Roscoe View Journal – Inside Publications

32nd Ward Aldermanic Candidates Survey

Survey deadlines were 11:59 p.m., January 20, 2011. A complete list of surveys can be found at
www.roscoeviewjournal.com/32ndwardcandidates

Candidate: David M. Pavlik

Candidate Birthdate: 12/25/1981

Home Address:
N. Hamilton, 60618

Campaign Phone Number:

7732368122

Campaign Contact:
david@davidpavlik.com

1753 N. Damen, 60647

david@davidpavlik.com
davidpavlik.com

Campaign Manager: n/a

Marital Status: single

Spouse: n/a

Your Occupation: Budget Manager in the Governor’s Office of Management and the Budget.

Education:
I attended and graduated from St. Nicholas Ukrainian Catholic Cathedral School, St Ignatius
College Prep, University of Illinois in Urbana/Champaign with a Bachelor of Science in
Corporate Finance

Please list civic, professional, fraternal or other types of Organizations to which you belong.
Auxiliary Co-Founder and Board Member -Teach for America, Ambassador University of
Illinois Urbana- Champaign, and Member of St. Ignatius Young Alumni

Have you held elective or appointive political office or have you been employed by any
branch of government?
I was Deputy Director of the Illinois Department of Transportation, and am now the Budget
Manager in the Governor’s Office of Management and the Budget.

David M. Pavlik RVJ-Inside Survey Response – Page 1 of 4

Please list jobs or contracts you, members of your immediate family or business partners
have had with government.
In my roles as the Deputy Director of the Illinois Department of Transportation, and now as the
Budget Manager in the Governor’s Office of Management and the Budget, I have gained detailed
knowledge of the budgetary process. I assisted in the coordination and passage of Illinois Jobs
Now, a multiyear, $34 billion, Capital and Jobs bill that will create over 450,000 well paying
jobs over the next 10 years. I currently help manage the state budget for over 2 dozen state
agencies. This experience gives me the tools I need to be a leader in addressing the budgetary
challenges facing the city.

What, in your view, is an alderman’s job?

The job of Alderman has two main roles. The first is to be the front lines of government for
constituents: anyone with a question that pertains to government goes to the Aldermans office
first. In this regard his job is to be the face and facilitator of city government to ward residents.
Should I be elected Alderman, I pledge that my staff will be courteous, responsive and will work
diligently to resolve constituent service requests. We will work hard to find a solution to the
spiking rat problem, provide prompt garbage pick-up and everything in between. The second
role of Alderman is to work with city officials to balance the city budget. As one of the State’s
budget managers, I have a very strong understanding of the financial challenges and pressures
facing Chicago. I also understand the importance of being efficient and finding ways to cut
spending and streamline operations. I will use my background to help balance the city’s budget
and work to prevent tax and fee increases.

If elected, what would be your immediate priorities for your ward?

The biggest issues are an inability to provide adequate constituent services and how our
community can deal with the current economic crisis. My pledge as alderman would be to
provide superior Constituent Services: My first, and highest priority is to insure that the
residents of the 32nd get the best constituent services available. I also want to promote Small
Business: I come from a family of small business owners, so I know first-hand how important
small businesses are to the City. My family’s business, the Roscoe Village Pub, has had its share
of ups and downs over the years. However, through hard work and perseverance, we have been
able to build our business into a very successful component of the local economy. I recognize
that small businesses are the backbone of Chicago’s economy, and I plan to be their biggest
advocate on City Council.

If elected, what would be your immediate priorities for the city?

Job creation – The current unemployment rate in Chicago is unacceptable. My first
priority as Alderman will be empowering small businesses with incentives so that they can
put more of our citizens to work. I have already hosted a job fair that drew over 150
unemployed Chicagoans and was tremendously successful. I am planning another one for
the month of January. Improve public safety and education – We need to invest as much
money as possible into education and public safety. To remain a first-class city, Chicago
must be safe, and an attractive location to raise a family.

Should Tax Increment Financing districts be eliminated? Why?

David M. Pavlik RVJ-Inside Survey Response – Page 2 of 4

First and foremost, the effectiveness of the current TIF regime should carefully be examined.
Next, the City’s TIF program should be restructured to become more accountable and transparent
to both the residents that fund it and aldermen who should oversee it. There should not be a
rubberstamp process to extend TIFs. TIF spending should be also be subject to an independent
analysis, including a systematic institution of metrics to ensure that the program is successful and
responsive to the needs of the communities they are intended to support.

