2015 PAFR
A Citizen’s Guide to
Local Financial Activities
Fiscal Year Ended December 31, 2015
A Message
From the
Village President
“The Village of Buffalo Grove’s
greatest resource is its volunteers.
They donate endless hours to make
our community great!”
Your Elected
Officials
Public Records
Looking for meeting infor-
mation, to contact elected
officials, review financial
information or request
public records? One visit
to the Village’s Transpar-
ency Portal web page
brings all of this infor-
mation and more at the
click of a mouse.
http://www.vbg.org/817/
Village-Transparency
Buffalo Grove Wins
Tree City USA
Award for 28th Con-
secutive Year
Tree City USA recognized
the Village of Buffalo
Grove for its dedication to
community forestry
management. The Village
maintains a forestry
department, has
community tree ordinanc-
es, spends over two
dollars per capita on trees
and celebrates Arbor
Day.
Village of Buffalo Grove Receives 2015 Innovation
Award from Lake County Municipal League
The Village received the award due to its role in developing an Information Technology (IT)
Consortium called GovITC, along with Lake Bluff, Kenilworth, Glenview and Lincolnshire.
Each of the communities now outsource their IT functions to the same service provider, which
allows greater availability of programming and security specialists. The five community mem-
bers currently serve as back up and disaster recovery sites for one another, in addition to host-
ing email archiving which all serve to drive down cost.
The Village has saved $240,000 annually on staffing costs, while IT speed and reliability has
increased. Other benefits include improved decision making and faster resolution of IT related
issues. The Consortium’s long term goals include developing a five-year technology plan, and
to share a data center and server space for joint software programs. The Lake County Munici-
pal League recognizes municipalities who have developed strategic programs that solve munici-
pal challenges and increase the effectiveness of local government. The awards program also
creates an opportunity for the exchange of information and experiences to build capacity for
Village Clerk’s Office
The Village Clerk and Deputy Village Clerk maintain all of the
Village’s official records, meeting minutes and documents on
behalf of our residents. In addition, a range of services includ-
ing business and liquor licensing, voter registration and munici-
pal code updates are provided daily.
Contact the Village Clerk’s office at (847) 459-2511.
It is with great pleasure that the Village of Buf-
falo Grove elected officials and I provide the
annual “A Citizen’s Guide to Local Financial
Activities” for the fiscal year ended December
31, 2015. It is my desire to deliver the resi-
dents of Buffalo Grove an overview of the Village’s progress and financial performance
that is transparent and easily understood. This report summarizes the financial activities
of the Village and is not intended to replace the Comprehensive Annual Financial Report
(CAFR). The full disclosure financial statements, or CAFR, can be found on the Village’s
website at www.VBG.Org.
The analysis conducted within this report outlines growth drivers, capital projects, and
summarized financial and trend data. The presentation of financial information in the
report has been derived from the audited financial statements and conforms to generally
accepted accounting principles (GAAP) and related reporting standards.
The Village will continue to make financial presentation and transparency a priority and
provide open communication with its residents and businesses. It is my hope that the
information and data contained in the 2015 guide to local financial activities will provide
the reader a snapshot of the challenges and opportunities the Village of Buffalo Grove is
managing today and into the future.
Sincerely,
Beverly Sussman
Village President
www.vbg.org
Jeffery Berman, Trustee
Joanne Johnson, Trustee
Lester Ottenhieemer, Trustee
Andrew Stein, Trustee
Steve Trilling, Trustee
David Weidenfeld, Trustee
Quality of Life in Buffalo Grove Enjoying Buffalo Grove
Buffalo Grove
Days Relocates
Labor Day
Weekend
Enjoy food, fun, music,
carnival games, fire-
works and more at this
four-day celebration.
Located at Mike Rylko
Park 801 McHenry Rd
Buffalo Grove, IL
60089.
National
American Public
Works Assn.
