My Answers to Reporter's 2026 Candidate Questions

 

Background

8 years as Kronenwetter trustee. Numerous chairmanships, etc.

Why are you running for the Kronenwetter Village Board, and what perspectives or experiences would guide your approach to the role?

As a life-long resident of Kronenwetter, my perspective has always been to advocate for the rights, best interests, and overall good of the taxpayers who live here. I stay independent of cliques or other little special interest groups.

I never thought of myself as working for "the village", but instead, I work for the benefit of the people first and foremost.

In other words, while I often work with staff, Board members or committees on a positive basis, when the interests of the Village administration, employees, or Village "establishment" conflicts with transparency, rights, benefits or other obligations to the people, it is the benefit to the people that is my priority.

This is not always an easy position to maintain, but it is one of the reasons that people support me as trustee. It has caused many people to appreciate my principles.

8 years as village trustee has been an excellent learning experience in real world local government. I hope to continue using that experience to advocate for those (the taxpayers) who own a stake in the Village.

Kronenwetter has experienced ongoing debate in recent years about governance, spending priorities, and the direction of village leadership. How would you approach promoting trust and maintaining productive working relationships within the board and with residents?

I try to stay positive no matter what the adversity, but let's be realistic; Kronenwetter has a real problem with trust among the Board members, and trust by the people toward the government; especially in the past few months.

For example, the Board recently made an absurdly irresponsible vote in favor of a 17 acre sand pit permit near a single family residential neighborhood, and by the Maple Ridge interchange. I opposed that, and I don't think the people are going to forget, or ever trust the Board members that voted for it.

My record shows that I have consistently advocated for transparency in government, for the best interest of the people, and for accountability in government.

Social media often reflects criticism of the Board for doing this or that. What they do not seem to recognize is that for the most part the votes are NOT unanimous. Very often, I am the vote in opposition to those unpopular Board decisions, and with good reasons.

I have from time to time reminded Board members of their oath of office, Constitutional obligations, legal and moral obligations, facts of the issue at hand, rules, statutes, etc. but sometimes to no apparent avail.

The unprecedented secrecy surrounding the latest (2026) budget is another case in point. With four brand new members on the Board, and another two in their first term, I was the lone voice advocating for how the budget process was supposed to involve COMPLETE TRANSPARENCY and INVOLVEMENT of the PUBLIC.

Due to the imposed secrecy, and then rushing the approval through, we now have a budget that was hailed as "balanced", "excellent", etc., but instead, it shuffled funds away from public works and to general operations, and to cater to special interests. This in turn created a hidden obligation to borrow funds for road projects which normally would have been paid for by revenues. Only now is the borrowing starting to be revealed publicly. I voted against that budget for these very reasons.

So to your question of promoting trust between residents and the Board, my answer is ultimately for voters to KNOW WHO YOU ARE VOTING FOR, and don't just guess at checking boxes on the ballot.. Vote ONLY for those you think you can trust to do a diligent job.

Kronenwetter has seen a lot of turnover in staff in recent years. How would you address it?

This was an issue in the 2022-2023 time period with numerous departures for numerous reasons. We addressed it long ago by raising wages to a competitive market level.

We had a number of INTERIM administrators who were hired on a predetermined 90 day or other intentionally limited time basis. When they came and went as expected, critics of the Village misrepresented that as being "high turnover".

The last employee to leave was the village clerk about 15 months ago amid numerous election violation complaints, most of which have panned out to be confirmed by WEC.

So it has been pretty smooth sailing since then, but that is not to say that other issues have not or may not pop up.

On the upside, I have advocated for improved, more rigorous hiring practices as a solution to making better hiring choices.

Residents often raise concerns about property taxes and village spending. What priorities would guide your approach to budgeting and managing long-term financial stability?

I have always been a proponent of money management and controlled spending, However, board members all seem to have different ideas of what that means.

I tend to think and rethink larger expenditures to make sure that there is not some other way to spend less if possible, to achieve the same result, or whether or not we need the item at all. If we are rushed to approve spending for something, or it has missing information or not fully understood, my default is to vote against it.

For example, the Board currently decided to spend $20,000 on a legal project, with unanswered questions regarding the necessity of it. I voted no.

$3000 for a consultant to advise on a TID 5 plan, when such a plan had no factual basis and was very unlikely to materialize. I opposed it.

