Forest Park: Village Administrator

I hadn't been paying any attention to this issue -- until I read Mayor Calderone's front page editorial in his own newspaper, where he bellowed like a wounded bull stung by the rumors mongered over at ForestParkForums.com.

Usually, his honor's opinions are up-beat meditations on subjects like Christmas, motherhood, and apple pie -- so I knew something serious was going on.

(and BTW, I agree with him that our local internet bulletin board is a goon fest of anonymous slander. They have no credibility, and that's why their opinions are worthless)

That's when I learned, two pages later, that his old friend and former campaign manager, Tim Gillian, a former commissioner, had been selected to wear the hat of Village Administrator.

Wow!

Not only is this distinguished gentleman retired, but he has never worked as a professional administrator a day in his life.

My hat is off is to the two commissioners who voted against him - Rory Hoskins and Marty Tellalian, as well as to Steve Backman, the dedicated gadfly, who videotaped the whole shameful proceeding.

Here's the meeting where the commissioners begin the search (note how Mark Hosty calls for a "professional who is non-political")

and

Here's where they take their final vote, six months later. (apparently, Hosty has changed his mind)

Tellalian seems quite used to making concession speeches - and alas - what really is "the metric for measuring a poorly run village?"

While Mike Curry seems a little shamefaced as he thanks the 20 applicants for the job (one of whom is sitting in the audience), and none of whom had a chance against the Mayor's old friend, making the whole procedure of a "national search" a mere formality.

As Tellalian concludes, there's not another village in the State of Illinois that would hire Gillian as an administrator.

Unfortunately, this proves that the Mayor feels immune to criticism and has the confidence to do whatever he wants.

And it would also suggest that the job of "Village Administrator" may be unnecessary in a village this small.


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A comment to this post has suggested that the job of the Village Administrator is to be "the right hand of the mayor".

However, going looking at the "powers and duties" listed on the Village website,
we find:

"The village administrator shall be the chief administrative officer of the village and shall be responsible to the mayor and to the combined village council for the administration and operation of all of the affairs and the departments of the village."


Here is the complete text:

1-5A-3: POWERS AND DUTIES:

A. Fiscal Matters: The village administrator shall have custody and control of all documents, including debts, mortgages, leases, contracts, judgment orders, notes, bonds and evidences of indebtedness belonging to the village except such as are directed by law or ordinance to be deposited elsewhere. The village administrator shall have supervision of the issuance and sale of all bonds, warrants and obligations, and shall have supervision over the accounting work of the village.

Specifically, but not in limitation of the above, the village administrator shall have the following powers and duties:

1. On or before May 31 of each year the village administrator or his designee shall submit to the corporate authorities a report of the amounts of money necessary to defray the expenses of the village during the next fiscal year, and in said report classify and detail the purpose of the expenditures, the aggregate income of the preceding fiscal year and the village liabilities and anticipated revenues.

For the purpose of preparing the aforesaid estimate, the village administrator or his designee is authorized to require all officers to submit statements of the condition and expenses of their respective offices or departments, a description of proposed village improvements, and the probable expense thereof, a description of all unperformed contracts and a statement of the amount of all unexpired appropriations of the preceding year.

2. The village administrator shall, after evaluating all necessary data, conferring with the finance director and consulting with the mayor and village council, prepare and submit the annual appropriation and tax levy ordinances for passage by the village council. In conjunction with these obligations, the village administrator shall utilize current available revenues and search out and recommend additional sources of revenue necessary to operate the village.

3. The village administrator shall recommend to the village council the salaries to be paid officers and employees of the village when requested by the village council.

