Wolf vying to regain seat on Sugar Grove village board

Joseph Wolf probably wouldn't raise any eyebrows if he said he was content with his present level of community involvement.

After all, he was the Sugar Grove citizen of the year in 2007, an award bestowed for years of giving.

Wolf, who has lived in the same Sugar Grove house since 1960, also serves as a member of the Ride in Kane committee and as liaison to the Aurora Airport, which lies within village boundaries.

He spent 14 years serving on the Kaneland School District board, three of them as president.

But at 74, he's running for village trustee again after serving one term from 2003 to 2007. Wolf was unseated in the April 2007 election by Melisa Taylor.

"I was kind of disappointed," Wolf said of the defeat. "I was out-campaigned. I never had a good feel for why I lost.

"It's important that you learn how to establish relationships with people when you work on boards with them," he said, adding that he considers himself a good listener who "actually hears" the concerns of others.

Now he wants to use those listening skills to make changes in Sugar Grove government.

"I feel we've missed the boat by not being developer friendly," Wolf said.

"This recession will be over in two or three years and we have to be ready," he added. "I feel there needs to be changes in the way we operate."

That, Wolf said, includes revisiting increases in developer fees and requirements builders set aside 40 percent of their land for open space.

"It's good to have trees and shrubs, but this puts us in a poor economic position," he said. "When you're adding thousands of dollars to what it would cost (developers) to build a house in a surrounding community, it doesn't make sense."

Wolf wants to see affordable housing in Sugar Grove, which he believes has become too costly for the middle class. More homes, he believes, would attract retail and commercial development, broadening the village's tax base.

Wolf is seeking one of three open trustee seats, along with incumbents Robert Bohler and Thomas Renk and newcomers Rick Montalto and David Paluch. Incumbent Mary Heineman has filed as a write-in candidate.