If Republicans are to regain control on the McLean County Board and break the current 10-10 split, they'll need to oust at least one Democratic incumbent.
There's a two-term incumbent Democrat seeking re-election to represent Bloomington's near east side.
Republican David Dunn cites two reasons why he decided to run for County Board. Last year, there were gunshots outside the home Dunn moved into six months earlier. Six months after the shooting Dunn got his property tax bill. He says that got him thinking about who was representing him in local government.
“Specifically at the county level, there was a mismatch in values between me and my current representative and a mismatch in priorities,” Dunn said.
Dunn said his top priority is supporting law enforcement. He said we wants to boost pay for McLean County sheriff's deputies to reduce turnover and keep the department fully staffed.
Dunn's opponent in Democrat Val Laymon, first elected to the County Board District 7 seat in 2020 and was reelected in 2022. Laymon notes the county has already worked to boost pay not only for sheriff's deputies but for many county employees. That came after a salary study.
“Our folks in county government across the board have essentially been at a pay structure that isn’t aligned with our peers,” Laymon said.
Budget
Dunn raised concern about the county's budget and said he'd look for ways to trim it. Dunn was short on specifics but said he supports the referendum to eliminate the county's elected auditor as a good start.
And Dunn said his background as a commercial banker would help him be a budget hawk.
“That gives me some added context that I hope as an elected board member I will be able to use to provide greater scrutiny and greater care for taxpayer dollars,” Dunn said.
The county has historically kept its tax rate about the same year-to-year. Tax bills have gone up in recent years because substantial community growth drove up property values.
Dunn said he'd like to see the county avoid raising the tax levy, regardless of growth.
“If we get into the position where we are running surpluses where we feel like we can reduce the rate, I think that would be something we should strive for,” Dunn said.
Next year's budget is expected to be about 6% less, largely because federal COVID relief money is going away.
Laymon, who is a manager in talent development, said the county used that money to get caught up on many long-delayed infrastructure projects.
She said the county's history of conservative budgeting has forced it to spend more money later. She cites the Lagoon at Comlara Park and the roof of the McLean County Museum of History as two examples.
“For the longest time, the county has been really focused on keeping the belt tightened and kicking a lot of really important projects, some really important preventative maintenance things, down the road,” Laymon said.
Housing
Laymon said she would like to see the county take a greater role in addressing the housing shortage.
“We need to put our focus on affordable housing, focusing specifically on making sure we have low-income and medium-income housing options available,” Laymon said.
Laymon said the county should work closely with Bloomington, Normal, the Economic Development Council and McLean County Regional Planning Commission to figure out solutions. Laymon said demand that's driving up prices is also driving up everyone's tax bills.
“That’s one of the big things that’s weighing on folks, because the housing shortage actually has a spillover when we are thinking about how the county operates in a lot of different ways,” Laymon said.
Dunn said that's where he would start on the housing issue. He said higher taxes may drive away developers from building more rental units.
“Because if we are driving up rents for a variety of factors that people are unwilling to pay it, then it won’t make sense to pursue that development,” Dunn said.
Carbon capture
There's one key issue where Dunn and Laymon agree: When it comes to carbon capture, proceed very carefully.
Carbon capture is designed to contain the climate warning carbon dioxide by injecting it deep into the earth.
Laymon said she supports the county's renewable energy efforts and push toward environmental sustainability, but she still needs convinced that any carbon capture near the Mahomet Aquifer would be safe.
“Making sure that the public has access to uncontaminated water, making sure that there is no drilling that happens through our aquifer, through that vital water source,” Laymon said.
Dunn says carbon pipeline projects should be considered case-by-case and pipeline companies should be held accountable.
“We want the developers to have to monitor above the project, below the project and around the project to make sure that we have full coverage in case a leak were to happen,” Dunn said.
There's currently a statewide moratorium on carbon capture pipelines as the state looks to adopt new safety guidelines.
Election day in Nov. 5. Early voting is underway.