Thank You For Your Support

Although Tuesday’s election did not go the way I had hoped, I have many thanks to pass out. I would like to start with Terry Steinbach, Patrick Doolin, and Tim Gillen, for their years of service to the Village of Forest Park. Although I disagreed with each of you from time-to-time on issues and approach, I always respected your passion and believed that you were motivated by your own perception of Forest Park’s best interests.

Over the past several months, and especially the last few days, I have received many kind words from countless residents regarding my campaign. I want everyone who has taken the time to talk to me, email me, or post comments about me on various local message boards, how much that has meant. Running an independent campaign presents some obstacles and can be frustrating at times. Knowing that so many people appreciate that effort is energizing, humbling, and serves as a reminder to why I wanted to run in the first place.

In the end, my efforts were not enough. No amount of name calling or second guessing will change the vote totals. Accordingly, I would just like to congratulate Mayor Calderone, Rory Hoskins, Marty Telellian, Mike Curry, and Mark Hosty for their victories. Throughout the campaign, I have gotten to know several of these candidates and have a lot of confidence in their abilities. We will all soon find out if my character judgment is accurate. It is now up to them to make sure that their victories are also victories for Forest Park.

Thank you again for all of your support.

John Plepel

Roosevelt Road - Is a hotel a good idea?

One topic that everyone seems to agree on is the need to rejuvenate our Roosevelt Road corridor. At the Candidates Forum, a question was asked seeking specific ideas for improving that district. With just 60 seconds to answer (that was the format), I could not give a very comprehensive answer, but I did mention an idea that I believe is worth looking into: A hotel/convention center.

In my opinion, the main categories for evaluating the idea are:
Demand
Tax Revenue
Economic Impact (i.e. the affect on other businesses in the area)
Character of neighborhood
Draw on community services

Demand – According to a member of local tourism board whom I spoke with recently, there is tremendous demand in the Oak Park/Forest Park area for convention and block lodging. She indicated that she routinely turns away groups that looking are for blocks of rooms totaling 50 to 200 and convention space that can accommodate over 100 people because there is no one around here that has that type of space available. The main reason for the demand is our location. McCormick Place has made a decision to only go after the mega conventions (i.e. Auto Show, etc.). Oak Brook and Rosemont are really the next places that offers convention space, and many consider tham too far from Chicago. So, in the end, there are many moderate sized groups that are looking for blocks of rooms and/or convention space for their groups in a close-in suburb, like Forest Park.

Tax Revenue – Hotel and convention space is generally taxed a very high tax rate. If you don’t believe me, just look at your hotel bill next time you travel. We all want Roosevelt to be a large source of tax revenue, this could be a way.

Economic Impact – When you put a hotel up with, say 100 rooms, you probably have approximately 125 people staying at full capacity. 100 or so more people per night located within our retail district could be a great shot in the arm for existing businesses and a draw for others who may or may not have considered Roosevelt in the past.

Character of neighborhood – This is an important issue that would need to be discussed. A hotel could potentially change the character of the Roosevelt Road corridor. I am not sure if this is a change we (by “we” I am talking about the collective residents of the Village) would embrace or not.

Draw on community resources – Any time you put a large concentration of people into an area, you are going to end up drawing more demand for public resources, especially police patrol. This is something that would require significant input from our Chief of Police, among others.

Other consideration – A hotel would probably want to have some sort of a trolley that would take guests to the blue line and back. It may be something to look into having the Village create a trolley system that includes the hotel, as well as Madison Street and some off-street parking location. We could require the hotel to pay into a fund that would operate this. This idea could also be pitched to the Main Street Organization.

All and all, I think that a hotel/convention center could be a fit somewhere on Roosevelt. However, we would have to be very careful about the type of hotel, etc. to make sure that it has the desired economic impact and limits the negative impacts that large developments like this can have.

What do you think? As I have said in the past, I think that campaigns are best if they are dialog, rather than a monolog. So, please feel free to post you comments.

Candidates Forum 3/29/07

Here is brief overview of my answers from last night:

Eminent Domain: I gave a one word answer of “No.”

Zoning Code: “We don’t need to revise it. We need to completely rewrite the zoning code.” I also discussed that we need to revisit the Comprehensive Plan at the same time to make sure that it still represents our “vision” of the Village. These two issues are too intertwined to separate.

Campaign Finance: I have not taken any money from anyone for this election. In the future, I would not take money from companies that wish to bid or contract with Forest Park because I believe it, at the very least, can be perceived as a conflict of interest.

Making Forest Park Safer: More cops on the street. I also discussed how having more families (vs. single professionals, etc.) brings more people outside during the day, hence more eyes watching the neighborhood (most crime is committed during the day, according to Police Chief Ryan).

Roosevelt Road: I was the only one who brought up an idea that hadn’t been discussed before: a hotel/convention development. This would bring a lot of tax revenue (have you ever read one of those bills) and necessary people to spark additional development of this retail corridor. I also mentioned briefly (I only had 60 seconds) that we would have to be very careful about the type of hotel development because the wrong one could attract clientele that is inconsistent with our goals for that corridor.

Madison Street: I discussed my previous plan regarding combining the two lots at Des Plaines and Madison to create a large enough parcel for a multi-use structure with parking and retail/restaurant. It could be a win/win for everyone.

Landlord Question: Discussed that it is a matter of code enforcement. I believe that we need to make sure our department heads (or someone at Village Hall) can handle simpler requests so that our inspectors have more time to inspect and re-inspect properties that need it.

Proviso: I mentioned that we should look into the possibility that the No Child Left Behind legislation has changed the landscape in regards to being able to pull out of District 209. The rest of my answer was basically the same as the other 9 people up there.

