Carl Tomaso: 1952-2008

It is still hard to believe Carl Tomaso is gone.

Huntley's village manager died suddenly last week at the age of 56.

I first met Carl more than a year ago, when I started covering the village he had then managed for 10 years.

During my first weeks on the Huntley beat, Carl would offer to set aside an hour of his time each week to brief me on what was on the village's plate that week.

I never took him up on his offer, but during my weekly visits to village hall back then, I could always count on Carl to find an answer for me if I couldn't find one elsewhere.

Because of the position he held and the high standards he held himself to, Carl knew Huntley and the issues the village was facing like the back of his hand.

It would have been easy for him to quickly and dismissively answer questions that were easy for him to grasp but difficult to understand for people, like myself, who don't have decades of training and experience in municipal management and urban planning.

Instead, Carl was always patient with me. Though he would sometimes tell me - in jest - that I would understand more if I came to more meetings, he would take as much time as I needed to make sure I understood an issue.

When the light bulb finally lit up in my head, sometimes after several minutes of what must have seemed to Carl like redundant questioning, Carl would simply say, "You got it."

In the past week, many who knew Carl have spoken of his love for Chicago sports.

The last time I saw Carl, after a May 22 village board meeting, we talked about the Cubs and how well they were doing.

I told him I was a Tigers fan, and he extended his condolences.

When we walked together out of the new village hall he had helped make a reality, most everyone had already left.

As we walked to our cars, Carl told me to call him the next morning if I had any more questions about a large proposed development the village board had dealt with that night.

I never did, and that was the last time we talked.

If Huntley's assistant village manager, Dave Johnson, takes over Carl's post, I have little doubt he'll do a fine job.

But it is hard to imagine walking into village hall and not seeing Carl - always moving, talking or meeting with a Huntley trustee or stakeholder.

I don't know if many people in Huntley knew who Carl Tomaso was.

If people know anything about their local government, they might know who the mayor is and little else.

But Carl was the wizard behind the scenes, who spent 11 years of his life fighting for Huntley and its residents.

Carl's fingerprints are everywhere in modern Huntley - from simple amenities like clean drinking water to large new subdivisions and retail centers to projects that haven't yet been realized.

Because of the competent staff Carl helped cultivate at village hall, you probably won't notice much of a difference in the daily operation of the village.

But Carl Tomaso will definitely be missed.

Carl, here's to you.