Position for which you are a candidate: Dundee Township Trustee

I want to adequately fund mental health services and Open Space repairs, improvements and restoration. In 2020 voters directed Dundee Township to create and fund a 708 Mental Health Board in order to provide mental health services desperately needed by our residents. Voters approved a generous amount, but the current board majority has capped funding for the Mental Health Board at $500,000.00, less 50% of the amount local agencies said they needed to meet the needs in our communities in 2023 and roughly 1/6 of the amount voters allowed.
Voters also spoke in the 1997 Open Space referendum, directing the Township Board to buy and to Maintain Township Open Space sites like Raceway Woods, Dixie Briggs Fromm and the Jelke Creek Bird Sanctuary. The trails and open areas on these sites are heavily used. They need to be maintained and improved on a scheduled basis. Township leadership claims there is no money to maintain Open Space because the 1997 bond money is gone. That is ridiculous. Like any property owner, the Township is responsible for maintaining and improving Open Space sites with its annual budget.
The Township had a $1.5M surplus as of January 2025 which it has declined to spend on restoring and improving open space sites or on funding the mental health services our residents need. I will work to adequately fund both of these programs without increasing taxes.

What experience and background do you have which qualifies you for this position?

I bring a deep knowledge of the Township and its programs to this position as well as a deep love for Dundee and the people who call it home. I was the Township Supervisor for 16 years, then a Trustee for the last 8 years. I hope to share that knowledge and expertise with a new generation of leaders over the next four years. I helped lead the effort to establish our Open Space Program and believe that when voters make decisions to support programs via referenda, elected officials must carry out voters’ directions. That is not happening with the current Board of Trustees. They have substituted their judgement for the voters’ direction by refusing to allocate enough money to the mental health board to provide the services we need, by neglecting to maintain and improve Open Space trails and drainage systems and by relying on donations to buy equipment and supplies.

What will be your highest priorities if elected?

1. Invest in repairing and improving the trails and trail drainage systems on Township Open Space at Jelke Creek, Raceway Woods, Dixie Briggs Fromm, Library Springs and others. Provide equipment and supplies for Open Space restoration.
2. Expand the level of 708 Mental Services by allocating more funding for local agencies to provide mental health treatment. Expand services for addiction treatment, for job training for disabled adults and children, to help families in crises get back on their feet and to support services for our homeless population with goal of getting them into housing and become self-supporting,
3. Reduce Township legal expenses by negotiating disputes instead of going to court. Also, we don’t need to pay an attorney $250.00/hour to attend every meeting. The Supervisor can refer legal questions to the attorney by phone. The Township’s legal costs are significantly higher over the last 4 years due to both litigation and to attorneys attending our meetings.

I will participate in the candidate meet & greet: