Heed the Advise by Answering These Questions in Hg

Reader asks: Why do we need a sales tax in Homer Glen?
Letter to the editor



September 26, 2007

Dear Editor,

The possibility of proposing a 1 percent sales tax for the village of Homer Glen has recently been publicized. Supposedly, the revenue generated from a sales tax could be used to buy land for a large community park, to build a village hall, pay for flood control and transportation projects, or to set up new village departments. I am interested in what the estimated projected income would be for this proposed sales tax and concerned about the speed with which the idea is quickly moving towards a real referendum.

Why do we need to have our own village hall right now when our government is housed in new expanded office space facilities? Excess vacant strip mall space is abundant in Homer Glen; should the present government's operational needs swell to the point where even larger spaces are required than those recently moved into?

Why do we need another large community park when there are so many within the village confines already? Over the years, large amounts of funding have been spent on open space within this village. Thanks to the efforts of long time officials like Homer Glen Trustee Margaret Sabo, residents can now enjoy the recent addition of significant Forest Preserve land along the 159th Street/I355 exit corridors too--land which could have supported prime retail space for future commercial business and possibly provided some future tax relief.

What other village departments require establishment that might necessitate funding through a sales tax? Is the Village of Homer Glen's administration seeking to establish a new police department within our confines? Will they then need their own building too? Our contracted services with Will County for police services have served this community very well thus far. In fact, recent additions of new police cars and officers were added to the contracted service force already in place.

Homer Glen continues to be a village of growth, and most of its residents will continue to pay for the lack of control it had over this growth in the past. It may be that the next election will see an estimated five referendums on the ballot, and it's likely that two of those will come from the school districts that serve Homer Glen children. In the wake of severely overpopulated buildings, the coming election forces the return of these necessary referendums so that district students can receive the education they are entitled to. Additionally, the needs of the fire department have grown, necessitating another referendum for residents to consider in terms of safety. At the same time, businesses are struggling to open their doors within the village confines, two along Bell Road. Meanwhile, residents continue to shop outside of the village for their retail needs in the absence of what is available within the community.

Recently, the new village administration spent valuable dollars on legal fees to stop a Gallagher and Henry development--money that the previous administration had worked diligently to save after fulfilling the fiscal budget expenses. The administration was successful in stopping the development, but approved the new Jewel proposed to be built on the surrounding land. Do residents realize who actually owns the land the new Jewel is to be built on? Will we ever see the grocery store erected because of the administration's roadblock of the neighboring G & H subdivision? How much of those excess funds were spent on legal fees and was it in vain? For now, Homer Glen residents will have to continue to shop Jewel in neighboring Lemont/Lockport. These communities will continue to realize the tax revenue Homer Glen residents pay when patronizing their stores.

I'd like to suggest that our village administration be asked to reconsider its priorities. In order for a sales tax to be productive, adequate commercial business in the village is necessary. Put the cart before the horse. Spending more money for amenities is irresponsible. A sales tax in this community now will not promote new business development. Rather, it will become one more obstacle to be overcome by potential investors. Unless there are a certain number of households to support them, business development will not progress. People won't shop local businesses if the prices aren't competitive. Sales taxes add to cost. The reality is that we must continue to go outside of our community for many retail needs unavailable where we reside.

The village of Homer Glen will not begin to realize any form of tax balance until there is significant retail business development. Only then can a sales tax, and the proposed amenities it would fund, become justified.

Dana Serpico

Homer Glen