest feedback on all that we do. When they hear things, good or bad, they come back to us and let us know. So, continuing to utilize this team is critical. The other way is to simply get out there and talk to those in our parks and facilities who are using our programming. I do this ALL THE TIME! I will even sign up for classes/activities that we offer to get a taste of what it is like. I am an active user or our programming, so I am out there with others who I can talk to and answer questions. And, I always get the feeling that the people I talk to appreciate me listening.

8. How will you collaborate with neighboring communities? Discuss a specific initiative you would wish to undertake. What benefits and challenges would you anticipate?

I would like to extend the concept of neighboring communities out to all of Illinois if it is alright.  The reason I say this is I have worked with many Park Commissioners throughout Illinois to get a feeling of what their respective park districts are doing to create an active community.  I have also shared ideas and concepts of what we do here in Oak Park that has led to many success stories.  I feel that creating the partnerships with other park districts is so beneficial for all parties involved.  To localize this, I enjoy working with our Executive Director to work with neighboring communities to find ways in which we can work together to create clever and financially sound decisions.  The rewards are numerous – mostly based on increased program participation and awareness, as well as realized savings with our finances.  The challenges include having agendas that may not match, or the cities not seeing eye to eye on specific goals.  The CRC, as mentioned earlier, is a concept where involving other communities might be beneficial.  The benefits are tremendous.  But, the roadblocks are indeed challenging.

9. Private fundraising for a proposed Community Recreation Center has begun. What resources do you believe the Park District can or should bring to such a project? How do you see the Community Recreation Center leveraging existing local facilities and programs?

As you have read, I have mentioned the CRC on several occasions. The private funding for this will be managed by the Parks Foundation. They have assembled a very knowledgeable team of Oak Park residents to achieve the funding necessary to build this much-needed facility. The Park District itself will provide several resources. First, we did leverage some funds from our Capital Funds to put towards the project. We are also applying for state grants to help cover some of the expenses. The Park District has commitments from both The Oak Park Mental Health Board and WSSRA to be partners with us in the proposed CRC. And, by leveraging the Executive Director’s knowledge and networks, we hope to garner more financial supporters to make this idea a reality. As for the second question, part of the idea behind this is to lessen dependency with other agency’s facilities as much as we currently do. The Park District’s programming can be negatively affected when utilizing other facilities when those agencies have programming needs of their own. Having the CRC would help resolve issue like this and allow the Park District to increase programing to all ages.

10. The Park District is largely staffed by part-time employees. How will you balance the need for fiscal stewardship with the responsibility to pay employees a living wage?

We have been reviewing the need for better wages for our part time employees for several years now since increasing the minimum wage discussion first began.  We have increased our minimum wage in a positive yet responsible way the last several years.  We are on target to be at the state requirement in a couple of years.  We watch over this closely when we talk budgets in October.  We are aware of the affect it will have on our budgets, and are always looking at how to achieve a proper balance of responsibility with our budget, as well as to our community.

11. 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 for financial sustainability and equity? What do you see as the tradeoffs?

I completely do. We are not out to simply spend every dollar that is given to us.  We look at what the needs are within our community and spend wisely and accordingly.  One thing to keep in mind is that services that we undertake to make a park or facility better are not cheap.  We choose the most responsible bid on all projects.  Like I mentioned earlier, our share of each tax dollar is less than five cents.  We use what we are given very wisely.  We look for every possible grant dollar available.  We have taken in more than $5 million in grant monies over the last ten years.  We are leading the way with Illinois park districts in this regard.  As for fees, we really keep focused on what we can charge where we do not exclude anyone.  Our scholarship program provides assistance for all who are suffering from financial hardships.  There will always be ways to improve with financial sustainability.  Tradeoffs?  We try to minimize these when negative, and using them when positive.

12. What lessons learned from the services provided or not provided during the pandemic do you believe will be applicable going forward, even after the pandemic abates?

This might be an obvious answer because many organizations have learned this.  We have really utilized virtual meetings in place of live, in person activities.  We knew that the pandemic would really affect us in a serious way.  So, the Park District had to quickly maneuver to address our neighbor’s needs to address the sudden isolation that so many of us have realized.  When possible, the Park District found safe ways to meet in person with some programs – all with safety-first priority.  We increased our use of social media, and to discover ways for residents to communicate with the Park District in the safest of means.  I am confident that the Park District will take away the positive opportunities from the past year, as well as learn from the challenges, as we move forward in 2021 and beyond.  With all of that said, programming and services are not main focal points as a commissioner.  Our role focuses in on the budget and policies.  So, a commissioner’s input with programming and services is limited.

13. In 2019, The Park District adopted an equity policy that adds training and organizational support around equity and inclusion. How would you evaluate the success of the equity policy so far? What additional steps should be taken by the Park District?

At this time, I can only go off of what is reported to me from our Executive Director.  So far the training and support appears to be well received by the staff.  I have not seen or heard specific feedback from the community on whether there may be any issues that have arose the last several years that focus in on any aspects of inequity.  There is still so much more that we can do to support true equity in our community.  The Park District will play a key role with ensuring that equity for all can be a norm versus just an opportunity.  Continuing to engage our community in all matters equity-related is, in my opinion, the best way to continue to work towards a better equity policy, as well as understanding by park employees, and the board.

14. The Park District does not currently track participants in its programming by race. Please comment on whether you believe this information is necessary to evaluate the Park District’s success in promoting racial equity and inclusion, and why.

We are currently investigating the use of tracking the races of our participants.  One of the reason for this to qualify for specific financial grants that focus in on racial equity.  The question regarding race would be completely optional.  Will this guarantee success with our equity focus?  Not necessarily.  That is better served with face-to-face meetings and partnering with all who are impacted, positively and negatively, with our programming and services.  Using statistics from such a question must be used in a way that benefits all.  So, understanding how we would implement and use this information is something I need to understand first before making a judgement on this question.

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[The above answers were supplied on 2/19/21.]