4. The village administrator shall, each month, cause to be prepared and shall present to the village council a statement showing the exact financial position of the village and give such additional reports and information concerning the fiscal matters of the village as may from time to time be required by the village council. (Ord. O-53-00, 12-18-2000)

5. Pursuant to 65 Illinois Compiled Statutes 5/4-5-2, the village council hereby prescribes that the village administrator shall have the power and duty to conduct collective bargaining on behalf of the village with village employees or their exclusive representatives; to designate the other members of the village's collective bargaining negotiating teams; to enter into tentative agreements with the exclusive representatives of village employees regarding the wages, hours and other terms and conditions of employment, subject to ratification by the village council; to report periodically to the village council regarding the status of such collective bargaining; and to perform any other functions necessary to carry out such duties. (Ord. O-13-03, 4-28-2003)

B. Village Administration: In addition to the above duties, the village administrator shall perform such other duties as are herein provided:

The village administrator shall be the chief administrative officer of the village and shall be responsible to the mayor and to the combined village council for the administration and operation of all of the affairs and the departments of the village. As such administrative officer, and unless otherwise directed by the village council, the village administrator shall have the administration and control of all matters and things pertaining to the operation and maintenance of the properties of the village and of all departments of the village. He shall also have supervision of such other administrative agencies and departments and officers as may be hereafter created by the village council, unless the administration and control of such departments and officers is expressly delegated elsewhere. He shall perform his duties in conformity with the rules in the village. Specifically, but not in limitation of the above, he shall have the following additional powers and duties:

1. Recommend to the mayor and village council the appointment of all officers of the village who are required by law to be appointed by the village council and further recommend the removal or suspension of any such officer or employee when such removal or suspension shall be consistent with the best interests of the village.

2. The village administrator shall make or cause to be made all necessary purchases of supplies and equipment for all departments of the village and, for that purpose, the village administrator is authorized to make expenditures without approval from the village council that are consistent with the purchasing ordinance of the village1; provided, however, that all expenditures and payments, regardless of the amount, shall be subject to the confirmation or approval of the village council and to the limitations imposed by law, ordinance and/or budget or special appropriation, and pursuant to chapter 8, article A of this title.

3. The village administrator shall attend all meetings of the village council unless excused therefrom by the village council, except when his removal is under consideration by the village council. The village administrator shall have the privilege of taking part in the discussion of all matters coming before the village council and shall be entitled to notice of all meetings, regular and special, of the village council when required.

4. The village administrator shall investigate all complaints in relation to matters concerning village services and village administration.

5. The village administrator may, when requested by the commissioner in charge of a department, recommend the appointment and/or discharge of an employee in such department with supporting information regarding the reason for such appointment and/or discharge, exclusive of employees and officers of the police department and regular firefighters under the jurisdiction of the board of fire and police commissioners2.

6. The village administrator shall devote his entire time to the discharge of official duties.

7. The village administrator shall perform such other duties as may be required of him by the village council consistent with the statutes of the state of Illinois and village ordinances.

8. Subject to final approval of the village council, the village administrator may consolidate, combine or reorganize any departments under his jurisdiction. (Ord. O-53-00, 12-18-2000)

Provisio elections: April 2009

The bad news is that Karen Yarbrough, the State representative who defeated Eugene Moore, the machine politician, for Democratic Committeeman in 2006, has turned coat and is now allied with her former opponents, including Chris Welch, who runs the School Board like a family business.

An extensive documentation of the Welch regime (citing articles from local newspapers) can be found here.

That is also the site of the Proviso Progressive Party, and a voter would have to be crazy, lazy, or beholden to the incumbents not to vote for each and every one of them:

Theresa L. Kelly
Township Supervisor

William J. Daugherty Jr.
Township Clerk


C. Michael Montino
Township Assessor


Ivan V. Williams
Township Collector


Colin A. Brady
Township Trustee


Michael Sheehan
Township Trustee


Pat Doolin
Township Trustee



Lennel Grace, Jr.
Township Trustee



PROVISO HIGH SCHOOL DISTRICT 209
Kevin McDermott
Carlos Anderson
Rebecca M. Smith
Arbdella “Della” Patterson


John Simpson
Trustee of Schools

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Voters might remember that the last time around, Welch ran a slate of candidates for the school board, their campaign literature attacked the status quo.

