Richard Dawson, host of TV’s “Family Feud”

In my younger days, staying home from school on a sick day meant catching up on the daytime game shows that I never had a chance to watch. Wow, I’m really dating myself here, because this was even before we could record shows on the Betamax! Well anyway, my favorite game show was “Family Feud,” hosted by TV star Richard Dawson (who remembers “Hogan’s Heroes”?) I loved the idea that they could survey groups of people on various questions, and make a game about guessing the most popular answers. Anyone who uses social media today knows that surveys are still popular, and we’ve probably all had our email inbox invaded by a “survey monkey” at one time or another. The Village hopes that your enthusiasm for participating in surveys is not a thing of the past, because we are getting ready to mail out an important set of questions in the next week. As much fun as it was on the show to watch contestants guess the answers, the Village Board would prefer to KNOW your opinions on current issues in Long Grove.

This summer, the Trustees will be making some very significant decisions and I hope that you will add your voice to the process. We have just finalized a resident survey that will be sent to all Long Grove households. The goal of this survey is to help inform the Board of the feelings of the residents regarding various aspects of community character and values that will be reflected in the update of our Long Grove Comprehensive Plan. This plan is similar to a “blueprint” and helps guide staff and elected officials in the ongoing shaping of our Village, especially in regards to zoning, open space, commercial development, infrastructure maintenance and capital improvements. The Village Board would like to know your thoughts on these important topics, so please take the time to fill out and return the survey when you receive it.  While we won’t have the excitement of a TV host dramatically revealing the answers to us…”And the Survey Says….”we will have a valuable prize instead–community participation.