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Home > City Government > Mayor's Office
From the Desk of Mayor Valerie Burd...
March 17, 2010
Buy the Old Jail from Kendall County? Build new parks and look at buying more open space? Pass wind energy ordinances instead of focusing on issues like the city’s budget?
I know that many residents wonder what the mayor and City Council are thinking when we spend time discussing and planning new parks and museums. They wonder if we don’t realize we are in the middle of the worst recession in our lifetimes. People are losing their
homes, their jobs. We may look like we aren’t paying attention to these serious issues. We are paying attention.
Responding to this recession is the motivator that drives almost all of our actions. Falling revenues, like the sales tax and personal income tax, and late payments—the state is now four months behind in paying out sales tax revenues to the City—greatly impact the City’s ability to provide services to our residents.
City staff reviews our budget almost daily to make sure that not only are we
not losing ground in keeping our general fund deficit-free, but that, by the next fiscal year beginning this April, we can actually start putting some money into our depleted fund balance so that we can continue to meet our obligations.
We have cut personal; we have frozen salaries for the past two years; we have cut spending by more than $1.5 million. So why are we building parks? When we
build these parks, we do so because we are required to do so. We are spending land cash money donated to the City by developers. The City is not only obligated but mandated to spend that money on developing parks. We can not spend land cash money to fix our streets or pay staff wages. Sometimes we use land cash money as a match for grant money so that we can stretch the dollars to buy more open space.
This grant money has been designated by the state or federal government to be used for the development of
parks or the purchase of open space. Some people believe we shouldn’t apply
for these grants because they are funded with our tax dollars. I believe we should get our money back for our taxpayers’ benefit, and I will continue to direct City staff to apply for as many grants as we can.
It’s grant money that is funding the City’s proposed purchase of the Old Jail—$160,000 worth of grant money. Why do we want the Jail, and what does it have to do with getting us out of a recession?
Economic development is the key to getting the City back into prosperity. Helping our existing businesses stay viable and encouraging new businesses to locate in Yorkville will keep the jobs we have and open the door to new employment opportunities. One of the key national drivers of economic development is the tourism industry. The U.S. government reports
that $691 billion was spent in 2008 on tourism in the U.S.—85 percent of it on domestic travel. By developing a living history museum that celebrates Kendall County’s past and educates people on how this jail once was used, the Illinois Tourism Bureau tells us that we will be able to attract a large group of tourists who are interested in visiting such facilities. In addition, we will also be able to get a
much-needed parking lot on the City’s west side to benefit downtown businesses. And we will be bringing more foot-traffic to the downtown shopping area.
At present, Yorkville is home to the largest outdoor water park in the state—Raging Waves. This summer, another water park—a White Water park—is slated to open at our downtown riverfront—1,000 feet of whitewater canoeing and kayaking.
Already, the City has gotten E-mails from kayak and canoe clubs that want to come try this new facility—which is another “one of a kind” in our state.
These tourist attractions– water parks, museums and other entertainment facilities that are in the works—will be bringing new sales tax revenue to our community. Tourists will eat at our restaurants, shop at our stores, buy gas at our gas stations. And they will attract and encourage new restaurants and shops to open their doors.
The hard truth is that government runs on our tax dollars. New sales tax revenue, combined with fiscal responsibility on the City Council’s part, will keep our real estate taxes from rising in this recession.
-Mayor Valerie Burd
You can also view the city's Downtown Vision Plan, Master Facilities Plan, Appearance Code and Economic Incentive Program by clicking below.
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