Vote on overcrowding fix may fuel ethics jab against Kane board member

The idea of night court in Kane County once again faded to the backdrop Thursday as a county board committee voted to move forward with the planning for a short-term solution to cramped spaces at the judicial center.

In doing so, another county board member might have set himself up for public criticism for voting in favor of a contract for a company from which he’s accepted campaign contributions.

The plan would eventually build a small addition to the judicial center. Chief Judge Robert Spence again told board members all the courtrooms are in daily use at the judicial center. More space is needed for courtrooms and new judges to keep the trial process moving rapidly enough to keep the county’s jail population low. Housing inmates is one of the county’s larger costs. Spence wants the county board to gradually move toward consolidating the county’s court functions at the judicial center campus. A small expansion now would help delay the $96 million full-blown judicial campus build-out for perhaps another five years, Spence said.

“We have to plan for the future,” Spence said. “But I think it’s clear that we cannot afford the ($96 million) plan. Even in a good economy, that’s a huge bite to take off. I don’t think it’s realistic.”

The cost of the smaller expansion is not yet known. It’ll cost the county up to $426,000 to get a consultant’s opinion on that as well as a conceptual design. But not all committee members were ready to fork out that kind of cash for a short-term solution.

County board member Deb Allan again suggested a late afternoon court call, if not a full-fledged night court. Most courtrooms at the judicial center are not in use by late afternoon. Spence shot down that idea, saying judges use their afternoons to conduct research on cases and write their opinions. It’s also difficult to know when a trial might use up one courtroom for four days, often extending into the evenings, Spence said.

“It’s hard to schedule for that,” he said.

Allan became the lone “no” vote on the committee for the $426,000 consultant contract. But one of the other committee members, Mark Davoust, actively backed the contract in committee debate. And that may have placed a target on his back.

The consultant the plan would hire is Wight & Co., which donated a total of $500 to Davoust the past two years.

Recently, county board member Jim Mitchell has publicly called out fellow board members on such contributions and subsequent votes. Mitchell is not a member of the committee that voted on the contract Thursday. He’s been using the full county board meetings for his outing sessions. At the last full county board meeting Mitchell pointed a finger at board member Cathy Hurlbut and Chairman Karen McConnaughay for campaign contributions they took from a landowner who will profit from the looming Interstate 88/Route 47 interchange project the county will soon undertake.

McConnaughay may again find herself in Mitchell’s sights. She’s taken $2,500 in campaign contributions from Wight & Co. during the past three years. The company also donated $4,000 to the Kane County Republican Advisory Council during the past four years. The chairman of that council is Andy Faville, a Geneva businessman who has financially supported McConnaughay’s campaigns. McConnaughay does not vote on contracts unless there is a tie on the county board.

Wight & Co. also gave a total of $8,225 to the Kane County Republican Central Committee between 2003 and 2011. The chairman of the committee and its campaign fund is county board member Mike Kenyon. Kenyon is one of the county board members who may vote on the $426,000 contract for Wight & Co. before it becomes a done deal.