But then, after elected, they turned around and re-elected him as president of the school board.

Wasn't that clever!

This time, he's running two slates -- the one for township positions is called the "Township Advocates of Proviso". Their literature doesn't even pretend to be about reform - all they promise are perks for senior citizens. (and they have no website -- why bother -- the less voters know about them the better)

It's the same old culture of self-serving corruption that has made Illinois a national disgrace, and I suppose it will continue until citizens stop being depressed about it and actually go to the polls and become voters.

..........................................................................................................

Regarding Proviso Township Trustee of School 39N -- I don't even know where that school is ! None of the candidates have a website -- and only one of them, John Simpson, has put anything onto the County Clerk website. So -- I guess I'll have to vote for him.

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Regarding the Board of Triton College:

this article sufficed to convince me to vote against Glenn Stam and Mark Stephens.

Especially since neither one has offered any kind of rebuttal - on the paper's website or on their own.

Unfortunately, the two opponents,


Thomas W. Hagle
Marie J. Caronti


....have nothing to say as well.

Why can't they put something on the County Clerk's site ? Why can't they start their own blogs and discuss the issues ? Why should anyone believe that they will be any less self-interested than the incumbents?

(Caronti does have a comment posted after the Wednesday Journal article -- but it mystifies more than it explain. Who the heck is her mother-in-law ?)

All we've got are videos from the League of Women Voters, and Thomas W. Hagle didn't even bother to show up. (though I'll vote for him anyway)


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Update on Election Results: Almost a complete disaster! But at least Kevin McDermott made it onto the School Board. He seems to be a smart, honest, committed citizen -- and I appreciate his efforts.

Mea Culpa

OK -- I voted for Rod Blagojevich -- twice ! -- and now I must seek absolution for my sin.

It's not like there wasn't plenty of evidence -- at least for the second election - that this was Mr. Pay-to-play --- but isn't a little bit of this acceptable ?

How else can anyone other than a billionaire run for a major office in America?

It's just that -- at some point -- the pay-to-player has to draw the line --- and some vision of public service has to trump the streams of income.

But this fellow just seems to be as shameless as a sociopath.

Maybe I should have voted for Judy Bar Topinka -- but I don't see how she can be separated from the state Republican leadership that gave us the big-time pay-to-play governors - from Thompson to Ryan.

The democratic system has really been failure in Illinois -- and who can be blamed except for us voters ?

Other candidates - Nov. 2008

U.S. Senate:

Dick Durbin: I've always liked this guy - a downstate Democrat - the proper heir to Paul Simon. Though I wish he were - um -- a little more of an original maverick. And I wish his website would be more informative about what he's done rather than what pie-in-the-sky he's going to advocate.


Steve Sauerberg: Why is this career physician running for U.S. Senate? Because no serious Republican contenders could be found? BTW -- as a physician -- what has he ever done to expand health care beyond those who are insured ? Since he mentions nothing about that on his website -- we can assume the answer is that he has done nothing.

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U.S. House of Representatives 7th District:

Danny Davis: Is there any reason to consider him anything other than a Chicago machine politician?


Steve Miller: But what kind of a candidate is this? What has been his public service to date? "Currently involved with the Skinner Park Advisory committee to develop a safe tax-free, self managed dog park for nearly 2,500 resident pets"
This guy is a joke.


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Rep. In State Gen. Assembly :

Karen A. Yarbrough -- running unopposed.

(this is not the way a democracy should function -- once again the Republican party is too narrow to run a credible candidate in my district)

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Water Reclamation Commissioner:

Avila seems to be the most qualified -- while this seems like the perfect job for people from the Green party -- so that's how I'll vote it: Avila, Ailes, Bogolub

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States Attorney:

I can see no reason to vote for a Democratic state's attorney in a county run by Democrats -- so I've got to vote for Peraica

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Judicial retention:

Here's the ones that were declared unrecommended by the Bar Association:


Anthony Lynn Burrell
Evelyn B. Clay
Vanessa A. Hopkins
Casandra Lewis

plus this one who was dissed by the Tribune and Chicago Council of Lawyers:
Edward Pietrucha

None of them has chosen to respond to that opinion on the internet - so I'm going to have to go with it.