Awards Buffalo
Grove
Excellence in
Snow and Ice
Control
This honor has been
presented to the Village
of Buffalo Grove for its
excellence in the man-
agement and admin-
istration of public works
snow and ice opera-
tions while promoting
best practices that mini-
mize environmental
impacts.
The Village of Buffalo Grove is located approximately 33 miles northwest of downtown
Chicago and 20 miles north of O’Hare International Airport. The Village’s land area is 9.3
square miles, with 21.7 percent of the area in Cook County and 78.3 percent in Lake
County. Neighboring
communities include
Arlington Heights,
Lincolnshire, Long
Grove, Riverwoods,
Vernon Hills and
Wheeling. The Vil-
lage’s current popula-
tion is 41,987 (2014
Village estimate).
Buffalo Grove was incorporated in 1958 and experienced strong growth in population and
land area for several decades. The Village’s Comprehensive Plan projects the Village’s
land area could reach approximately 11.2 square miles.
The Village has ex-
cellent transportation
access for residents,
businesses,
employees and
visitors. The Village
is served by the
Metra North Central
rail line connecting to downtown Chicago and O’Hare airport. Pace bus service provides
access to adjacent communities, the Metra Milwaukee District North rail line and the
Skokie Swift CTA Yellow Line. The regional road system serving the Village includes
Aptakisic Road, Buffalo Grove Road, Lake Cook Road, and state routes 21, 22, 45 and
68, with direct links to Route 53 and Interstate 94.
The Village’s commercial
base includes several corpo-
rate business parks, a diverse
retail sector and a wide range
of professional services, in-
cluding medical facilities. The
Village’s residential areas in-
clude single-family neighbor-
hoods, townhomes, condo-
miniums and apartments. The
housing stock is very diverse,
with units of different sizes
and designs available at vari-
ous price points to serve the
community’s population.
The Village is served by four
elementary school districts and two high school districts, all of which consistently receive
acknowledgement for providing high quality education for children and young adults in
the community. Buffalo Grove is served by two library districts and two park districts. The
Village has over 800 acres of parks and open space, including two municipal golf courses
and a substantial bike path and sidewalk network. Numerous opportunities for cultural
and entertainment activities are available for residents and visitors.
From January through December, Buffalo Grove
offers many opportunities to enjoy community.
Buffalo Grove residents place a high
priority on quality events and programs for
their families. During the warmer summer
months, many events are going on
throughout the Village, such as:
Rotary Village Green concerts
Lawn Chair Lyrics
Movies Under the Stars
Farmer’s Market
Green Fair
Buffalo Grove Symphonic Band
Buffalo Grove Singers
Buffalo Grove Days
National Night Out
Fourth of July Fireworks
Golf at Buffalo Grove and Arboretum Golf Courses
And, in the winter, there is plenty more to do inside, with many sports and extracur-
ricular activities offered by the Buffalo Grove Park District, Buffalo Grove Recreation
Association, township, library and local school district programs.
Did You Know?
Buffalo Grove boasts more
than 800 acres of parks
and open space —or 834
square feet of space per
person. That’s 4.5 times
more than Chicago!
Farmers Market
June to October
Ranked Illinois’ best Farmer’s Market, come out to Mike
Rylko Park on Sundays from 8:00 AM to 12:30 PM for the
best in local food!
Comparative Data
(Source: US Census)
Buffalo
Grove
State of
Illinois
United States
of America
Median Income $96,768 $57,166 $53,482
Median Home Value $295,500 $175,700 $175,700
Homeownership Rate 80.2% 66.9% 64.4%
Unemployment % 4.2% 6.0% 5.4%
Persons in Poverty 4.50% 14.40% 14.80%
44%
9%4%5%
2%11%
4%
14%
6%
1%
Buffalo Grove Land Use Single Family
Detached (SFD)
Single Family
Attached (SFA)
Multiple Family
(MF)
Commercial
Office
Industrial
Public/Semi-Public
Pay with Credit and
Debit Cards at the
Village of Buffalo
Grove
All licenses, fees, fines,
registrations, permits, and
bills can be paid via credit
card. All credit card trans-
actions are subject to a
convenience fee of $1.80
per water payment and
2.39% for all other transac-
tions. The fee is processed
by the third party credit
card provider. The Village
currently accepts Visa,
MasterCard, and Discover.