An $800,000 garage was budgeted without any known research, with no details, and very little justification for anything larger than something one/third that size. I voted against that budget.

For the short term, I favor line-item budgetary accountability. That system was recently replaced with a "cost center" system that allows for overspending, and then reshuffling funds to pay for it without elected official knowledge or approval. We have yet to see how that will work out. I voted against it.

For the long term, I am in favor of a fundamental, objective, extensive efficiency audit of all Village operations.

I am not entirely against debt, but I do not agree with those who regard debt as a normal, desired outcome. Debt is costly, and the only reason that the Village is doing so well right now on paying off the old debt, is that much of it is at a rate below 1% interest. This was achieved through refinancing that I initiated, and worked to make happen. This reduced our debt by a huge amount.

Debt can certainly be used effectively, but only if the conditions are right (low interest, etc) and when we can show an over-all financial benefit by using it.

Kronenwetter is working to attract new development. How should the village balance economic growth, infrastructure needs, and preserving the community’s character?

I have seen plans for nearly 300 new homes in two new subdivisions likely coming over the next few years.

I maintain contact with people who would like to get projects going. I prefer to see larger lots, with plenty of space dedicated for parks in each neighborhood.

Water and sewer infrastructure is usually paid by developers. Traffic studies need to be done.

This is what the Plan Commission does; reviewing and checking these things, and to develop zoning ordinances. There are rules, regulations and criteria to be met to make sure things are done in a proper and orderly way.

But the rules and criteria are only as good as the people implementing and enforcing them. We need knowledgeable, level-headed trustees and appointees for these positions.

Transparency and communication have been recurring topics in Kronenwetter politics. What steps would you support to ensure residents are well informed about village decisions and have meaningful opportunities to participate in local government?

As mentioned above, I oppose government secrecy, as that usually means they are hiding something. Even as trustees, we are faced with information bottlenecks, and have been locked out of relevant information by the the administrator and/or president. It seems to be the new normal.

I submitted an HR rule change to the APC chair for committee discussion. It is basically a whistleblower protection change intended to allow department heads and employees to communicate with trustees without fear of retaliation from their supervisor.

I have posted a lot of information on my blog www.kencharneski.com whenever I can.

I am always willing to talk with the public, hear their concerns and provide straight answers whenever possible.

I have advocated numerous times for better sound quality on the meeting recordings.

What do you see as the most important issue facing Kronenwetter over the next five years, and how would you address it as a member of the village board?

I guess that since we have covered a lot of topics already, I would have to say that what Kronenwetter needs is a fundamental upgrade in ideals and PRINCIPLES to operate by.

We have had at least three ethics codes, and they have failed because they were created for unethical and politicized reasons. Fundamental principles are not like an "ethics code", or mission statement.

A good set of principles embedded into a code of conduct would be a guide to decision making. not a political weapon. Clear basic principles makes decision making better and easier because it eliminates all the mind clutter of typical politics, factions, etc.

Is there anything else you would like voters to know about your priorities or vision for Kronenwetter?

In the past year as chairman of CLIPP committee, we have completely revised our local election ordinances in an effort to maintain more honest elections. That may not sound too exciting, but it was important to get done, and it took a lot of committee effort to accomplish.

We are expanding the walking trails in the wellhead area for public enjoyment. They should be completed by this May.

We have created the village's first swimming beach area at the Municipal Pond. That will be ready sometime this spring.

The long lines at the yard waste site have been greatly reduced by using my layout design. I heard that it was pretty frustrating before.

Some of us are establishing good working relationships with property developers, so we are making progress that area as well.

In the coming year, if I am re-elected I will work for village interests regarding the County Highway Facility. There is no reason to let them just walk into our village, occupy prime development land, and get a free ride at the Village's expense. We can change that to make things more equitable.

I will work on the following: 

I will advocate for more public park areas in the new subdivisions. 

Initiate a plan to upgrade more efficient hiring practices.

I will advocate for transparency and early public involvement in the budget process, and as always, for government transparency in general.

I will work toward initiating an efficiency audit project to potentially revamp Village operations to be more cost effective while maintaining quality services.

Whatever unforeseen problems come our way, I will put my best effort into dealing with them.

I ask the people of Kronenwetter for your very important vote in this election to continue my work as village trustee.