Lakemoor hires first village administrator

Lakemoor Mayor Todd Weihofen believes the hiring of a new village administrator will point the community in the right direction.

After a 4 to 3 vote Thursday night in favor of the hiring, Weihofen named David Alarcon to the position. The former police officer, Cook County corrections officer and village administrator of Park City, will be paid $78,000 a year when he takes over Nov. 9.

"It's gonna take a year or two to straighten everything out, but I think this moves us in the right direction," Weihofen said. "I think, with his experience and his grant writing ability, he will save us money to a point where he pays for his own salary, and then some."

Not everyone on the village board agreed.

Adding another salary to the mix was the main reason why trustees Robert Koehl, Ralph Brindise and Kimberly Beach voted against the hiring. They stressed the village has been operating with a $100,000 monthly deficit all year, and the village was forced to lay off five employees earlier this year to cut expenses.

Weihofen voted in favor of the hiring to break the 3 to 3 tie.

"There are going to be a lot of those votes for the next couple of years, I fear," Weihofen said. "Some people have their own ideas on what we should do with the town. Personally, I believe hiring the administrator despite his salary was right for the village."

Weihofen said the hiring would save money. In addition to watching expenses, the administrator can apply for federal and state grants, and there will be less reliance on the village attorney to address mundane issues, he said.