Genoa Mayor Todd Walker is working on making big changes that are affecting DeKalb County’s economic future.

The small town of Genoa, located 15 miles north of DeKalb, is working on making a big name for itself in the near future.

Two-and-a-half years ago, the town of Genoa elected Walker on his campaign slogan “If you like the direction that the town is heading, then don’t vote for me.” Apparently the town was was looking for a new sense of direction.

Chance is what brought Walker into the political playing field. He graduated with a degree in history from Western Illinois and looked forward to attending law school. Instead, he ended up going back to school to get his master’s degree in public administration, and the internship that followed in this area is what turned Walker on the path of politics for good.

“I challenged certain municipal issues during my internship, and they told me to do it myself, and they offered me a job,” Walker said.

Walker has lived in the town of Genoa for the past six years and has been active in some form of town municipalities for the last 10 years. Walker was elected at the age of 32 and is the youngest mayor ever elected in Genoa.

Walker intends on working with the town for the long run, he said. Even after working full-time in Algonquin, then putting in an additional 30 hours and attending three to four meetings a week to fulfill his mayoral duties, he is satisfied with his position and long-term outlook.

Walker has jump-started many city improvement projects that have targeted the problems of appearance and drainage management. His term has seen a change in the railroads and sewers, which led to the elimination of flooding and standing water.

“That town wanted to go with a cheaper route to fix the water problem, I pushed for a quality fix while improving the look of the community,” Walker said.

In January, Walker lobbied in Washington D.C. and received grants for $200,000 in a trip which cost the city only $280. That grant led the way for the approval of a $500,000 curb, gutter and sewer project.

“All that money for only $280 that I asked back for mileage. You can’t beat that,” Walker said.

Walker called the opportunities the biggest advantage of being mayor of a small town. He said he intends to slow down residential growth and build up the commercial aspect.

Walker sees no negatives to having a small community, except for one drawback. “Everybody knows one another, and I get blamed solely for city-wide issues,” he said.

There is no setback big enough to discourage Walker from running again in 2005, though. Only, this time Walker said he will be running on a revised slogan: “If you like the direction the town is heading, vote for me.”