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Full Name: Timothy Morgan
What office are you seeking? Campton Hills Trustee
What is your political party? This is a non-partisan election.
What is your current age? 60
Occupation and Employer: COO for Spanesi Americas
What offices, if any, have you previously held? I am on an Advisory Committee for Waubonsee Community College. I am also a past president and current Board Director of a national organization called Equipment Tool Institute (ETI) that was founded after WW2.
City: I grew up in Cleveland, OH, worked in Michigan for 14 years and later came to Illinois for business. I currently live in Campton Hills at my family’s Campton Equestrian Estates property.
Campaign Website: Morgan4Trustee.com
Education: I attended Cuyahoga Community College and started my first business when I was 19 years old.
Community involvement: Community involvement and giving back is one of my primary focuses. My family runs a non-profit called 2nd Chance Ranch in which we rehabilitate troubled dogs. In addition to this, my family is a Kane County Adopt-a-Highway sponsor and we provide litter control on a portion of Corron Road. We also sponsor a Wasco Fast Pitch team, are a Gold Level Campton Township Open Space sponsor, and provide support to police dog K-9 Koda and the Campton Hills Police Department. Multiple times a year we provide meals to local D303 families in need. We also support Waubonsee Community College by providing equipment to their collision repair program.
Marital status/Immediate family: I’m happily married to my wife Penny and we have two daughters One is a junior in high school and the other is a senior in college.
Why are you running for office?
Four years ago, I started attending village meetings and quickly realized the board was not being transparent and properly representing its constituents. This led me on a quest to talk to as many residents as possible. The feedback I received motivated me to run for office. It also became clear that many trustees do not prepare ahead of the meetings. You can tell who is reading their board packets and who isn’t. The residents deserve trustees that show up on time and actually do their homework. As an attendee, I often feel like I’ve spent more time researching Agenda topics than some trustees do.
What makes you qualified for the office you’re seeking?
In my 40+ years in business, I have held positions from facility owner/operator to senior management positions with global corporations. My current position is COO of an international company and I’m personally responsible for their business in three countries.
My specific strengths are in finance and management. I am extremely passionate, committed, and devoted to the roles I choose to take on.
What is your position on the Illinois weapons ban that took effect in January 2023?
I am running for a position that is bipartisan and can’t see how this question even applies. However, I can say that I’m a full supporter of our nation’s Constitution.
Is crime a problem in your community and, if so, what would you do to curb it?
We are fortunate to live in one of Illinois’ safest communities, and according to Safewise.com, we are ranked 12th safest community in the country. We have a great police force. After many conversations with our Chief of Police, Steve Millar, he would tell you that our crime levels would be even lower if residents would lock their cars in their driveways and keep their garage doors closed.
What is your assessment of how the COVID-19 pandemic was handled locally?
I feel the Governor’s Covid-19 Stay-At-Home Order had a significant impact on local businesses, especially restaurants. This Order caused hardships, both for the businesses and their patrons. It’s also my understand that the current Village President made it even more difficult for liquor license holders when acting as Liquor Commissioner.
What did you learn from the pandemic?
I learned our residents are divided on this topic. Some residents believe in more regulations and some don’t believe there should be any. I feel we all need to be better prepared for any unexpected emergencies.
How would you spur economic development in your community?
As a public official, I will make it a priority to frequent all businesses in the Wasco Business District in an attempt to find out how the village can best support them. As a Trustee, our current Village President voted to dissolve the Economic Development Committee. I will persuade the board to resurrect it so our businesses can get the attention they deserve.
Another way to attract people to town would be by hosting events or festivals. Whether this be partnering up with our Township Open Space to sponsor concerts or movies in the park, smaller scale events like car or tractor shows, educational children’s events featuring residents’ animals... the possibilities are endless.
Would/can/should local governments do anything to help reduce the tax burden on residents?
Our municipality does not levy property taxes. As trustee, I will work diligently to balance budgets so there will never be a need for a tax referendum.
Do you support recreational marijuana being sold in your community to help lower residents’ tax burden?
Campton Hills already receives revenue from marijuana dispensaries from the state. I would consider the financial merits of any petition that came before the board, but since the Village does not have an additional sales tax, this question does not really apply and recreational marijuana would not effect a tax burden since we have no municipal taxes.
What projects or infrastructure would you look to address in your community and how would you do it?
Road maintenance will always be our greatest infrastructure need. As we rebuild roads, I would like the village to evaluate already existing easements and see how we could incorporate funds to create recreational space for our equestrian travel, cyclists and snowmobile riders.
While it was great to get our police facility up to date, spending $1.5 million remodeling a very limited size Village Hall seems excessive. I wish the public would have had more input on how this grant money was used. For example, I would have liked to see a whole Community Center developed for that amount of money.
Another concern is addressing the failing drain tiles in the community. We need to continue to look for grants to address this issue.
Will you accept the voters’ decision in your race on Election Day?
Yes, the voters are the voice of our community.
What is your position on open, transparent government?
This is one of my top concerns and an area that needs to be improved. Because the Village refuses to live-stream or record their meetings, have a presence on social media, or provide detailed meeting minutes, residents are forced to attend meetings in-person or hear about them second-hand. Recently, residents have come together to stream Village meetings on their own. This should never happen and the administration should WANT to be transparent, creating more community engagement and connections with their residents. The website needs attention as well. It is not user-friendly enough and many documents are missing.
Do you support the Freedom of Information Act and citizens’ ability to freely access government records?
Of course I support transparency and the freedom of information. The Village denies too many FOIA requests on the basis of being “unduly burdensome”. They obviously need to change and make transparency a priority.
Would you sign a nondisclosure agreement with a prospective company that would limit your ability to communicate with your community?
There is not enough information provided to accurately answer this question. Are you asking about a non-disclosure because of a bidding process or a non-disclosure to protect a company from exposure? This is too vague of a question to answer anything other than a NO.