The move in Clarendon Hills to go from two scheduled Village Board meetings each month to one isn’t as drastic as it sounds on the surface.
The Village Board approved the change Monday Aug. 21, following discussion over the past few months.
“Even under the previous schedule, during January, June, July, August, November and sometimes December, it was common for the village to cancel one of the two meetings in those months due to holiday conflicts,” Village Manager Zach Creer said. “So, really this is something like moving from 18-20 meetings a year to 12 plus special meetings.”
Regularly-scheduled board meetings will now be conducted on the third Monday of each month, rather than the first and third Mondays. The exception will be any scheduled meeting during the week of Thanksgiving and in January for Martin Luther King Day, both which will be moved to the second Monday of the month.
“By adhering to this schedule, we avoid conflict with Memorial Day, 4th of July, New Year’s Day, Election Day, and Labor Day, all of which occur around a first Monday of a month,” Creer said.
He said special meetings of the Village Board will be called as needed, and the meetings of the Zoning Board of Appeals/ Plan Commission will move from the third Thursday of each month to the first Thursday to allow for a quicker turnaround for landowners and developers.
Along with believing village business can be handled with one Village Board meeting each month, there is another factor that led to the change at this time,
“We have had a lot of trustees resign over the last few years or decide not to run again,” Creer said. “The number one comment we received from outgoing trustees is that the time commitment was too much for these volunteer positions.”
“I think moving to one meeting a month is one way to try to make it easier for residents to commit to public service, particularly in this day and age where most families are two earner households with not a lot of spare time.”
Creer said he believes making the move to one meeting each month strikes a delicate balance with transparency.
“Additional meetings do provide more time for people to weigh in, but they also often can require people to show up at multiple meetings in order to make sure they feel they are heard on an issue or to ensure the vote goes the same way on second reading,” he said. “An elongated process can be confusing to the public, as to when the actual decision occurs.”
Creer said development issues tend to attract the largest audiences at Village Board meetings. He expects two Zoning Board meetings, under the normal planned unit development process, and at least one Village Board meeting to be part of the process.
“We have also been taking an extra step to have a premeeting on certain developments with the Village Board before Zoning Board to allow for the board and public to weigh in on whether or not the development is an appropriate use of the Planned Unit Development Process or deserving of TIF support,” he said.
Creer noted that Clarendon Hills being a small town, and one with an organizational model with relatively few or no levels of middle management between the executives and the front line employees, lends for residents being heard when they want.
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“I take phone calls, answer emails, and get stopped on the street daily by people with questions about village business,” he said. “Aside from personnel issues and legal issues, where it is impractical or improper, the public gets the exact same information as the Village Board does on decision making. We pride ourselves in transparency, and I do not think one meeting a month will change that.”
Chuck Fieldman is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.