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Illinois state constitutional convention:

No -- I don't care for a procedure to impeach the governor - and I'm not hearing a lot of excitement for any other proposal. So -- maybe it's best to leave the state constitution alone for another 20 years.


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Countywide referendum on procedures to recall an elected state official: -- that's what elections are for -- this referendum just looks like political nonsense

McCain Vs Obama

It being 60 days before the election -- I guess it's finally time to sort this one out.

And once again -- my first complaint -- is that the campaign websites are so worthless regarding what each candidate has actually done -- for which the most useful authority seems to be Wikipedia.



O.K. -- all advertising must sell the sizzle not the steak -- but still, it would seem that a sincere concern for public life would motivate a candidate to have at least some part of their website offer serious discussion of their role in recent history.

Here's my pros and cons for each candidate:

McCain

Pros: The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act. -- whether it can survive the Republican Supreme Court is another question -- or ever be effective -- but you've got to respect the drive to end quid-pro-quo legislation - even if it must be a perpetual activity. McCain gets big points for this -- and maybe only a man with his hero-status could have taken it as far as it's gone.

Pros: Educational Choice. This is part of the Republican platform -- and I don't even know if McCain has ever given it a second thought -- but still it gets some points -- even if Republicans have never been able to do anything about it, even when they ran the show.

Cons: Universal Health Care: McCain has spoken up against it -- saying that it "puts a bureaucrat between you and your doctor". But what about people who can't afford a doctor (i.e. major medical treatment) at all?. I was one of those -- being dropped by my insurance company and then un-insurable for 6 years due to a precondition. This is a major issue for our country at this time --and McCain's sloganeeering can only be called callous and thoughtless.


Con: What else has he accomplished ? what more will he accomplish ? Returning a Republican administration to office for another four years so they can continue to serve the interests of big business? I don't really see any serious purpose here other than "I want to be President" --
any more than his reason for flying planes in Vietnam was "I want to be an admiral like my father" (he's admitted that prior to his capture, his motivations were all self centered)

A man of extraordinary personal strength ? Yes
A man who deserves to be honored as a hero? Yes
A man who will use that reputation to benefit the public rather than just himself ?

I'm not sure.

(and yet -- if he had beaten Bush in the 2000 primary -- I would probably have voted for him as President)


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Obama:

Pro: Mostly -- to return a Democratic administration to Washington -- with its historic role of serving the bottom rather than the top of society-- including/especially appointing Supreme Court justices who will protect the campaign finance reform effected by McCain -- and to work further towards universal health care (not that it's achievement is a cure-all -- but it's a step in the right direction)

And yes -- I do like the idea of a black man as President. Much of what a President does is to exemplify America. (that's why Bill Clinton was such a failure) -- and having grown up in a Jim Crow city (Cincinnati) -- I would feel very good about a black American President -- and that's how I would like the rest of the world to see us.



Con: I just don't know much more that's good about him So far -- he's been a go-along guy -- don't rock the Democratic Party boat. Of course -- that's what beginners have to do -- he's not a big war hero like McCain -- if he rocks the boat too much -- they won't let him climb on.

Perhaps he has been an inventive, effective legislator -- I just don't know the details.

Judicial Contests - 2008

O.K. -- I admit -- I'm totally at sea regarding this part of the ballot -- and never have done the justices justice (usually just leaving it blank -- or voting against all incumbents)


But a person can do a good job - or a poor one -- while sitting in judgment of their fellow citizens -- and those who do a good job should be re-elected -- if only I knew who that was !

What I'd really like to see -- is at least one essay for and against each candidate -- rather than just a sum total of endorsements.

Lacking that -- I'm going to go with what the candidate has to say -- figuring that if a judge can't express himself/herself in succinct, expository prose -- they have no business being a judge.

