Journal Editor

Three Des Plaines elected city officials have had lunch and in some cases sat in on meetings in recent years with convicted felon James Dvorak, the Journal has learned.

Some of those meetings have been in City Hall, while others were in more sociable settings at Rosemont restaurants. None of the three officials said that the subject of billboards was discussed.

Two of the city officials, Mayor Tony Arredia and Community Development Committee chairman Ald. Tom Becker (6th) said they were not aware of who Dvorak was when the meetings occurred. The other, Ald. Dick Sayad (4th), chairman of the city's Finance Committee, said he had some knowledge of Dvorak's background having served as a part-time Rosemont policeman for many years until recently. Dvorak was a Chicago police officer and Cook County undersheriff before spending time in prison in the 1980s.

Arredia told the Journal yesterday (Tuesday) that he became upset when told that the man he just had lunch with was a former Cook County undersheriff who had been convicted of bribery and income tax evasion.

"I told Bill never to do that again," said Arredia referring to Bill Schneider, Des Plaines' former acting city manager, Community Development and Economic Development director. Arredia said the meeting occurred "way back" when he first began becoming involved in Des Plaines redevelopment projects as mayor.

Schneider resigned from his city job earlier this year after it became publicly known that he and Dvorak have been close friends for many years. It was also revealed at that time that Schneider, too, was a convicted felon. He was convicted of mail fraud in the mid-1990s.

Dvorak, it was recently learned, was a shareholder and officer of a company that in 2003 secured the rights to erect 10 billboards in Des Plaines along the Northwest and Tri-State tollways. Shortly after garnering those rights following a 4 to 3 City Council decision, the shareholders of the billboard company sold their stock to a large outdoor advertising sign company. There is some speculation that each billboard right sold for as much as $1 million.

Ald. Sayad told the Journal yesterday that he recalls having lunch with Schneider and Dvorak on one occasion at the Rosewood Restaurant in Rosemont. He could not remember when that lunch occurred.

"He (Schneider) introduced Dvorak to me. It wasn't this year. It was a while back," said Sayad. He explained that Dvorak told him that he was a realtor and in the insurance business.

At a second lunch, at another restaurant in Rosemont, Sayad said he and Dvorak talked about the city of Des Plaines' desire to hire a company to analyze the city's high insurance costs. Dvorak, said Sayad, gave him the name of a company that might be able to help. A followup by City Manager Dave Niemeyer revealed that the company did not qualify to get city business, Sayad explained.

Sayad said that after Dvorak's name recently surfaced as having been involved with Premere Outdoor, Inc., the company that obtained the rights to erect 10 billboards in the city, he asked City Attorney Dave Wiltse about his (Sayad's) previous meetings with Dvorak.

"He (Wiltse) said it was OK,' said Sayad. "I've had meetings with residents who were convicted felons," said Sayad. "Who am I to judge? The guy was doing business with our city. I felt meeting with him was OK."

Ald. Becker said he had lunch one time with Dvorak and Schneider at the Rosewood Restaurant. He said Schneider introduced him to Dvorak and Michael Blonstein, both of city-hired marketing firm Prime Site LLC. They discussed the development of the Mannheim-Higgins area at that meeting. Becker said he was not aware of Dvorak's criminal past at the time.

Becker said he also met with Dvorak in City Hall where the Mannheim-Higgins area was discussed. Another meeting involving Dvorak was held at the Cafe La Cave Restaurant on Mannheim Road. Becker explained that he wanted that meeting held there as a way of stressing to the owners of the restaurant that the city was not interested in buying their property. He said Dvorak and Blonstein were "pressuring" the owners of the eatery to "come up with a price to buy them out." Becker said it never was the city's intention to redevelop property where the restaurant and adjacent car wash are located.