An engineer with both public and private sector experience has been selected as the new leader of Glencoe’s Public Works Department, making her the first female to take on the role in village history.
On Sept. 20, village officials announced the hiring of Monica Sarna as the village’s new public works director. She is scheduled to start in Glencoe on Oct. 23.
Sarna is currently the assistant engineering director in Wake Forest, North Carolina, where she has worked since April 2020, according to her LinkedIn page.
Her Wake Forest responsibilities include presiding over a team of engineers overseeing that community’s capital improvement projects and working as the flood plain administrator where she enhanced the municipal separate storm sewer system and stormwater maintenance program, per a village statement.
“I am so pleased to join Glencoe’s team and to have the opportunity to serve the residents of this community,” Sarna said in the statement. “So much important work has been done under the steady guidance and leadership of the Public Works Department, thanks to the unwavering commitment to providing the highest level of service to residents exhibited by the entire public works team. Continuing that legacy is inspiring and a unique challenge I look forward to undertaking.”
Sarna has 13 years of professional experience, the village statement noted. Prior to her current job in Wake Forest, Sarna worked for three private engineering firms — two in the Chicago area — and she is a Bradley University graduate.
“She is going to bring a lot of fresh thoughts, ideas and capabilities to the position,” Village Manager Phil Kiraly stated at the Sept. 21 Village Board meeting.
Sarna will have an annual salary of $175,000 and her hiring capped off a months long search involving members of the department, the village’s executive team, Village Board members and other community members.
Kiraly said Sarna was tapped from a group of five finalists, adding she was part of the second round of the effort as officials could not find a candidate the first time the position was posted.
“The second round of folks was a dramatically improved group,” Kiraly said at the Village Board meeting.
Sarna will lead a department with approximately 45 full-time employees where operations include maintenance of the village’s sanitary and storm sewers, streets and sidewalks, traffic management and water production and distribution, among other responsibilities.
She will also be tasked with overall management of Glencoe’s 10-year Community Investment Program, including approximately $50 million in future investments. She will also be the project manager for the new Glencoe Golf Club clubhouse, where construction is set to begin next year, according to the village.
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“The Public Works Director is charged with overseeing some of the most visible and tangible services the village provides and must be passionate about delivering the best possible services to our residents,” Village President Howard Roin said in a statement. “It is clear Ms. Sarna exemplifies the customer service mentality that our village prioritizes. Her passionate and energetic spirit will be a benefit to maintaining the high levels of service we have come to expect while continuing to advance and adapt services and infrastructure to meet the changing needs of our community.”
Sarna succeeds David Mau, the department’s longtime director of the department, who retired Aug. 1. General Superintendent Don Kirk has since been serving as the interim director.
Daniel I. Dorfman is a freelance reporter with Pioneer Press.