In what way can the City Council improve its oversight responsibility for government?
I would first strengthen the board of ethics and enforce ethical guidelines and criteria already in
place. I would insist on complete transparency and independence. I also believe we should
protect employees and whistleblowers from any repercussions for accurately reporting any
unethical behavior or actions they uncover. I also believe our ethical guidelines MUST apply to
every government operation including elected officials. Beyond that, I would also reach out to
other municipalities the like and size of Chicago to research their methods for enforcing their
oversight responsibilities.

Would you hire family members for staff or a city government job? Explain your answer.
No.

Would you support a property tax increase? Explain.

No. In these difficult economic times, our homeowners simply cannot be burdened with a
property tax increase. We cannot continue to balance an out of control budget on the backs of
families and homeowners, many of whom are having difficulty making ends meet as it is. If the
hard working families of Chicago have had to do more with less during this recession, then City
government must do the same. As part of that I would propose a reduction in pay for city council
members. As one of the State’s budget managers, I am intimately familiar with the financial
problems and pressures facing Chicago. I also understand the importance of being efficient and
finding ways to cut spending and streamline operations. I will use my background to help
balance the city’s budget and work to prevent

City and teacher pensions are underfunded and city revenues are down. Do you support
moving worker pensions from defined benefit to defined contribution plans?
The City’s pensions have reached a crisis point. That being said, the City made a commitment to
its current employees and must honor that commitment by funding their pensions. As alderman I
will work to insure that the city meet its pension obligations on an ongoing basis. Throughout the
nation, Governments are taking a careful look first at creating a two tiered pension system with a
more market based retirement plan for new hires and secondly extending retirement ages and
contribution levels for new employees to match the increase in median longevity of folks today.

The Lincoln and Belmont intersection is vastly underdeveloped and the development for
old LaSalle Bank building is bankrupt while the PD is set to expire in 2011. What would
you do to improve the area’s prospects?
I would form and work with an advisory committee comprised of the leaders of all the
community organizations, local businesses, active citizens, and local lenders and banks that have
accounts with the city and conduct a meeting to gather input and work on the best methods and
possible solutions to resolve these issues.

David M. Pavlik RVJ-Inside Survey Response – Page 3 of 4

Would you support a Walmart in the Ward? If one was to come, what would be the best
site for a proposed Walmart in your community?
That is a question that should be brought to the community for their input. Additionally we need
market studies and defined development and zoning plans that identify the emerging needs;
commercial, residential, and industrial for our ward. I would inform and consult with my
constituents regarding any major development, which is to in order to both garner input from
residents and businesses and to inform my constituents, which is not what the current alderman
did when Wal-mart approached him regarding opening up a store in the 32nd ward. We cannot
add to traffic congestion and gridlock. I would not support location a Walmart at one of the cities
busiest intersections: Fullerton, Damen and Elston. That was the site discussed by the current
Alderman.

The Belmont Avenue corridor has lost most of its antique stores and has many more
vacancies than Roscoe Avenue. What would you do to improve the street’s prospects?
I would promote Small Business: I come from a family of small business owners, so I know first-
hand how important small businesses are to the City. My family’s business, the Roscoe Village
Pub, has had its share of ups and downs over the years. However, through hard work and
perseverance, we have been able to build our business into a very successful component of the
local economy. I recognize that small businesses are the backbone of Chicago’s economy, and I
plan to be their biggest advocate on City Council. I fully support the use of incentives, including
tax breaks, tied to job creation, in order to stimulate growth in our business community. This is
an essential step in helping to revive our local economy. We must revive our local business
corridors and we cannot tax small business owners into bankruptcy or foreclosure.

Overall crime in Chicago is down, yet the 32nd Ward and the 19th Police District has one
of the highest burglary rates in Chicago. As it seems likely that many sworn officers will be
shifted from the 19th District to other areas in the city, what can be done to reduce crime in
our community?
The safety of our citizens, our children and our neighborhoods must be our top priority. We need
to encourage more community involvement. My campaign is already hard at work with the
CAPS program to enroll folks in the neighborhood watch program. As alderman I would
continue to work closely with the Chicago Police Department, CAPS and community leaders to
address the Public Safety issue. Second, I don’t support the idea of moving our officers out of the
ward to other areas of the city. Current Chicago Police Department staffing and funding levels
are unacceptable; the city is 2,300 police officers short of authorized capacity and community
policing efforts have seen drastic cuts. We must manage our budget and set our priorities so that
rather than accepting the status quo, increase funding of the Chicago Police Department. Police
officers are needed in every part of the city and increased funding will insure that there can be
enough to make every part of the city safe, rather than shifting officers from one part of the city
to another.

David M. Pavlik RVJ-Inside Survey Response – Page 4 of 4