TRANSCRIPT of Greg's candidate statement (November, 2000):

Hello. My name is Greg Mathews and I would be honored to serve Glen Ellyn as Village President. This is a chance to tell you a little about myself and my thoughts concerning the office.

The job of the President and Board of Trustees is three-fold:

• First, it is to set policies to be followed by our village staff for the provision of government services. These are roads, water, sewers and police protection. Addressing these basics is the Board's most important function, and the Board's tool is the village budget.

  I would continue our emphasis on service and achieving a balanced budget. I am also mindful of the serious responsibility owed to the residents of Glen Ellyn to use their tax dollars wisely.

  I would strive to continue to build and maintain bridges between the Village and other taxing bodies, like schools, parks, and neighboring communities, to avoid duplication of efforts and obtain the benefits of cost-effective, shared services where possible. Again, the basics are most important.

• The second task of the President and Board is to resolve the issues of our individual residents. This starts with listening, both by the board and the village staff. It continues with gathering information and sharing it with the community.

  We have come a long way in keeping our residents informed and responding to their needs, but let's not stop. I would like to see the Board look at fully utilizing our existing assets, like the Public Access and Government channels, and further to develop Web and E-mail access to our staff. I would also encourage the Board to look at the computer technology available to evaluate building plans and help our staff in rendering accurate and faster opinions for the permitting process.

• The third job is to lead discussion on issues of general interest to the community. For example, in the next several years I see the Board continuing to address business and residential development. We have seen this in the Vision Glen Ellyn process and the current Comprehensive Plan and Zoning Code reviews. It is clear that we seek to maintain the character of our community, but we must recognize that it is just that character which attracts people and developers to our town.

  We should identify and define our strengths and urge positive development consistent with those strengths, but we should be careful not to close out development or the economic gain to our community that goes with it. The Board should be guided by the input and recommendations from our advisory commissions and special resident committees, and encourage the public to participate.

The job of the President then, is to provide the leadership to achieve our goals. A good leader begins by listening. He or she must bring direction and focus to discussion of issues, must accept the right to different viewpoints and encourage debate, and must lend calm when conflicting ideas or personalities arise.

The President should work with people, the board, residents, petitioners and staff, not against them. He or she should bring issues to resolution, and make sure that the reasoning behind any board action is explained, and then be prepared to take the heat.

I believe I will bring these leadership qualities to the job of President.

To tell you a little about myself...

• I graduated from Glenbard West in 1973. I went to Yale University for undergrad and Indiana University for law school. I have been in law practice since 1980. I suppose my first real leadership experience came playing quarterback for Glenbard many years ago.

• More recently I have gained experience from serving as Village Trustee and on three volunteer commissions over the years since the eighties.

• I have served as Chairman of the Cable Commission and I currently serve as President of the Economic Development Commission.

• I was also honored to serve as Acting Village President at the end of my Trustee term, when my fellow Trustees voted unanimously to place their confidence in me to fill the role.

I am frequently asked why I would volunteer to run and serve as Village President. The reasons are clear to me:

• I have lived in Glen Ellyn for most of my life and I love our town.

• I believe in our volunteer spirit and believe I have experience and abilities to contribute to our community.

• I have found it personally rewarding to serve in the past and I want my children to feel the same way that I do.

Please turn out for the Town Meeting on November 18th. I would appreciate your vote.