Belleville News-Democrat, 26 Sept 04.

A series of questions put by readers to both candidates for St. Clair County Board chairman.  The Democrat candidate, Mark Kern, declined to answer.

Some questions of interest to us are printed below, along with the Republican candidate, Steve Reeb's, answers to questions  solicited from readers earlier this month by the newspaper.

Q. How would you pay for growth in the county with respect to roads, bridges, sewers and other services?

A. (Reeb ) Growth in the county is costly in respect to new roads, bridges, sewers, etc. This growth must be planned and managed, as we simply do not want to build subdivisions or strip malls on every empty parcel. I am speaking from experience as a County Board member, as I have always taken the side of my residential constituents regarding zoning and growth management.

The other side of the coin is that we are generating new tax revenue with this growth, and this revenue should specifically be earmarked for transportation and infrastructure costs.

Q. Should Frank Scott Parkway and Green Mount Road be turned into four-lane roads? How would you go about raising the funds for such projects?

A. (Reeb) First and foremost, we need turn lanes on our two-lane county highways, especially at the mouths of residential developments. This is absolutely critical for the safety of our families, as we have seen an increasing number of accidents at such sites.

Once we solve this immediate problem, we will look to road widening. Revenue generating in part would come from new development as I indicated in the previous answer. County roads are obviously an integral part of our daily life, and they must be safe both in terms of their condition and their construction.

Q. What is your position on the Illinois 158 corridor, also known as the Gateway Connector?

A. (Reeb) Anything we do regarding the proposed Gateway Connector must take our farmers and existing residents in this corridor into consideration. This dovetails into my call for managed growth in the outer county areas. This is another area that required careful analysis, both financial and environmental, and at this point we need to look closely at how it will affect the county as a whole.

Our farmland is a precious commodity in our county, and again, anything we do must take our farmers into consideration before proceeding.

Q. What would you do to stop the service cuts and restore bus routes eliminated by the St. Clair County Transit District?

A. (Reeb) Public transportation for county residents is absolutely imperative. Many citizens rely on the bus, as well as MetroLink, to get to their jobs, visit their doctor, etc. As County Board chairman, I will do everything possible to make certain we have access to public transportation. It is a necessity and should be there for our residents.

Q. What are you going to do to bring businesses and industry back to St. Clair County?

A .(Reeb ) This is a tough question to answer in short form. First of all, we have so many positive aspects to our county: St. Clair County is a transportation hub, it is growing as a communication and information center, and we are a short drive from a major city, St. Louis. Plus, it's just a great place to live.

In some areas of the county, we are seeing exponential growth as new businesses come in. We need to see such a business renaissance across St. Clair County. As County Board chairman, I will work to provide tax incentives in areas that we need to work to develop, such as East St. Louis, while also working with our existing businesses in the county to make sure they stay. Along with these efforts, I will continue work throughout the county to attract business and industry.

In doing all of these things, we will generate new tax revenue to support our infrastructure and bring even greater success to St. Clair County.