So.. for example.... in the Disko vacancy -- Dennis J. Burke has got the most endorsements -- but has some difficulty expressing himself. His website is minimal (at best) -- and the text that he put onto the website of the Cook County Clerk is .. well .. let's just say it's not very impressive -- and leaves me completely unconvinced when it reaches its awkward conclusion:

"As you can see, Judge Burke is a very well-rounded individual who is well-qualified for this position"


On the other hand, his opponent , Lauretta Higgins Wolfson, came up with a bit more tuneful speech --with something of a rhetorical flair:


"I bring to the Circuit Court the sum of my experience, in law and in life. I know there are no unimportant cases and no unimportant people. Everything that comes before me matters. Everyone matters. Everyone who comes to court – individuals, government agencies, corporations – deserves to be treated fairly and decently. I believe the way we treat people and the way we decide disputes has everything to do with trust and confidence in our courts. Without that trust and confidence our legal system would crumble"



So Wolfson gets my vote -- and so do these other judicial candidates -- judging from the text they posted to the Cook County Clerk's site:

Michael B. Hyman
Frank James Ryan
Debra B. Walker
Richard F. Walsh
Alan J. Greiman


Many candidates did not take the time to write anything at all -- which makes it very easy for me to prefer the opponent.

And incredibly enough -- nothing was written by any of the candidates for some of the vacancies. They must assume that some kind of party machine politics is going to carry them onward to victory.

I just hope they're wrong.

Democratic Primary February 2008

*U.S. House of Representatives, 7th District: Danny Davis (incumbent) vs. Robert Dallas.

Looking at Danny Davis on "On the Issues" website -- I'm not desperate to see him retire. (though I do wish he had voted on behalf of voucher school programs)

But regarding Robert Dallas -- why doesn't this man have a website ? Why would he expect anyone to vote for him ? I guess he just wants to make his name more familiar for future races -- but this seems to be a rather cynical abuse of the electoral system. If he has a reason to run this time --he should tell us -- otherwise, he shouldn't run. So I probably will remember his name --but not in a positive sense.

*Metropolitan Water Reclamation District:

Cook County Democratic Party endorses: Kathleen Meany, Frank Avila, Dan Maragos
Chicago Tribune endorses: Mariyana Spyropoulos, Derrick Stinson, Frank Avila

Why would anyone vote for those endorsed by the local Democratic party -- unless one is a loyal member ? So I'll vote against their candidates -- except for Frank Avila -- since he appears to be the only candidate who's an expert on the subject. The other two endorsed by the Tribune seem reasonable enough (reading their statments linked to the Board of Elections site) -- and the other candidates show nothing special to recommend them - i.e. no special expertise, no special ideas.

So -- I'm going with Mariyana Spyropoulos, Derrick Stinson, and Frank Avila

*Cook County Recorder of Deeds: Eugene Moore (incumbent) vs. Ed Smith.

I'm afraid that everything I've heard about Eugene Moore is negative -- as a player in the kind of county politics that rewards loyalty and punishes real public service.
(He's repeatedly listed as being the patron of the kingpins of our pathetic, Proviso District 209 school district)

So in this race -- I would vote for a horse instead of him.

*Cook County State's Attorney:

Thanks to the this wonderful site, presented by the Chicago Tribune, we get see a candidate forum.

Why aren't all candidate forums put up on the internet ?

It looks like the black and white candidates are split over whether the public needs to be protected more from the criminals or from the law enforcement system -- and it's probably a bit of both. But Larry Suffredin seems to be the candidate most concerned with running the office effectively/efficiently.

And yet -- there's his career as a lobbyist for casino and tobacco interests (as reported in the Tribune editorial that preferred to endorse Tom Allen) Is that the only way he could pay the bills ? This just doesn't look like the career of a devoted public servant.

Tom Allen has the personality of a dead fish -- but maybe I'll vote for him anyway -- at least his presentation was simple and direct.




(other contests to be discussed later)