Zach Creer made it very easy for Clarendon Hills to find a replacement for Kevin Barr, who is retiring June 30 as Village Manager.
Without posting the job opening or interviewing anyone else, the Village Board voted unanimously Monday May 15 to approve the hiring of Creer, currently the village’s assistant village manager, as the new village manager.
“I spent extensive time with him and listened to outgoing trustees and the president in helping make this decision,” newly-elected Village President Eric Tech said. “It is my experience in filling a role such as this, it is difficult to find someone with both the skills and capabilities, as well as the relationship and trust of both elected officials and staff. In Zach we are very fortunate to have all these traits. I have utmost confidence that our Village has the right team to guide us forward.”
Barr said he is comfortable that the village will move forward to even better things in the future with Creer as village manager.
“Zach brings great experience to the job,” he said. “He is, of course, very much aware of Clarendon Hills issues.”
Barr said Creer’s experience working in Clarendon Hills will be a great benefit when he takes over as village manager.
“Anyone else would have had to spend significant time on the learning curve,” he said. “With a new community development director and then a new assistant village manager, it is very helpful for Zach to bring his specific experience to the position.”
Outgoing Village President Len Austin said he looks forward to Creer being an excellent replacement for Barr.
“I’ve had the pleasure to work with Zack nearly all the eight years I was in office,” he said. “I’ve always found Zack to have a good temperament, great sense of humor and deep knowledge of subjects. Beyond that, I found him to be a great person.”
Creer, 34, first came to Clarendon Hills in early 2014 as assistant to the village manager, after previously working as assistant to the city manager in Rolling Meadows. He left Clarendon Hills in 2017 to become assistant village manager in La Grange, but returned in early 2019 to Clarendon Hills after receiving a call from Barr.
” (Barr) called me, offered me a promotion (to Assistant Village Manager) and to mentor me for the role of Village Manager for when he retired,” Creer said. “The Village Manager is uniquely positioned to act as a conduit between Village Board, village staff and the community at-large to facilitate quality policymaking and enact implementation. I do not think there is any other public service job that is quite like it in terms of an ability to have a direct positive impact.”
Creer said he believes having already spent several years working in Clarendon Hills will be a big benefit to him as Village Manager.
“With all the change over on the Village Board — 4 new trustees, a new Village President and Village Clerk — the village is losing decades of elected official experience,” Creer said. “We also recently had the Community Development Director leave.
“Because the Village Board took quick action, I have been able to act with authority in talks with developers and new businesses, while hiring a new Community Development Director, and starting to recruit a replacement Assistant Village Manager to keep the positive momentum going in the community.”
Creer’s additional work background includes being an operations analyst in Lake County, and administrative intern in Geneva, along with serving a term on the Arlington Heights Housing Commission.
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“At this point, I am a true generalist, after having the opportunity to work as everything from Interim Community Development Director, Acting Finance Director for Lake County Planning/Building Department, and Acting Village Manager to name a few,” Creer said.
“I have always tried to step up when organizations have needed me in whatever role necessary to help ensure the municipality was able to continue to serve its residents. I have been able to take best practices from each place I’ve worked apply my experiences in Clarendon Hills.”
Creer said he is very excited to continue working in Clarendon Hills.
“The new Village Board is bringing a fresh perspective, and I am looking forward to what we can accomplish in the coming years,” he said.
Creer’s employment agreement calls for his salary to be determined annually by the Village Board, but at no time will his base salary be less than $170,000.
Chuck Fieldman is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.