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Boone County Board, Dist. 2 Candidates talk property taxes, water management and rodeos
Northern Public Radio | By Maria Gardner Lara
Published October 7, 2024 at 4:18 AM CDT
Listen • 4:23
Boone County Clerk's Office
The Stellantis plant may have put Belvidere on the map, but it’s part of a larger landscape. There’s a growing industrial base in Boone County as folks also want to preserve the area’s agricultural sector and history.
Here are the candidates running for Boone County Board, District 2, that will help guide the direction the county takes in the coming years.
Voters will be asked to select two candidate out of four listed.
Tracy Rangel (D)
Tracy Rangel
Rangel has lived in Boone County for over 30 years. She is a trustee for Caledonia Township and chair of the Boone County Democratic Party. She also dedicates time to care for her grandson.
She said she’s running to ensure that Boone County is a place where the next generation can thrive.
"I want this area to be ‘hometown-y’ enough," she said, "but responsible enough to also be able to provide a prevailing wage, so kids who go off to college can still come home and find a decent job and a decent living.”
She said with the new development that has cropped up in the county, the water supply and farmland need protecting.
“It's a very fine line to walk between encouraging business and encouraging farmland and farmers,” she said. “I care about both of those things.”
She said the park and conservation districts can be made stronger.
“Boone County is losing prairie land right and left,” she said. “So, we need to emphasize the conservation district.”
She said the development of the railroad and the traffic due to the Rockford’s new casino on Route 20 is also on her mind.
“We are not going to get the money from the casino,” she said. “So, we have to function or facilitate the growth that's going to come down 20.”
Regarding housing, she said it’s a big issue.
“We need to find a way to find some housing for lots of people," she said, "not just rich people, not just poor people, but the median income people who are still struggling.”
Tom Walberg, incumbent (R)
Tom Walberg
Tom Walberg is a fifth-generation farmer in Belvidere. He also sells seeds.
“I'm an organized person," he said, "and pretty analytical on things and fiscally responsible."
He’s been on the county board since 2021. He sits on the education committee and on the board of directors for Growth Dimensions, which is an agency that seeks to drive large businesses to the area.
Walberg said he’s proud of his involvement with Growth Dimensions and the economic development it’s fostered.
Recently, Microsoft announced that it is building a data center on 400 acres near Cherry Valley.
“Those are great jobs for our area," he said, "and I think that's going to create a stimulate our economy quite a bit."
Walberg said it will also lead to a need for housing. And he adds the county board has mapped out what area is best suited for new housing construction.
“The county board comes into play a little bit," he said, "and when it comes into land use and that type of thing with all of our zoning and planning departments.”
A month ago, the board green-lit 3-D mapping of the county’s aquifers, costing about $500,000. Walberg voted against it.
“I would have liked to have seen a broader approach," he said, "and brought in more individuals from the standpoint of cost."
Regarding solar panels, Walberg said he was instrumental in creating an ordinance to limit solar panels to Class C soil, which is least productive.
A divisive issue on the board are the Mexican-style rodeos, as some local residents and animal rights group have called for a ban on the events due to concerns for animal welfare.
Walberg was on the special committee that scrutinized all aspects of the rodeos. He supported tweaks to some provisions, but was against a larger proposal to ban the rodeos in the county.
As far as allegations of animal abuse, he said, “I don't think any animal should be abused in Boone County, but again, we have departments for that. We have a process.”
He said the animal services department and the state’s attorney’s office handle the investigation and the prosecution of claims of animal abuse.
Also, he said he supports the Mexican-style rodeos as a matter of property rights.
“I feel like all landowners should have the right to utilize their property the way that they choose to utilize their property," he said.
Mexican American families have held the rodeos on their property in the county for over 20 years.
Daniel Dupree (D)
Daniel Dupree
Daniel Dupree said the overturning of Roe v. Wade spurred him to get involved politically and run for the county board.
He said he’s concerned for the future for his two baby granddaughters.
“I want them to have bodily autonomy," Dupree said. “I want them to have the same rights that I have as a man.”
Dupree moved to the county with his wife four years ago to be closer to family that live throughout the area.
He’s a disabled veteran and nearly completed a PhD in philosophy. Dupree substitute teaches in Belvidere and Rockford.
He says a big issue in the county is property taxes.
“My property taxes have doubled in three years, doubled,” he said. “I don't understand why we're giving away money to the big corporations out there. “
He said he understand that there has to be incentives for businesses to move into the area, “but you can't do it at the sole expense of the people.”
He said another concern is water management, especially as large businesses move into town.
“A lot of these plants that are opening up," he said, "they are not giving us proper explanations about what's going to happen with their effluent and their runoff, and how much water they're going to use.”
Regarding the debate on the Mexican-style rodeos, he questions the animal rights group SHARK, out of Elburn, who have been calling for a ban. Mexican American families have held the events on their properties in the county for over 20 years.
“Why are they distracting us with this issue that really has already been legislated by the state and federal government?,” he asked. “We've got controls on this already.”
Ryan Curry, incumbent (R)
The fourth candidate who’s on the ballot is incumbent Republican Ryan Curry. He hasn’t responded to WNIJ’s requests for an interview.
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A Chicago native, Maria earned a Master's Degree in Public Affairs Reporting from the University of Illinois Springfield . Maria is a 2022-2023 corps member for Report for America. RFA is a national service program that places journalists into local newsrooms to report on under-covered issues and communities. It is an initiative of The GroundTruth Project, a nonprofit journalism organization. Un residente nativo de Chicago, Maria se graduó de University of Illinois Springfield con una licenciatura superior en periodismo de gobierno.
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