If you would like clarification on any of these, or any other issue, please feel free to post those questions here or email me at Plepel2007@hotmail.com.

CUinFP Candidates Forum

The CUinFP Candidates Forum was last night and there was a great turnout (over 80 people, according to one person). It was great to see so many people take time out of their busy lives to learn about the candidates. If you were one of those people, you should be proud of your civic dedication.

As much as I enjoyed answering questions with the six other candidates (Mark Hosty is out of the country and was unable to attend), I really enjoyed having a chance to meet with many people one on one before and after the event. Since a couple of people asked me for clarification on a couple of my answers after the forum, I thought that it may be appropriate to restate those here, in case anyone else was wondering the same thing, but didn’t have a chance to ask me afterwards.

1) In a question about homes for parking, I made a statement that I didn’t want to speak in absolutes in regard to using eminent domain. That was apparently interpreted to mean that I am considering it. What I was trying to convey is that although there may be some hypothetical situation (I think I said “remote possibility”) that would justify eminent domain, I could not imagine what that would be. To clarify, I am against the use of eminent domain for the purposes of adding a parking lot or structure.
2) There was a question asked of us about involvement in public matters. I failed to express my involvement in the 500 block of Elgin project over the past year. That caused a couple of people to ask me if I was indeed part of that group. The answer, of course, is yes. I was very involved in that opposition. Further, I have been involved with continued talks with the developer (Cherryfield) about a compromise that would allow him to build without destroying the character of our neighborhood.

If any of you were at the forum today and want further clarification on any of my answers, please feel free to mention that here or via email at Plepel2007@hotmail.com. All and all, I think that the forum went well. In two weeks I will have another opportunity to participate in a public forum. I will do my best express my views as clearly as possible.

Were any of you there? What did you think?

St. Patrick's Day Parade

The Forest Park St. Patrick’s Day parade is coming up on Saturday, March 3rd (yes, I know that is 2 weeks before St. Patrick’s Day). I secured a space in the parade, and would like to extend an invitation to anyone who would like to march along side me to do so. I will have some giveaways (yellow pullovers and hats) while they last.

I hope that some of you will join me for what I am sure will be a very fun day on Madison Street. You are not only welcome to bring children, you are encouraged to do so.

If you are interested in marching in the parade, please email me at plepel2007@hotmail.com or call me at 708.790.8705. If you know of someone else, please extend my invitation to them.

Bill Dwyer (FPR): "Why are you running?"

With the support of my neighbors and the consent of my wife, I made the decision to run for commissioner in late August. Since that time, I have spoken to many residents of the village and discussed a variety of issues. The discussion for some revolves around a specific issue, such as “homes for parking,” while others have more broad concerns, such as preserving the “character of the village.” During each conversation, however, I am invariably asked the same question that Bill Dwyer asked in today’s Forest Park Review: “Why are you running for commissioner?” Make no mistake, this is a different question from “why should I vote for you” or “what makes you a good candidate.” This question, as my cousin Bill Dwyer put it, means “what is in it for you.”

Try as I might, I have not been able to come up with a concise, one sentence answer. I have lived in this area for almost my entire life (grew up in South Oak Park), and in Forest Park since 1999. Like many others, I have grown to love this village and have been blessed with extraordinary increases in my property value. I have seen Madison Street grow, as well as several large developments and condo conversions. As I look around, I see a lot of new faces and a lot of change. Change can be good, but just in case, I want to be in a position to make sure it is.

I have a vision of Forest Park that is inviting to families, and supports its local businesses. I envision block parties, such as my block has held for the past several years, and children playing on sidewalks. I see a vibrant Roosevelt Road retail district that complements the boutiques and restaurants along Madison Street. In my ideal village, residents not only feel comfortable telling their elected officials what they want from the village, they feel an ownership that compels them to do so.

I have no aspirations of a new address along Pennsylvania Avenue, nor am I trying to fill a void in my soul. As clichéd as it sounds, I feel that I have the ability to affect change in a positive way, and I feel enough of an ownership in the Our Village to ask for your chance to do so.

Smoking Ban

It is somewhat surprising to me that this issue has more-or-less “flown under the radar.” The decision on whether to impose (or allow the county’s ordinance to impose) smoking restrictions at bar and restaurants will be a delicate balancing act, weighing the obvious health & safety risks to patrons and employees against the rights of patrons to smoke and bar/restaurant owners to run their business as they see fit. Additionally, the potential revenue loss (if any) to bar owners and the village has to be considered to some extent.

What makes this more difficult for me personally is the fact that I am a nonsmoker. My first reaction is to say “yes, ban smoking anywhere that I may go,” because I hate coming home smelling like smoke. As a matter of fact, I think one of the reasons (though probably not the top reason) I don’t go to bars very often any more is because it is irritating to come home and have all my clothes and outerwear smell like an ashtray. That being said, I have to ask myself if it is right to impose my preferences on everyone else?

I have previously pledged to ask myself the following question before voting on any major issues if elected commissioner: “What is best for the Village of Forest Park?”

I believe what would be best would be to hold open meetings regarding the issue prior to voting on a new ordinance to ban or allow smoking. I would imagine that some of the bar and/or restaurant owners would be willing to participate in a panel. Presuming that most of the bar/restaurant owners are against the ban, we may be able to find an expert or activist in favor of smoking bans in order to balance the discussion.

As previously stated, I think that if I were not a candidate for commissioner, I would be in favor of a smoking ban. In the end, however, our elected officials need to be a voice for the people. This would be a topic in which my ultimate vote would be particularly influenced by public comment and research.

So, what do you think about this topic. As someone who believes that the campaign season should be dialog, I am very interested in your thoughts and views.