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Name: Barbara Larson
What office are you seeking? 2nd ward alderman
What is your political party? non partisan
What is your current age? 69
Occupation and employer: retired agriculture
What offices, if any, have you previously held? countless committee chairs at my church including ad council, music boosters at dhs, chair at family service agency board to name a few. also 2nd ward alderman last four years
City: dekalb, il
Campaign Website: barblarsonforalderman.com
Education: B.S. speech communication niu
Community Involvement: i donate all my city salary to 501c-3s in town. i cook for hope haven and the warming center at the unitarian church; i donate to barb city manor and barb food mart as well as to rooted for good. i supported the dekalb police department fun jam in the park. i have been on the environmental commission, the university collaborative as well as the dekalb county convention and visitor bureau. i support the arts through the egyptian theatre and commissioning a local artist to create a collection of paintings highlighting local spots. the completed ones are hanging in city hall.
Marital status/Immediate family: married for almost 47years with 2 married daughters who call dekalb home.
Questions:
What is your opinion of roundabouts as a means of traffic control/infrastructure improvement? Would you like to see more of these in DeKalb? Less? Why or why not?
i know that road safety studies seem to show that they are safer for both pedestrians and cars. i also know that most people find them confusing as there are not many in dekalb. i have been walking my ward, talking with the residents, and people are either 100% against them or 100% for them, no middle ground. i am thankful we voted to have an in-depth study conducted to see what might work best at north first street and dekalb ave. i also will promote residents to attend any meetings that deal with this intersection or any future intersections.
What is your opinion of the use of non-disclosure agreements between public government and private businesses? Do you believe they have a role in soliciting major corporations to the area? Why or why not? Please be specific.
yes. when our library was looking to expand, a resident bought 2 properties that were needed at current value for the library. once it got out that the library was looking to expand, the price of the remaining properties skyrocketed. if a company is looking to relocate or expand to dekalb, they shouldn’t have their companies expansion plans made public for all to see including their competitors. this is especially true when negotiations are still happening.
Do you believe DeKalb’s crime-free housing ordinances are successful as they are now? Do you believe more could be done for DeKalb tenants in rental communities? Why or why not?
i think this was a great first step and is a great base to build on. we need some time to let landlords and tenants get some experience on how well this can work if people believe in it and use it when landlords aren’t holding up their side of the rental agreement and also if tenants are abusing it from their side. the more it gets used, the more we can tweak the ordinances, and maybe add new ones to cover new issues and ultimately make it even more successful.
In the past two years, the DeKalb City Council has earmarked additional funding in its fiscal budget which has gone to hiring for police and fire departments. The DeKalb Fire Department is building a fourth fire station on the south side. What is your opinion of first responder staffing in the city? Do you believe its adequate? Why or why not?
when i was elected 4 years ago, we still had fire engines responding with 2 fire fighters on board along with an ambulance with 2 on board. if there had been a fire as well as injuries, the fire engine may not have been able to pull a hose as it takes 3 people, and if both paramedics were busy, that meant only 2 firefighters were available. we also were awarded the SAFER grant which covered 3 people for 3 years, and that grant has been extended. firehouse 2 on south 7th street is so small and outdated. most equipment can’t fit inside the 2 bays and the need for co-ed sleeping quarters is woefully inadequate.
Are you in support of recreational marijuana licenses for DeKalb businesses? Why or why not?
i 100% supported this. when i have gone to our local dispensary, i usually see many mature people who are using cannabis to help with chronic pain and not as many college age people. it is unbelievably and strictly monitored, much more than alcohol and tobacco.
Since 2020, DeKalb city leaders have pointed to industrial growth on the city’s south side (Meta, Ferrara Candy Co., Kraft Heinz, Amazon) as a way to lower taxpayer burden when it comes to property tax levies. What other ways, if elected, would you ease taxpayer burdens? Do you believe more could be done now? Why or why not?
dekalb is still playing a game of catch-up. we still have vehicles in all departments that all well over their normal life spans and these vehicles do heavy duty and we have miles (and miles) of city streets that are in terrible condition. now we need to try and keep our tax rate steady which means added tax dollars so we can get our city really looking good.
