District 300 Supporters Embark on Grassroots Campaign Against Sears Extension

District 300 officials and parents have launched a grassroots campaign aimed at educating the public on how the extension of the Sears agreement would impact area students.

In an effort to keep state legislators from extending the Sears property tax incentives for an additional 15 years, D300 supporters have taken to tactics such as passing petitions, arranging targeted calls and talking with parents’ groups.

“We just now are starting to get out the word,” said Nancy Zettler, a retired attorney who helped form Advance 300, a group of volunteers who are working closely with District 300. “Most people don’t understand this—it’s a complicated issue.”

Advance 300’s main goal at this point is to build momentum and to get some key decision makers to attend District 300’s Sears EDA Informational Meeting on Oct. 13, Zettler said.

To do this, she organized a call-drive to contact lawmakers, and other elected officials, who have control over the fate of the EDA extension and District 300.

“Yesterday we did state Sen. Dan Kotowski and so many people called that they actually shut down his phone line for a while,” Zettler said.

The targeted calls will last throughout the rest of the week.

District 300 passed a resolution Tuesday evening at a special meeting, formally opposing the amendment that would extend the Sears agreement.

“Our position is that if it is truly an issue deserving of state-level attention, then let’s collectively own the issue rather than forcing it onto the back of one community,” D300 spokeswoman Allison Strupeck said.

The district’s short-term goal is to have Amendment 3, which would extend the tax incentives and cost the district $14 million per year, removed from Senate Bill 540. If that is to happen, the district would like to see the Illinois Legislature use 2012 to develop alternative legislation that would provide some incentive for Sears, while not harming the school district, Strupeck said.

The senate plans on voting on the bill in its veto session scheduled to begin Oct. 25.

“People have asked ‘Why are you just coming out now?’” Zettler said, “We like to get our ducks in a row before we start talking about things. It took a long time to research. We did due diligence and met with local legislators so we could get their take on it, too.”

Parents and district officials are not the only ones voicing their concerns over the possible extension of the Sears EDA agreement.

Municipalities such as Algonquin, Gilberts, West Dundee and Carpentersville have either passed or are talking about passing resolutions that are in support of District 300, Strupeck said.

Algonquin passed a resolution Tuesday evening that asks lawmakers to involve District 300 in conversations with Sears.

The key right now for District 300, Zettler said, is to build momentum up until the Oct. 13 meeting, "so we’ll get a lot of people at the forum, and then we’ll try to do our best to explain everything at that forum.”

Due to a large response, the Public Information Forum at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 13. is being moved from its scheduled Westfield location to in Algonquin.