Journal & Topics Media Group

Mayor’s Handling Of Appointment Sparks Confusion At City Council

Willow Road Committee Still Taking Shape

Prospect Heights City Hall, 8 N. Elmhurst Rd.

A candidate the mayor sought to bypass for a seat on the city’s new Willow Road committee will likely be appointed to the position next Monday.

While it was not made clear by Mayor Nick Helmer if he would appoint more than one resident for the fifth and final seat on the new Ad Hoc Willow Road Committee, Helmer on Monday (Feb. 4) did say Nick Colombe, a resident of Owen Court, had been interviewed since last Monday’s city council meeting. At that meeting, Helmer sought to appoint Dana Sievertson, a member of the city’s Natural Resources Committee, to the Willow Road committee, but aldermen rejected the appointment by a 4-0 vote. They agreed that because Sievertson is not a resident of the immediate Willow Road project area, and Colombe is, the latter would be a better fit with the new five-member group.

“I only make appointments, I don’t approve or deny,” said Helmer when contacted by the Journal on Monday. City council members are tasked with approving the mayor’s appointments to city commissions.

Formation of the Willow committee was approved by a 4-0 council vote prior to the appointments discussion. It will be responsible for offering input on the scope of a proposed project that seeks to raise the height of Willow Road and nearby Owen Court to improve flood control in the area. No dates have been set for construction as the cost-sharing project requires an intergovernmental agreement between the city, Cook County and Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD) of Greater Chicago.

City Administrator Joe Wade at the Jan. 29 city council meeting said the MWRD, which would pay for a majority of the $3 million effort, has been meeting with consulting engineers before taking project plans to the MWRD board for consideration.

Normally a routine matter at most city council meetings, appointments to the Willow Road committee became a point of contention between the mayor and aldermen at last week’s meeting. The committee calls for a make-up of five members: the 3rd water alderman (Scott Williamson), 4th ward alderman (Pat Ludvigsen), Administrator Wade and two residents. The meeting agenda listed six appointments which included three residents rather than two: Sievertson, Hillcrest Lake Homeowners Association President Tim Kupczyk, and Owen Court resident Nick Colombe.

This fact confused aldermen, who sought clarification from City Attorney Kevin Kearney. Of the six appointments on the agenda, Helmer only read the names of five and skipped Colombe. Helmer said he felt due to Sievertson’s work through the Natural Resources Commission on the sloughs to the south of Willow Road, that area should also have a voice on the road committee.

Aldermen felt otherwise, however, preferring Colombe because of the direct impact flooding has had on his property on Owen Court.

At this point, aldermen withdrew approving Sievertson for the committee, favoring Colombe’s appointment instead. At the urging of the city attorney, Helmer clarified that he still wanted Sievertson’s appointment. After further discussion among aldermen, and what Kearney called a “miscommunication” over the number of appointments, he asked Helmer to again verify which candidates he wanted to appoint.

“It’s at the mayor discretion,” Kearney told aldermen. Helmer then recommended the same names be appointed.

In a move of city council control, Ludvigsen recommended Kupczyk, Williamson, himself and Wade be appointed, to which Kearney suggested each should be voted on individually. Aldermen unanimously confirmed the four, but rejected the mayor’s appointment of Sievertson, 4-0.

Discussion continued. “I haven’t even met the man, give me a break,” Helmer said after the votes. Helmer said it was “not true” he had placed Colombe’s name on the agenda. “But you approved the agenda,” Ald. Larry Rosenthal (2nd) remarked. Rosenthal is running against Helmer in the April 2 election for mayor.

Neighbors of Colombe’s who were at the meeting also spoke after the first four appointments were approved. They said their area of Owen Court, which has no outlets to any other roads during Hillcrest Lake/Willow Road flooding events, should be represented.

Ald. Scott Williamson (3rd) asked Helmer to reconsider. Earlier in the discussion, Williamson said it was “imperative” Colombe be part of the new committee.

After further questioning from the council, Helmer reiterated that he had not seen Colombe’s application for the position. The mayor said he would continue to consider Colombe’s appointment.

After the dust settled, “I almost felt like I was in the Twilight Zone,” Ludvigsen remarked in a separate interview with the Journal later in the week.

Tuesday (Feb. 5), another name surfaced as a possible appointment at the suggestion of Sievertson. In an email obtained by the Journal, he suggests Helmer appoint local resident John Kamysz, who lives near Hillcrest Lake, to the committee. The Journal was unable to reach Helmer for comment before Tuesday’s press deadline.

“Thank you for your efforts in trying to get us representation on this committee. I appreciate your efforts,” Sievertson wrote in an email to Helmer.

Ald. Lora Messer (1st) was absent from the Jan. 29 council meeting.

In a related matter, an email sent by Helmer to city staff members, obtained through a Freedom of Information request by the Journal, irked some city council members who caught wind of its contents.

That email dated Tuesday, Jan. 29, instructed staffers not to discuss the issue of appointments to the Willow Road committee with the media. “Defer any calls to me,” wrote Helmer. His opponent in the April 2 mayoral election, Ald. Larry Rosenthal, said such orders are “not an unusual occurrence,” but remain contrary to the city’s overall philosophy regarding transparency. “Very upsetting,” Rosenthal said.

Helmer had no comment when contacted by the Journal regarding the email.

The Willow Road committee’s first meeting is tentatively set for 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 27.

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