Politics & Government

Letter: Here's What I'd Do Were I Plainfield's Mayor

Enough with the red lights and seat belt tickets, no more new houses or apartments without impact fees and let's get rid of Lake Michigan water, Jerry Taylor says.

Dear Editor;

I have no hidden agendas. I have no public roads I want to close off and make private. I don't have new roads I want to build through people's back yards. I am not a smooth speaker nor a snazzy dresser. I owe no favors to anyone and no one owes me any favors. I have no friends I want to hire and no enemies I want to fire.

Having said all that, here are some of the things I would do if I were elected village president of :

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  • Eliminate red light cameras asap!
  • Stop having the police check for seat belts as potential customers come through town asap.
  • Hire and promote from within instead of looking for new people from outside the village.
  • Start planning for an alternative to lake water right away. The carcinogen hexavalent chromium has been found in that water and the lake water level is dropping. Also, you can bet the new Chicago regime will be spending more money than they take in, so Chicago will be raising lake water rates to help them pay for their spending. (I know, they can't do that...wanna bet?) We need to control our own water valves.
  • No more subdivisions. Not only would I re-enact impact fees, I would quadruple them. The real impact to this community, besides traffic, is the school district population, and it is being ignored by the village. For those who say you can't stop growth, I say if you are not part of the solution, then you must be part of the problem.
  • No to new apartment complexes for same reasons as given for no more subdivisions.
  • I would be very active in all communities in to get them to either stop the building madness or enact larger impact fees to cover the real costs to our schools.
  • Ensure single-family homes have one family, not three or more. The legality of homeowner associates being able to take possession of peoples' homes needs to be looked into.
  • What is with these cement medians? We live in Illinois where it snows. The medians already have many bruises from where cars and plows hit them. How many working peoples' cars are now broken or have misaligned wheels and damaged undercarriages. They are also dangerous and cause injuries. The medians have got to go.
  • The same educated folks that brought the medians to town, also brought the big signs that say, “Traffic Calming Measures Ahead.” How about just saying, “Speed Bumps"?
  • Require future builders (if any) to tie sump pumps directly into storm drains and not shoot water into the back yard, where it just recycles back into the sump.
  • No more building on or near the DuPage River. That river can no longer handle what is being thrown into it, it rises faster and farther with simple rain storms, and it stays higher longer. Everyone seems to know the flood plain maps are outdated, however, the building continues using them as their guideline. This includes not building the proposed 143rd street extension (dam.)
  • Who is really on the hook for all these mosquito-infested retaining swamp ponds, some of which look like home to the monster from the black lagoon. How did Plainfield let the builders walk away, knowing the homeowner associations weren't really going to take care of those ponds to the degree that is required.
  • If any new homes were to be built, I would require them to be single-level houses so our citizens could actually live in them when they get up in years.
  • Here is one that won't win me any friends. No more arresting folks with small amounts of marijuana. Instead, let's just ticket and fine them $10 to $20 per gram so we can make some money on this activity rather than spending valuable police time and money arresting people, towing vehicles, showing up in courts, etc. Let's start using common sense!
  • Here is one that will probably never get me elected. Let's reopen the truck stop at U.S. 30 and Interstate 55! Are we crazy letting that area remain idle when we could be getting tax dollars and employing people from this area. Private investors could make that spot the best truck stop for miles and create JOBS.

When you hear someone say the above can't be done because of the law, please remember that laws are enacted, changed and eliminated by politicians. And who do politicians work for?

If you do not want to implement any of the above changes, do not vote for me.

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Jerry Taylor, Plainfield


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