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Ben Zacharias
Occupation: Electrician
Why are you running for this position: I spent the last two years as a Village Trustee. I have learned a lot about how the Village operates. I have seen the progress we have made, and I would like to continue helping the Village move forward.
What do you hope to accomplish in this position? I hope to continue improving the Village’s infrastructure, especially roads, sewer plant and parks.
Why should people vote for you? Even though I was not born here, I have made Wild Rose my home. I have raised my children here and I have a lot of pride in the Village. I want to see Wild Rose continue to be a great place to live.
Why do you feel you are qualified for this position? I feel, with my construction background, I can provide insight and guidance with many of the Village’s projects.
What are the key issues you see, and how do you plan to address them? Infrastructure- I plan to address this by improving roads and the sewer plant.
Keeping property taxes down — I plan to keep the community members in the forefront when voting on financial issues.
Safe community- I plan to continue to focus on community safety.
Steve Yeska
Occupation: High School Social Studies Teacher
Why are you running for this open position?
I have had the honor of serving the citizens of Wild Rose on the board the past four years and I believe that there is still work to be done. Serving on the village board and working with other board members has been a very rewarding experience. We work well together and put a lot of thought and consideration into the decisions we have to make. As the youngest member of the board I believe I bring a unique perspective to the decisions at hand. I would love the opportunity to continue to serve the citizens of the Village of Wild Rose for the next two years.
What do you hope to accomplish in this position?
If re-elected to this position I hope to continue the work to make improvements to the roads in our village. I helped to develop our five year road plan which identified roads that are/were high traffic and most in need of repair. I hope we can continue to move forward with properly repairing the roads identified in that plan because it will help improve the overall infrastructure for the village. I would also like to find ways to attract new business to the area. Wild Rose is a great place to live and I want to see that continue and the village grow for generations to come.
Why should people vote for you?
I take a common sense approach to the issues and concerns facing the village. My mindset at the village board meetings is “what will be best for the citizens and village as a whole?” No decision is going to make everyone happy, but overall I believe the key decisions that the board has made over the past four years have moved the village forward in a positive direction. We recently replaced the aerators in pond 1 of the sewer plant and found ways to do it that were cost effective to the village, led to no disruption in sewer use and service, and had no environmental impact. We also repaired portions of several high use roads last summer, with hopefully more to come. We were able to accomplish this all while keeping tax increases to a minimum.
I hope I have been a positive board member for the citizens of Wild Rose these past four years. If you think that not only myself, but the board as a whole have done that, I hope you will consider voting for Myself, Ben Zacharias, and Harold Hansen on April 2nd.
Why do you feel you are qualified for this position?
From an early age, I have been interested in government whether it is the local, state or federal government, specifically how it functions, the procedures, and overall how laws/ordinances/and policies get enacted. Since being elected I have learned a tremendous amount about local government. At the same time, through walking and running, I have visited almost every street in the village. I see first hand through this what the issues are in the village, as well as the overall beauty of this community.
What are the key issues you see, and how do you plan to address them?
I believe the key issues are continued road improvement, along keeping taxes low or tax increases minimal, but still improve our community and provide the same if not better level of services to the citizens. How do we attract new business to the area? To address these issues, I will work with my fellow trustees, our awesome village employees, and the citizens to identify the needs and concerns of the village and arrive at a reasonable solution.
Perry Drmolka
Occupation: Retired
Why are you running for this open position? I believe as a trustee for the tax payers of Wild Rose or employee, you need to have an open ear. I believe I have that.
What do you hope to accomplish in this position? Better communication between village employees and community members. Tax payers concerns need to be listed to. They do vote for the trustees after all.
Why should people vote for you? I have an open ear to suggestion or problems. I've worked for the village as Waste Water Operator and Street Supervisor for over 10 years.
Why do you feel you are qualified for this position? I’ve been on the board and know budgeting issues. I believe we need to push harder for grants. I’ve helped the village receive grants in the past.
What are the key issues you see, and how do you plan to address them? Committee and board members have to have more day to day contact with village employees. Bidding standards need to be set for bigger jobs to make it more competitive.
Craig Szymborski
Occupation: Retired
Why are you running for this open position? I’m retired and feel I have the time to dedicate to the community and board. I have the time to listen to the concerns that arise in the community and bring them to the board to address.
What do you hope to accomplish in this position? The goals should be to make Wild Rose a beautiful, safe and affordable community to live in.
Why should people vote for you? I have lived in Wild Rose for the past 45 years and love this small beautiful community.
Why do you feel you are qualified for this position? Having served on the board in the past, I believe I have the versatility to keep our town going forward.
What are the key issues you see, and how do you plan to address them? I do have small concerns of our community and if I got on the board, I could address these concerns. I could bring community concerns to the board and make a difference.
Harold Hansen Jr.
Occupation: Retired – Fire Service/Paramedic + Corporate Global Security and Safety
Why are you running for this position? I have been a trustee for the last two terms. I will continue to serve the Village of Wild Rose and all its’ village residents.
What do you hope to accomplish in this position? To continue to assist the Village Board with providing balance and fiscal stability.
Why should people vote for you? Resident of village over 25 years, and I am a stable hard working individual.
Why do you feel you are qualified for this position? My entire career I have been working in customer service in the fire service and emergency service, the largest non-profit organization in San Diego, CA and formate company in Oshkosh.
What are the key issues you see? How do you plan to address them? Continue village financial stability and supporting all residents of the village.
Robert Erickson will also be running on the April 2 ballot for Wild Rose Village Board. His responses were unavailable at the time of print.