Follow the Village
of Buffalo Grove on
Social Media
The Village of Buffalo
Grove has joined social
media! Find out about
special events news up-
dates, and more by follow-
ing us on Twitter, liking us
on Facebook, and adding
us on LinkedIn. Always
know what is happening in
your Village by tuning in
through social media.
Buffalo Grove Stats 2015 2014 2013
Population 41,503 41,987 41,778
Income Per Capita $46,517 $46,183 $45,057
Expenditures Per Capita $1,655 $1,501 $1,510
Debt Per Capita $241.91 $251.27 $271.43
Streets Resurfaced 2.45 mi 3.28 mi 10.84 mi
Village of Buffalo
Grove wins 34th
Consecutive
CAFR Award
The Village of Buffalo
Grove received its 34th
consecutive certificate of
achievement for
excellence in financial
reporting. The award
criteria are based on the
presentation of the
annual financial report in
a manner that provides
transparency and full
disclosure of the entity’s
fiscal year. Providing this
report goes beyond the
minimum requirements of
generally accepted
accounting principles.
The Village has also
complied with
Governmental Account-
ing Standards Board
standards as they have
changed the manner in
which post employment
benefits are presented
and disclosed. This is
the highest honor from
the Government Finance
Officers Association.
Village of Buffalo
Grove wins 4th
Consecutive
Distinguished
Budget Award
The Village achieved its
goal for the third year in a
row being awarded the
Distinguished Budget
Award for 2015. The
method for which the Vil-
lage of Buffalo Grove
budget is compiled takes
into account the guide-
lines provided by the Na-
tional Advisory Council on
State and Local Budget-
ing and the Government
Finance Officers Associa-
tion’s best practices on
budgeting. The award
shows the continued suc-
cess of Village staff to
produce a high quality
document that is fiscally
responsible. This is the
highest budgetary honor
that is bestowed on a
community from the Gov-
ernment Finance Officers
Association.
The Village relies on various tax sources as they make up 58.55 percent of the total revenue
into the Village. These revenues give the Village the ability to provide essential public ser-
vices. The table below shows the actual amounts the Village collected for each revenue source
for governmental activities. Miscellaneous income is mostly comprised of one -time, extra ordi-
nary items and grant funds. Property and other taxes are tied to the core services, Police, Fire
and Public Works, that the Village provides. Proposed Legislation in the Illinois House of Rep-
resentatives and Senate could reduce the amount of revenue the Village would collect from
income tax, use tax, and other taxes. Passing legislation of this nature would severely impact
the Village’s ability to maintain the current levels of service the residents of Buffalo Grove re-
ceive.
The Village allocates a significant amount of resources to core services like Police, Fire, and
Public Works. The graphs on this page show the Village has allocated its resources in fiscal
year 2015. The bar graph provides a visual based on how many actual dollars were spent on
each function. Public Safety and Public Works combine for more than $33,900,000. The gen-
eral government expenditures are six times less than Public Safety and Public Works. The
General Government includes: Office of the Village Manager, Finance Department, Human Re-
sources, and Building and Zoning. Capital outlay and debt service are also tied into Public
Safety and Public Works. Capital Outlay was divided between facilities development costs and
road improvements, while debt service spending is related to infrastructure improvements al-
ready made. When those amounts are allocated with the total expenditures for Public Safety
and Public Works the total tops $37,500,000. The Village of Buffalo Grove expended over 88
percent of its resources on Public Safety, Public Works, Facilities and Infrastructure.
How are Village Resources Expended? Where Do Village Resources Come From?
