The Fox River and the natural beauty of the river walk is an amenity the village of Oswego needs to do a better job of promoting to tie that into business development and attracting more people downtown, according Gail Johnson, newly elected village president. Photo by Kelly Hartford

Since winning the election for Oswego village president, Gail Johnson’s phone has seemingly been ringing nonstop, she says. Many of them are calls of congratulations, but many are people calling with ideas they want to share about what they want to see for the village, she said.

That outpouring of ideas is just fine with Johnson.

“People are excited about the future,” she said.

Johnson, who was has served on the Village Board for four years, was elected April 7 along with three new candidates for trustee, Ryan Kauffman, Joe West and Karin McCarthy. Incumbent Village President Brian LeClercq did not seek another term.

Johnson wants to build on the excitement she feels and hears from residents for change by getting them more directly involved in village government. One of those ways is to revive committees with resident participant.

“I think there is great value in having diverse voices. If you have more ideas and talents brought to the table everyone wins,” Johnson said.

And while every idea may not be acted upon or followed, other ideas can be developed through continued conversation, she said.

One clear idea for Johnson to build on is strengthening and diversifying the local economy.

“(Our campaign) ran on Oswego is open for business again. We have eight years of stagnation to make up for,” Johnson.

Johnson has some specific areas of the village she wants to target for development – Route 30, Orchard Road and downtown.

While manufacturing and heavy industrial is not likely a good fit for the village that has no direct connection to the tollways and interstates, Oswego’s economic development corporation has been trying to attract lighter industrial to its business parks. Online shopping distribution centers and smaller corporate entities are a good fit, Johnson said.

The village needs to sell the quality of life that companies can offer their employees by relocating to Oswego, Johnsons said, citing the schools, the library and park district.

Oswego also has a major attraction that the village has not done enough to promote, the village president-elect said –that attraction being the Fox River and the downtown riverwalk.

“I believe in land conservation. That is so important for future generations. We have to take advantage of our natural resources by selling that atmosphere along the riverwalk,” Johnson said.

Promoting the recreational aspect along side the businesses can really boost the downtown, she said.

“We need to build that up to say ‘Hey come and spend the day exploring the river and the natural area and then stay for a nice dinner and shopping,” Johnson said.

She wants to change how the downtown district is generally viewed in terms of boundaries, by expanding it two blocks on all sides. “We have to have the tools in place to (grow the downtown),” Johnson said.

Changing the view of things will be a collaborative effort, she said, as Johnson wants the village to work more closely with the schools, parks, and other community entities to share resources to make improvements. “We need more transparency and more problem-solving meetings. We can do better and do more with shared resources and communication to keep Oswego such a great place,” she said.

One of the first real challenges Johnson and the new board will have to face is the deep funding cuts proposed by Gov. Bruce Rauner. Municipalities across the state are being told they will have to do with about 50 percent less in state revenue sharing than they have been getting for many years.

The cuts, part of Rauner’s proposal to manage the state budget deficit, will make a big impact on Oswego and other communities as they use those funds to cover some basic local services, including but not limited to police, fire and road maintenance. A reduction in state funds would mean either cutting services or finding new local revenue sources.

Like other Kendall County leaders, Johnson said Rauner’s deep cuts are not a long-term fix for the state and the governor is not realizing the many services municipalities and counties provide to residents at a local and regional level on a daily basis.

Metro West Council of Government, a nonprofit organization that represents municipalities throughout Kendall, Kane, and DeKalb counties, has taken a tough stand on Rauner’s budget plans calling them “severe” and “extremely disappointing.”

The funding cuts would represent a direct loss of approximately $37.5 million for the 34 communities who are members of the Metro West COG.

State revenue amounts to 11 percent of the city of Yorkville’s annual general fund budget or $850.000. To put it in perspective, the costs for police officers’ salaries alone $1.6 million, and that does not include sergeants and support staff and administrative.

For the village of Plano, reduced state revenue would mean a 10 to 15 percent hit, more than $530,000, to its general fund, the one which covers such services as police and snow plowing.

Oswego alone has said it stands to lose approximately $1.5 million, representing a 9-percent reduction in the village’s general fund.

Johnson praised the village staff for being on top of this issue and other concerns. “I am so excited to hear from our staff and see what they have to offer. They are very professional,” she said.

She and staff members will be heading to Springfield in the coming weeks to meet with local legislators.