Sugar Grove Village Board candidates sound off on village taxes, development during forum

The five candidates running for the three open trustee seats on Sugar Grove’s Village Board discussed finances, development and more during a candidate forum Saturday afternoon at the Sugar Grove Public Library.

Incumbents Matthew Bonnie and Heidi Lendi are running along with newcomer Bela “Bill” Suhayda and a pair of familiar faces in Sean Michels and Anthony “Tony” Speciale in the April 4 consolidated election.

Michels served as a trustee from 1997 until he became village president in 1999, where he served until 2021. Speciale recently retired after working as Sugar Grove’s public works director for nearly 20 years.

Bonnie, a veteran police officer with the Aurora Police Department and the father of 2-year-old identical twins, said he’s running alongside Lendi and Speciale.

“I run alongside, not with, but alongside, Heidi Lendi and Tony Speciale,” he said. “I work with them for a purpose, and no other purpose than they are three great people, myself and those two. I have personally vetted them and I know that I can attach my name with their name and know my decisions and their decisions are the right ones for the village.”

Lendi, an architect with two teenage daughters, said she loves the dual identity of Sugar Grove and wants to protect it while welcoming growth.

“We are part suburb and part rural and I love that, and from what I’ve heard that’s what we want to keep,” she said. “We want to make sure we’re careful and we maintain that dual identity and keep our small town charm while attracting the commercial businesses and amenities that the residents want and need.”

The time spent serving on the Town Center Committee as well as the Aurora Airport Advisory Board have inspired Speciale to contribute even more as a potential trustee.

“I love working with the board and keep work moving forward,” he said. “And my experience in public works covers roads, water, sewer and all those other things that we live with day to day.”

Speciale acknowledged that residents want a small town feel yet they want to do things in Sugar Grove.

“They don’t want to go to another town to do different things,” he said. “So they have come to me and asked what we can do for that and that was the impetus of the Town Center Committee. It’s all about make a livable community for everybody, all age groups.”

Michels is concerned that everybody’s voice isn’t being represented and that his return would offer an independent one.

“I’m running for a variety of reasons, the most important reasons being an independent voice, experience and community involvement,” he said. “I believe the Village Board needs a trustee that will raise questions to ensure that the village continues to grow in the right direction. Not only do questions need to be raised, suggestions on new projects of ways to make the village better need to be brought up to the village board.”

Suhayda disclosed that he’s never been in government before, but is very willing to learn.

While a Sugar Grove resident for 16 years, Suhayda recalls seeing the village when Interstate 88 didn’t even exist, flying around the Sugar Grove area after earning his pilot’s license at the airport in the 70s.

He explained that he loves the area for its natural beauty and trails and hopes that they won’t be lost by development.

“Obviously with progress that’s not always possible,” he said. “You have a trade-off in terms of sometimes nature kind of gets forgotten and progress is what we need. We do need a tax base. We do need to give our people tax relief.”

And honesty, too.

“People are very suspicious of government, because sometimes we say something and do another,” Suhayda said. “So that is an important issue, of course, for the board to get involved with. I am in favor of intelligent growth; growth that brings in some prosperity and jobs and also maintains the aesthetic qualities of our community.”

Michels has concerns about what’s happening with the board today.

“The village budget will have nearly a million-dollar surplus at the end of this fiscal year,” he said. “With this large surplus of revenue, why did the board raise the tax levy? Other communities and the county have gone eight to 10 years without raising the tax levy. Why is there still a $6.48 road tax on water bills? Why did the village sell two buildings and lease one back? These questions and more need to be asked and debated. An independent voice is needed on the board.”

Bonnie said he continues to be “pro-smart growth.”

“I am a critic of TIF – it is a burden on other taxing bodies such as police, fire and even this library,” he said. “I believe there is a right time and place for TIF though, but the overall using TIF as a gift just to get developers here is just not appropriate. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I work for the residents of Sugar Grove. I don’t work for the developers.

“It’s got me in some hot water in the past by saying it, but at the end of the day, what I said is I truly work for you, not for other people.”