26
31
47.5
60
81
Administration
Golf
Public Works
Fire Department
Police Department
Budgeted Employment by Department -
2015
-
5,000,000
10,000,000
15,000,000
20,000,000
25,000,000
30,000,000
General
Government
Public Safety Public Works Capital Outlay Debt Service
5,084,772
25,237,115
8,092,735
2,828,194
806,747
2015 Expenditures by Function ($)
14,742,622
12,271,219
9,712,718
1,931,512
1,404,841
1,330,769
350,042 25,061
Revenues by Source ($)
Property Taxes
35%
Intergovernmental
29%
Other Taxes
23%
Fines and
Forfeitures
5%Miscellaneous
3%
Charges for Services
3%Licenses and
Permits
1%
Investment Income
< 1%
2015 Revenues by Source
Emergency
Management
Agency
The Village maintains an
emergency management
agency to provide re-
sponse to natural or man
-made disasters in our
community. Working
throughout the year and
behind the scenes, EMA
volunteers prepare for
worst case scenario
events, network with
other EMA local and re-
gional agencies and pro-
vide support services to
other events throughout
the Chicagoland area.
The Emergency Man-
agement Director is Fire
Chief Mike Baker.
Reverse 911
Do you want the Village
to be able to contact you
in the event of a commu-
nity emergency? If so,
make sure to sign up
through the Village’s
web site:
http://www.vbg.org/830/
Everbridge-Citizen-
Portal
You can choose to receive
email, text and phone
alerts, and your contact
information will never be
sold or used for another
purpose.
As a full service organization, the Village of Buffalo Grove pro-
vides critical water, wastewater, storm water, street, pedestrian
and pathway, forestry and grounds maintenance services.
Public Safety is a high priority for the Village and its residents. Comprising 65 percent of
Village employees, the Buffalo Grove Fire and Police Departments provide the highest
quality safety services to residents and businesses. Some of the programs offered by the
departments include:
Coffee with a Cop
Infant/Child Seat Safety Checks
Home Security Inspections
School Crossing Guards
School Resource Officers
Citizen & Junior Police
Academies
Bicycle Registration
Care Trak Program
Premise Alert Notifications
K-9
Police Social Worker
CPR Classes
School Fire Drills
Smoke Education Trailer
Open House
Block Parties
Station Tours
Public Safety Services Infrastructure and General Services
With a dedicated staff of professional maintenance personnel, the Public Works Depart-
ment provides around the clock infrastructure services, ranging from maintenance of Vil-
lage facilities to providing clean, high-quality Lake Michigan water. Always there to serve,
our team of professionals strives to maintain a clean, attractive and high-functioning net-
work of streets, sewers, mains and paths for your enjoyment.
The Village also provides administrative support to its residents and departments through
its Building and Zoning, Finance, and Office of the Village Manager personnel. Compris-
ing 11 percent of the Village’s staffing complement, these professionals specialize in the
building and construction trades, architecture, technology, accounting, finance, technical
analysis and management fields.
Police Department Number
Physical Arrests 809
Adjudication Citations 3,766
Traffic Citations 7,969
DUI Arrests 97
Vehicle Crash Responses 363
Fire Department Number
Ambulance Calls 3,123
Service Calls 340
Fire Calls 1,585
Auto Aid/MABAS 1,055
Did you know? The Village of Buffalo Grove Maintains 118.20
miles of street and has resurfaced 22.08 miles in the last 4 years.
Buffalo Grove Wins
2nd Consecutive
Popular Annual
Financial Reporting
Award
The Village of Buffalo
Grove was awarded its
second Popular Annual
Financial Reporting (PAFR)
Award for the fiscal year
2014. The PAFR is a
summary of the
Comprehensive Annual
Financial Report (CAFR)
issued by the Village and is
meant to be a document that
can communicate financial
information of the Village to
those residents without a
background in finance. The
report highlights the projects
and initiatives in the Village
over the past fiscal year. It
also provides an overview of
the balance sheet, revenues,
and expenditures to under-
score the stability and perfor-
mance of operations of the
Village.
Streetlights Replaced through Performance Contracting
The Village of Buffalo Grove partnered with Siemens to replace 1,436 inefficient street lights with
new Light Emitting Diode (LED) technology. The new lamps will save the village 60% on energy
consumption, and last 5 to 7 times longer between replacement cycles.
