Election 2012: Craig Taylor, Lake County Board

Craig Taylor is the Lake County Board Member representing District 19, covering Lake Zurich, Hawthorn Woods, Kildeer, and Long Grove. In 2012 the district was expanded to include Barrington and Deer Park.

He formerly served two terms as Village Trustee of Lake Zurich, has served as President of his Homeowners Association since 1976, has served on the Lake Zurich Area Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors since 2003, and is a proud member of the Lake Zurich American Legion and Rotary Club. He attended Colorado State University and the University of Colorado. After serving in the U.S. Air Force, Craig worked at United Airlines for 40 years. He has lived in Lake Zurich since 1975.

He and Pam, his wife of 36 years, have three children, each of which graduated from Lake Zurich High School: Matt (’97), Kim (’00), and Laura (’03). They have been active members of their church, St Matthew Lutheran Church in Hawthorn Woods, since 1975.

What are your top 3 priorities if re-elected to the Lake County Board?

• · Improve Transportation in District 19 and Lake County
• · Use Your Tax Dollars Wisely And Grow Our Economy
• · Serve My Constituents Faithfully to the Best of My Ability

What would you do to help unemployed people throughout the county?

The best thing we can do to help unemployed people in Lake County, and even underemployed people, find work is to foster a better environment for businesses to create jobs. We do this through maintaining a balanced and stable budget, supporting our current businesses to the best of our ability, recruiting additional job creators to Lake County, and investing in vital infrastructure improvements. I go into each of these points in depth in my answers to other questions in this questionnaire.

Where do you stand on Route 53? If in favor, what can be done to help facilitate the extension into Lake County? If against, what can be done to help relieve traffic congestion?

It is vitally important that we improve transportation in District 19 and Lake County in order to reduce travel times, improve access to businesses, and decrease road congestion. This is one of the best actions we can take to help grow the Lake County economy in order to create jobs for our talented residents, not to mention the improvement it will make to our way of life. To that end I continue to be a strong advocate for transportation investments that have resulted in a number of road projects and infrastructure improvements in our district such as the widening of Quentin Road from Rue Royale to White Pine Road and the improvement of the Route 12 & Quentin Road intersection. I have supported the expansion of Lake County PASSAGE, our very own intelligent transportation system that gives our residents and businesses free personalized, real-time traffic notifications. Additionally, I continue to be a strong proponent of the extension of Route 53, working with County Board Chairman David Stolman to finally make this necessary project a reality.

How would you attract more business and economic development to the county?

1/3 of Lake County’s budget comes from property taxes, accounting for 7% of property tax bills on average. I constantly remind myself that at the county we are spending the public’s tax dollars, and as a result we have to be accountable to the public for how responsibly we spend their money. I have worked to reduce the county budget by $15 million over the past two years without reducing necessary services, resulting in a budget this year that spends $19 million less than the budget in 2009. This was achieved through more efficient spending, freezing employee salaries, reducing Board Members’ salaries, and cutting where possible. This has allowed Lake County to maintain adequate reserves for future economic uncertainties and to remain one of only 38 counties in the country to have a AAA bond rating. We have not, and will not, raise taxes. Instead, we are focused on growing Lake County’s economy by working with Lake County Partners, our Economic Development Agency, to create“shovel-ready” sites for new business development, retain our current businesses, and improve the overall business climate. We also streamlined our permitting process by opening a new central permit facility with one-stop-shop capabilities.

Why should voters re-elect you? What sets you apart?

My focus is on serving the residents in my district and bringing county focus to the southwest corner of the county. I view this as a public service, and as a result I reinvest the salary I receive back into our community by supporting our local clubs, organizations, and causes. I pay for my activities as a County Board Member out of my own pocket, never seeking reimbursement for expenses. I remain as transparent as possible, publishing my personal contact information for members of the community to be able to contact me directly with their comments or concerns. I write and distribute an e-newsletter with local and county news that goes out about twice a month to over 4000 people to keep them informed of important issues. My only goal is to serve my community, and I consider it a great honor to be their Lake County Board Member.

See also craigtaylorlakecounty.com