Glen Ellyn seeking more volunteer input on commissions

Glen Ellyn calls itself the "Village of Volunteers."

But despite having more than 100 people serving on commissions and boards, village President Mark Pfefferman says the town needs more help from skilled residents.

At an open house Monday, Pfefferman met with about a dozen residents and answered questions for nearly two hours. The session was the first of its kind, Pfefferman said, and he wasn't discouraged by the turnout.

"It's been a good opportunity to meet with the people of the community and see what their concerns are," he said.

"It was a good chance to talk with them one-on-one," he said. "It was informal, no program and no agenda."

Residents brought up several issues, including the village's decision to give the library $3 million for repairs.

Many also talked about the future of downtown.

Pfefferman said residents should not expect a large anchor store but that smaller, targeted theme shops could be a way to focus development and store recruitment.

Residents seemed to favor Pfefferman's plan to offer more volunteer opportunities that could save the village money and increase its efficiency.

He said general calls for help are not as effective as having specific goals for volunteers.

"It's a lot harder than just saying 'yes' but we have to figure out a way because we have a gold mine," he said.

"There's a cost savings to the village when you're having the people help run the business of Glen Ellyn," Pfefferman said. "As long as we give them assignments that are manageable and doable, it could be the next breakthrough in the tough economy - using volunteer help to get projects going."