WHAT WE STAND FOR
We are a coalition of neighbors who love our town and want it to become the best version of itself that it can. City Hall has veered away from its mission to serve the people and has prioritized its own welfare and preservation as a corporate entity. Let's reverse that trend and put the people back into the driver’s seat of West Chicago government.
WeGo for the People seeks to change City Hall by instilling four core qualities into its corporate culture:​
While each of these qualities are virtues which our city officials profess to uphold, their actions often tell a different story. WeGo for the People has proposed eight specific initiatives by which a commitment to each attribute can be demonstrated:
​
1
TRANSPARENCY
Communicate openly,
irregardless of how it affects
City Hall's public image.
3
ACCOUNTABILITY
Be willing to explain actions, admit mistakes and put the community above one's self.
4
INCLUSIVITY
Embrace our town's distinctive bilingual character and empower our Spanish speaking community.
TRANSPARENCY INITIATIVES​
1 Livestream all city council and committee meetings and provide publicly accessible recordings.
2 Require that the city council hold a town hall meeting once per quarter where the mayor and city council members must respond to residents’ questions and comments.
​ INTEGRITY INITIATIVES​
3 Install an ombudsman accountable to the city council
4 organize a resident led commission to evaluate code enforcement, inspection services, the violation complaint system, and administrative adjudication procedures for unfair or discriminatory policies or practices.
​ACCOUNTABILITY INITIATIVES​
5 Task the ombudsman to investigate why significant water billing mistakes were made between 2013 and 2016 and release a public report.​
6 Appoint a credentialed forensic auditor to proactively review city finances and operations every two years.
INCLUSIVITY INITIATIVES​​
7 Provide two-way Spanish interpretation at all public city meetings,​
8 Provide bilingual staff members at the front desk of all public offices.
TRANSPARENCY
City Hall has a basic responsibility to let the public see decisions being made and the process by which they are made. The community has a right to to this information irregardless of how it impacts City Hall's public image. Transparency goes beyond mere compliance with state laws. Good leaders desire an involved and informed community. They are proactive in making information accessible and actively helpful in responding to requests.​​
INTEGRITY
The powers and resources which are entrusted to elected officials and civil servants come with a responsibility to use them justly for the good of the community. Those in positions of authority who are not committed to honesty and justice can all too easily use that power to abuse those under their sway. The individual resident is powerless if city officials turn the levers of power against them. Leaders who act with integrity will always use their position to serve the public, not themselves.
ACCOUNTABILITY
The powers and resources which are entrusted to elected officials and civil servants come with a responsibility to use them justly and to help all community members. Those in positions of authority who are not committed to honesty and justice can all too easily abuse those under their power. The individual resident is powerless if city officials turn the levers of power against them. Leaders who act with integrity will always use their position to serve the public, not themselves. City staff should be a resource for the community, not their opponents or enemies. They should not be tyrants who demand to be treated with abject submission. They are there to help residents thrive, to safely and effectively complete projects which will improve their property and allow them to enjoy their residences more fully.
INCLUSIVITY
Over 50% of the West Chicago community speak Spanish in their homes. This diversity is what propelled us to be ranked as one of the top 20 communities to Raise a Family by Fortune magazine. This is an asset which should be embraced and utilized. And yet our latino community is vastly under-represented by our city government. City Hall needs to work diligently to make all city processes and resources accesible to our Spanish Speaking community
EXAMPLES OF THE NEED FOR TRANSPARENCY
Recent actions by West Chicago City Hall demonstrate a desire to work in obscurity and to conceal information which might be damaging to their public image. Examples of this trend include:
​
-
The 2022 elimination of the City Clerk as an elected position without a referendum or any public input Did You Know? West Chicago Alters Governance, Raises Questions
-
The unwillingness to disclose any details which would explain why the water billing fiasco was allowed to happen between 2011-2018 Software Problem Leaves Residents In The Dark On Water Bills Four Years Later Water Billing Still a Problem In West Chicago
-
The unwillingness the city has shown in 2024 to provide public information about attempts to remediate radioactive waste at the city owned 119 West Washington complex Brownfields clean up grant application
-
The reticence to make city council and committee meetings available by streaming until forced by public pressure in June of 2024. First Stream of a West Chicago City council meeting. Committee meetings are still not streamed.
-
The city’s failure to take action or inform the public about lead pipes in the water grid until they were forced to by The EPA Lead and Copper Rule revisions which had a 2024 deadline. Jan 15, 2021 EPA LCRR compliance fact sheet Other communities have been proactively replacing lead pipes for years. West Chicago City Hall seems content to do the minimum necessary to stay in compliance. Here’s an example from neighboring Geneva of a replacement program that has run since 2020 Geneva lead pipe replacement Wheaton Replacement program
-
The city’s reticence to seek public input about a second Waste transfer station until forced to by public outcry West Chicago Residents Push Back Against Another Waste Facility Notices and hearings did not provide Spanish speakers with opportunity to give their input.
-
Numerous occurrences of the city withholding information from FOIA requests from community members and journalists between 2022-2024.​​
​
Update: as of June 17, 2024 we had our first victory. City Council has partially adopted this measure by streaming City Council Meetings on Youtube. We still call on City Leaders to stream all committee meetings and to provide a permanent archive of these recordings.