The Harvey City Council voted unanimously Monday to elect 1st Ward Ald. Shirley Drewenski as acting mayor, following the death last month of Mayor Christopher Clark.
Clark died Jan. 30 following an unspecified illness. A memorial service is planned for 11 a.m. on March 28, according to the city’s social media. A location has not been specified.
Drewenski has been mayor pro tempore since Clark’s death, as the senior member of the City Council. She said she has been on the council since 2011.
“I didn’t wake up and say that I wanted to be mayor. Sixteen years ago, people asked me, would I run for mayor. That was not my goal,” Drewenski said. “Sometimes God has different plans.”
In remarks after the meeting, she remembered Clark and offered condolences to his family.
“Chris Clark was a very dear friend of mine,” Drewenski said. “It’s very difficult to accept this role because we were so close, and he should be standing here.”
Drewenski will serve out the remainder of Clark’s term, which will end in spring 2027.
Monday’s meeting was the Harvey City Council’s second attempt at selecting an acting mayor. The first attempt, at a special meeting called shortly after Clark’s death, ended with the council deadlocked between Drewenski and 5th Ward Ald. Dominique Randle-El.
Randle-El told the Daily Southtown Tuesday he originally put himself forward because he wanted to make sure Clark’s legacy was respected.
“I didn’t want to see his vision die. I didn’t want to see him be so quickly forgotten,” Randle-El said. “You’d rather be the one in control of making sure that it doesn’t die, versus trusting someone else to do it.”
However, he said, it was more important to him to break the impasse and allow the city to move forward.
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“I don’t think there was a bad choice in between us. Obviously, we have our differences,” Randle-El said. “We’re talking about finishing out the term, I think that she’s more than capable of doing that. And it was only adding to the confusion and it was only dividing the city.”
He said he has considered running for mayor in 2027, but that will depend on who else runs. Second Ward Ald. Colby Chapman has already stated her intent to run.
“This is going to be a situation where technically, Harvey doesn’t have an incumbent. And the reason why incumbents are normally stronger is because people have seen their work,” Randle-El said. “I won’t hesitate, if I see a need to do so.”
Drewenski said she had not yet given thought to the question of appointing someone to fill her 1st Ward seat.
The mayor’s salary is about $20,000 more than that of an alderman, reflecting the fact that it is a full-time position, according to the Harvey city code. Drewenski confirmed she would accept the increased pay as acting mayor.
“The responsibility between the mayor and the aldermen and the time affected is too different,” Drewenski said. “This comes with a lot more responsibility and time.”
Harvey has operated on severely reduced city staffing since October, when about 40% of city workers were furloughed following the city’s declaration of financial distress. Drewenski said she hoped some of those people would be able to return to work by May 1.
“If it was up to me, yesterday,” Drewenski said.
Drewenski’s first act as mayor was to appoint an acting clerk, following a process of seeking and interviewing applicants from the public that was discussed at the previous City Council meeting.
She appointed Janet Rogers, the wife of 6th Ward Ald. Tyrone Rogers. Fourth Ward Ald. Tracy Key, who oversaw the interview process, and Tyrone Rogers abstained. Janet Rogers was confirmed by a vote of 3-1, with Chapman voting against.
Following the vote, an audience member shouted “You’re betraying the people of Harvey.”
Multiple members of the public criticized the appointment, alleging nepotism.
“He recused himself, but that’s still nepotism, favoritism and certainly not impartial,” resident Glynis James-Watson said.
Resident Melissa Crawley cited several sections of state law intended to prevent corruption. The selection of Janet Rogers created the appearance of a conflict of interest regardless of intent, she said.
“These statutes exist to prevent not only actual conflicts of interest, but also indirect influence and structural advantage,” Crawley said.
Tyrone Rogers defended the choice of his wife, saying she was the best candidate of those available.
“On a scale of one to 10, my wife was a dozen,” Rogers said. “If you want what’s best for the city, then you got what’s best for the city.”
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Janet Rogers is the Harvey Elementary District 152 board president and a member of the South Suburban College board. She was previously found guilty of felony fraud, a crime for which she was pardoned in 2013.
Drewenski said she had no concern about Janet Rogers’ fitness for the position of city clerk, despite her past conviction.
“The past is in the past,” Drewenski said. “It has been expunged.”
When asked what would change under her administration to address public distrust and concerns about transparency regarding city government, Drewenski said she had already built trust among constituents in the 1st Ward during her time as alderperson, and hoped to expand that citywide.
“Trust is not guaranteed by anybody. You have to develop it over time, and over relationships,” Drewenski said.
The City Council also approved three lists of bills Monday.
Chapman voted against all three, saying city spending should be subject to greater scrutiny and non-essential spending should be halted while the city is in a fiscal crisis. Key also voted against two of the three lists of bills.