This initiative has allowed the Village to upgrade a key part of its infrastructure, lower energy
consumption, and reduce operating expenses. The savings are guaranteed by contract, which has
allowed the Village to cover financing costs and redirect the savings to other priorities.
The old high pressure sodium lamps had a yellow/orange glow to them that tends to wash away
colors and make it harder for people to see clearly at night. The new LED lamps feature a whiter
light designed to be more visible to the human eye, thus improving the color rendition and clarity in
the streets. This is a major perk in terms of the safety of our streets for our residents. The picture
to the right shows the new white light LED’s. This allows better color rendition and clarity than the
old high pressure sodium lights, as shown on the left.
High Pressure Sodium (Before) Light Emitting Diode (After)
Equalized
Assessed
Valuation
2015 Village EAV
$1,493,483,771
Total EAV
Per Capita
$35,985
Village of Buffalo
Grove holds high-
est Bond Rating
attainable
Moody’s Investor Ser-
vices currently recogniz-
es the Village as Aaa
bond rated for its exist-
ing debt. The rating by
Moody’s was assigned in
2012 The Village is also
rated AAA by Standard
& Poor’s . The AAA rat-
ing was last affirmed
2015.
Village of Buffalo
Grove EAV increas-
es for second con-
secutive year
The Villages EAV in-
creased from
$1,425,060,788 in 2014
to $1,493,483,771 in
2015. This is the second
consecutive increase in
EAV in as many years.
The increase trend is a
great indicator that As-
sessed Property Values
in the Village are re-
bounding from the recent
recession and the con-
tinuance of that trend
has a positive outlook.
More commonly referred to as
EAV, is the ratio of the total value
of real estate compared to all oth-
er properties in the jurisdiction of
the government, which the gov-
ernment has set as a basis for
levying taxes.
EAV calculations are different for
residential and commercial prop-
erties. In addition, Cook and Lake
Counties use differing formulas to
establish EAV.
Buffalo Grove By the Numbers
Tax Collection
By Source
Tax Type Amount ($)
Property 14,742,622
Sales & Home Rule 9,274,777
Income & Use 5,409,875
Telecommunication 1,644,309
Utility 2,643,642
Property Transfer 904,311
Other 1,092,554
Total 35,712,090
Use of
Taxes
By
Function
Fund Assets Liabilities Fund
Balance
Governmental Funds
Major
General 39,698,779 16,399,885 23,298,894
Facilities Development 0 3,707,560 (3,707,560)
Non-Major
Motor Fuel 1,897,638 132,079 1,765,559
Metra Parking Lot 67,943 6,545 61,398
Debt Service 599,063 599,063 0
Street Maintenance 412,444 265,286 147,158
Enterprise Funds
Major
Water & Sewer 41,516,421 4,548,727 36,967,694
Arboretum Golf Club 7,348,226 209,654 7,138,572
Non-Major
Buffalo Grove Golf Club 1,204,269 340,166 864,103
Refuse 1,097,825 0 1,097,825
Fiduciary Funds
Pension Trusts 106,905,308 172,192 106,733,116
Agency 525,757 525,757 0
TOTAL 201,273,673 26,906,914 174,366,759
2015 Balance Sheet ($)
Capital Assets by Category
Asset/Fund Governmental Enterprise Total
Land 35,963,844 6,198,514 42,162,358
Construction in Progress 761,660 4,118,394 4,880,054
Buildings 23,210,214 10,284,359 33,494,573
Land Improvements 3,242,060 1,966,488 5,208,548
Equipment/Vehicles 11,884,949 94,510 11,979,459
Streets & Storm Sewers 57,385,410 0 57,385,410
Water & Sewer System 0 62,106,468 62,106,468
LESS: Accumulated De-
preciation
(77,798,717) (44,818,704) (122,617,421)
TOTAL 54,649,420 39,950,029 94,599,449
By The Numbers:
Village of Buffalo
Grove Balance
Sheet
The Village of Buffalo
Grove carries $7.48 of
assets for every dollar of
liability. Buffalo Grove
maintains a high fund
balance primarily because
of three funds; the Pen-
sion Trust Funds, Water
and Sewer Fund, and the
General Fund.
