Hawthorn Woods mayor calls off Las Vegas trip

In a microcosm of the nation's financial woes, Hawthorn Woods discussed Tuesday night further tightening village spending and nixing a mayoral business trip.

The village suffered two big hits in the last six months, with budget shortfalls of a combined $1.5 million and layoffs of 14 employees with another layoff possible in September.

Some trustees took exception to a future trip for Mayor Keith Hunt to Las Vegas for an International Council of Shopping Centers convention being put on the village credit card.

"I don't think we should be spending that money given that we've just laid a bunch of people off in this village," Trustee Steve Riess said.

The charges added up to $1,650 for airfare and hotel accommodations for four nights.

"The board has a responsibility wherever possible, and this is one of them."

Trustee Greg Gehrke said eliminating the village's ability to sell itself during a time of financial pressure would be a mistake.

"What you do is fire the salesman?" Gehrke asked.

Trustee Jim Silvers agreed, saying such measures may look extravagant but are not.

"The cache of sitting up here and talking about going to Las Vegas is certainly something that appeals to the public," Silver said. "But that's where the convention is."

Some trustees appeared to agree the convention had value, but not during tough financial times. The board tied as Riess and Trustees Cliff Wright and Joanne Weick voted no, and Gehrke, Silvers and Trustee Neil Morgan voted to approve the expense.

"It has to be paid," Hunt said in breaking the tie. "I'm not going. We're going to pay the bill that needs paying."

The board went on to discuss village credit card policies, which the trustees decided to leave unchanged.

Reiss had suggested there shouldn't be a credit card at all. The remaining board members, though, disagreed.

"I would suggest to you that if there wasn't a credit card around this village, the opening weekend of the aquatic center would have been very different," Hunt said. "There are reasons that a director of public works has one, because of the need to fix something on an emergency basis."