Palatine Township Trustee Candidate: Kevin McGrane

Palatine Patch will be helping you get to know the candidates for the upcoming special primary for Palatine Township. Meet Palatine Township Trustee candidate Kevin McGrane, who is running alongside ten other candidates in the February 26 special primary election. 

1) Name, office being sought, professional background, community affiliations, experiences that you feel qualify you to run for this office.

Kevin McGrane, running for Palatine Township Trustee

7 year employee with CDW in sales

Community Affiliations:

• Palatine Jaycee member
• Board member for Palatine Township Republican Organization-Secretary
• Palatine Township Precinct Captain

Experience:

I have spent the last 7 years helping Fortune 500 companies increase effeciency and save money through the use of technology, and I intend to bring that expertise to township government. The days of saying "this is how it has always been done" are over. We need fresh ideas, creative partnerships, and a slate of candidates that have the energy and passion to make that happen. 

This is what I will bring to the Trustee position, as I know that rest of the slate will as well. 

2) How long have you been a Palatine Township resident? 5+ years.

3) What are the reasons you chose to run for office? (for the upcoming election)

Since moving to Palatine, I have been active in Republican politics with the Palatine Township Republican Organization and in helping Republican candidates get elected. Through this process, and in talking with other members of the township government, I have seen areas where reforms are badly needed. Enacting these reforms with the help of everyone on our slate wil be priority number one for me. 

I model my conservative beliefs after Jim DeMint; where term limits, balanced budgets, cutting programs that are ineffecient and finding ways to save the taxpayers money without diminishing services is the ideal model for good government. 

If elected, I intend to work hard to accomplish all of the above!

4) List 2-3 top issues-and how you plan to address them-that you believe are important to residents living in Palatine Township.

Our slate has discussed in depth the path we envision for the next four years. We would like to cut 5% of the budget by brining salaries on par with other local municipalities, ending pensions for part-time employees, and reducing costs associated with overtime. 

We also intend to enact a plan that involves more public input. We have been walking neighborhoods all over Palatine Townhip and most people are unaware of what township government does. That must change. We would like to involve the community more through email, Facebook, townhalls and polling that asks the residents how they would like to see their money spent. It is shocking to me this isn't already being done.

The third issue we are focused on is making sure all taxpayers are benefitting from township services. Currently that is not the case. We must look at our current services to ensure they are sustainable, especially the senior bus program where we need to reduce the average cost per ride by either increasing ridership or reducing expenses otherwise fares will go up for riders. We must also do a better job at screening to ensure benefits are going only to truly needy citizens.  

5) What improvements, if any, would you like to see in the way that Palatine Township is run?

I would like to see Palatine Township run with more involvement from the community. When a public servant knows that they will be in office for 1-2 terms max then it is in their best interest to make sure they are doing what's right for the community as opposed to ensure they stay in office. This is why our entire slate has committed to term limits. Cutting the budget, making government more transparent, and engaging the community is teh best way to run government, and we will enact those reforms if given the chance. 

6) Additional comments.

For more information about our slate, our platform and upcoming events, please visit our website: http://betterforpalatinetownship.com/index.html

"Doing Things Better for Palatine Township"

7) Biographical information, family, children, upbringing, religious beliefs, etc. (optional).

I grew up in Elmhurst where I was the oldest of 3 boys. I moved to Palatine 5 years ago and bought my first home near downtown Palatine. I have been married for 3.5 years.