Major Funds account for
94.13 percent of the fund
balance while minor funds
account for 4 percent, net
of the Fiduciary Funds.
Capital Asset
Values: What is
the most valuable
Asset in the
Village?
The Village’s infrastructure
and other capital assets
are main contributors to
the Water and Sewer
Fund and the General
Fund balances. The
Village’s water and sewer
system is the most
valuable capital asset,
followed by streets and
storm sewers. The third
highest is land. These
three asset categories
make up sixty percent of
the capital assets, before
depreciation.
Top Ten Real Estate
Tax Payers
Equalized
Assessed
Valuation ($)
Chevy Chase Business Park Ltd. 26,362,226
Hamilton Partners 8,949,806
Millbrook 8,914,242
Riverwalk II LLC 8,519,221
Penobscot Management LLC 8,450,998
Riverwalk South LLC 8,099,217
Aptakisic Creek Corp Park, LLC 7,728,838
Arthur J. Rodger and Co 7,705,919
Manufacturers Life Insurance 6,018,549
MFREVF-Windbrooke LP 5,901,309
* Lake County, Lake County Forest Preserve, Buffalo Grove Park District, Vernon Area Public Library, and Townships
* Cook County, Cook County Forest Preserve, Buffalo Grove Park District, Indian Trails Public Library, Metropolitan Water Reclamation
District of Greater Chicago and Townships
Tax Rates by County $100 of Property Taxes Collected by County
Village of Buffalo
Grove Total Debt
Outstanding 4th
Smallest Amongst All
Taxing Districts in
Cook and Lake
County
The Village of Buffalo Grove,
as of 12/31/15 has outstand-
ing debt of $10,040,000,
which is the 4th smallest of all
taxing bodies. The following
round out the five smallest
debt issuers:
School Dist 96 - $405,000
School Dist 102 - $3,780,000
School Dist 103 - $6,535,000
Wheeling Park Dist -
$10,820,000
Below are the top five govern-
mental units that have authori-
ty to levy tax in Buffalo Grove:
Cook County -
$3,361,910,000
Metropolitan Water Reclama-
tion District of Greater Chica-
go - $2,543,400,740
Lake County Forest Preserve
Dist - $259,605,000
Lake County - $190,325,000
Cook County Forest Preserve
Dist - $165,330,000
All taxing bodies that have the
authority to levy tax in Buffalo
Grove can be found in the
statistical section of the
Village of Buffalo Grove 2015
Comprehensive Annual
Financial Report.
The table lists each entity and
the amount of outstanding
debt as of December 31,
2015.
-
1.000
2.000
3.000
4.000
5.000
6.000
7.000
8.000
Combined School
Districts (102, 125,
532)
Village of Buffalo
Grove
County, including
Forest Preserve
Buffalo Grove Park
District
Vernon Area
Public Library
All Other (*)
Lake County Tax Rates by Unit
* Other taxing bodies are Township Road and Bridge and Township General Assistance
-
1.000
2.000
3.000
4.000
5.000
6.000
7.000
8.000
9.000
10.000
Combined
School
Districts (21,
214, 512)
Village of
Buffalo Grove
Buffalo Grove
Park District
Indian Trails
Public Library
District
Metropolitan
Water
Reclaimation
District
County,
including
Forest
Preserve
All Other (*)
Cook County Tax Rates by Unit
All other taxing bodies are Northwest Mosquito Abatement, Township Road and Bridge, and Township
General Assistance
LAKE COUNTY
COOK COUNTY
Buffalo
Grove
$10.51
School Districts 21, 214, and 512
$73.69
*All Other
$15.80
Buffalo
Grove
$9.75
School Districts 102, 125, and 532
$71.81
*All Other
$18.44