Candidates respond to Q&A
Compiled By Scott Bellile
Hortonville Trustee Jeanne Bellile is challenging incumbent Village President Al Habeck for his post.
Habeck, a retired Neenah Foundry employee, has lived in Hortonville since 1979.
Bellile worked in the village’s administration office for 17 years before joining the village board three years ago.
The two responded to a Press Star questionnaire ahead of the spring election Tuesday, April 2. Responses have been lightly edited for grammar and flow.
Why are you are running for village president?
Jeanne Bellile: I am running for village president to be a strong leader within my community, to be a voice for all residents and businesses and to promote our village as a friendly, growing place for families to live and work.
Al Habeck: I want to lead the village of Hortonville to a time that we can provide more and better services without raising our water rates.
Summarize your leadership experience and management style.
Bellile: While running a restaurant with my husband for 14 years, I did everyday operations of the business from inventory, accounts payable, receivables, payroll and managed employees. I have been involved in the community with organizations such as Hortonville Youth Sports. Now I am involved as a chairperson for the Public Works Department as well as served on the public safety and senior committee as a board member. I like to be transparent to the public and open to feedback and suggestions from employees, residents and businesses alike.
Habeck: I have been village president for the past two years and a member of the board (on and off) since the mid-1980s. I am also the chairman of the Black Otter Lake District and have been a member of that board (again off and on) since the mid 1980s. I was a supervisor at Neenah Foundry for four years and a union officer before becoming a supervisor. My management style is to allow the people we hired to run the day-to-day operations and to watch that what is done is in the best interest of Hortonville. My leadership of the board is to have complete openness and total truthfulness.
What are examples of a success and a shortfall you have observed in Hortonville in the past year?
Bellile: The village of Hortonville has been successful in continued residential growth. The shortfall is we may need to revisit our downtown zoning ordinance in order to retain or add new businesses because we don’t want to lose any business, big or small.
Habeck: The success that has happened the last few years is the growth of the village. This growth has helped our financial situation so that we could continue the services we have and to expand some others. The shortfalls have been that this growth has not been enough to do the street work that is needed in the village. There is the possibility that in 2020 there may be enough to do some of that work.
Do you have ideas on ways to increase revenue and/or cut expenses in the village?
Bellile: We can increase revenue by continuing to grow our tax base through new residential and business growth while helping existing businesses to prosper. Keeping building permit fees reasonable will encourage growth now and in the future. If we continue to grow as we have been in the past year, we will be able to lower expenses.
Habeck: Although grants can be a source of revenue, it is not a source that can be counted on. Grants are very competitive and not easy to get. We did receive a grant for Grandview Road that without it we may not have been able to do this project. A source of revenue that may be more reliable is the village becoming developers. There are other communities that are doing this and we are looking into their successes or failures.
Are civic engagement and public participation at sufficient levels in Hortonville? And how do you view Village Administrator David DeTroye’s proposal to form a nonprofit volunteer organization called Helping Hands in Hortonville?
Bellile: We are doing well in this area but there is always room for improvement. Helping Hands was just presented to the board and is a new group that Administrator DeTroye is trying to form to get volunteers to be involved in helping residents in the community. Volunteering to help anyone in our community is a good thing. We will be presented more information in the Village Voice coming out soon and at the March 28 Educational Expo at Hortonville High School.
Habeck: Our civic engagement and public participation is adequate but could use some new ideas. This is where David’s proposal to get more volunteers could help. We have an excellent base of volunteers, but with the same people being relied on over and over, they can become burnt out. For this reason, it is helpful that David’s Helping Hands proposal can help get new people involved and bring new ideas to the board.
What can you or the village board do to keep the proposed State Highway 15 bypass a priority at the state level?
Bellile: I was at a Town Hall meeting hosted by Hortonville Administrator David DeTroye on March 18 with State Reps. Gary Tauchen and Jim Steineke; other trustees; village president; public works director; officials from Hortonia, New London and Greenville; Hortonville School bus director and Dean Steingraber of the Outagamie County Highway Department to get a bypass update. We all need to stay involved to let the state know we support the bypass and to keep us updated on when it will be put in the budget as well as a start date.
Habeck: The only thing the village of Hortonville can do about Highway 15 is keep letting state representatives know the importance of the project getting done. Letting them know that the village and surrounding communities want and need this project for the betterment of each community.
Can and should Hortonville do anything to support the state Department of Corrections’ proposed juvenile correctional facility in the town of Hortonia?
Bellile: I attended the Hortonia Town Board meeting on March 19 to get a better understanding of the information they had on this project. The town of Hortonia has a lot of questions that need to be answered before they decide what decision they will make on a juvenile correction facility. They are trying to put together a meeting with the state planners and Gov. Tony Evers in April. I will continue to attend meetings to stay informed.
Habeck: The village of Hortonville needs to stay neutral on this subject at this time. Maybe at a future date there could be a reason to become involved.