Should local law enforcement cooperate with ICE to identify and deport immigrants who do not have legal status to be in the United States?
no, it is an immigration problem.
What are your top three priorities for our city, and how do you plan to address them?
bring more industry to the south side, encourage a housing development to build in dekalb, and keep our tax bills steady or slightly lower. actually these three things work together to make each happen along with lowering the crime rate over the last 4 years. dekalb has become more attractive to businesses looking to relocate or grow and to developers with our tax rate dropping so rapidly and having large companies like meta, ferrara and kraft heinz already here. this will increase our budget which will help us really pave miles of roads each year and get caught up.
How do you intend to balance economic development with environmental sustainability in the community?
we have environmental protection laws and limits already in place, concerning not just wetlands but other criteria as well. every project has unique concerns that are identified early and worked on to have a successful finished campus, not only to the owner but to the city and wildlife.
What are your plans for enhancing public transportation and infrastructure in the city?
we are currently working on getting a new transportation center built with a grant from the state on dresser road. this will have the capability to charge electric buses, that are hopefully in the near future for dekalb. the transportation department is constantly looking at and revising routes based on need and ridership. while we were doing a study on the possibility of getting train service to dekalb, we started running additional routes to elburn and that has turned out to be a well traveled route. we have also added routes to the south side to meet the time demands of all 3 shifts, starting and ending.
What role should the city council play in supporting local businesses and economic growth?
first we need to be business friendly. to be available and to help newcomers work their way through any and all of our requirements. we also need to be equally as friendly to businesses who have been here through thick and thin, helping out with some safety repairs or making their business ada accessible. we need to have a vision of what dekalb wants to be today, 3 years, 5 years, 20 years. while we had opportunities to have more gaming places or tobacco stores or liquor stores, to help in the short term, we didn’t feel like that would be the right course to where we saw us as a family friendly town later on.
What are your top public safety concerns for our community and how would you propose addressing them?
public safety is such a broad term. the license plate readers have made an unbelievable difference in reducing crimes from people who were cruising in and getting stopped before anything happened as well as finding illegal drugs and firearms and wanted criminals. dekalb is getting the reputation of not being friendly or an easy mark to criminals. since the council voted to tear down the strip mall at hillcrest and annie glidden, there is no convenient spot for criminals to meet, hang out, etc. our police force now has several social workers who go on domestic violence calls and can de-escalate the scene without violence or incident. all of these have reduced homicides, shots fired, etc. this also means the police have more time to do more patrolling for speeders, dui stops, neighborhood watch, etc. we didn’t get here overnight and we won’t ‘fix’ it overnight, but we are definitely heading in the right direction.
How will you ensure that city policies promote inclusion for all residents?
2 policies/directives that happened regarding immigrants within the last year were regarding buses coming from our southern border. we encouraged them to come during business hours so we could get them settled in a safe place before dark BUT if that didn’t happen there were contingency plans to make the best of it until the next business day. we also directed our police force that informing or helping ICE was not part of their job description. last meeting the mayor addressed the horrible incident where store owners of hispanic heritage received hate letters. some are american citizens, some were born here. either way this is unacceptable in dekalb and the police are tracking down the sender of these letters. dekalb has a growing pride fest parade and market for the last 4 years. when an apartment building burnt down or another one lost its boiler for several days, it didn’t matter your name, color, race, we found housing and a hotel room to get everyone out of the cold until more permanent plans could be made.
Do you support requiring government officials to publicly disclose potential conflicts of interest, and how would you enforce this?
yes but i am not sure how these forms are verified. i just received my form and as always filled it out and returned it. i own property in dekalb as does our family farm. i have recused myself from the discussion and vote. the mayor often does as he owns property and a business in a tif district. i don’t know if it needs to be plastered across the front page of the paper, but it does at meetings where votes are happening.
How will you make sure you are accessible to your constituents?
as i have since i ran 4 years ago. my personal cell phone number is listed on the city website. residents can email me, call me, text me directly. my goal is to answer any question and concern within 24 hours, tops. often times i am at their house, within an hour. if it is a continuing problem such as an abandoned house going into foreclosure, i will pass along all the info i receive regarding the timeline and the process involved, often lasting several months. i work for them.