Village manager's future uncertain in Glen Ellyn

With a new village president in place, Glen Ellyn Village Manager Steve Jones finds himself facing an uncertain future.

According to state statute, the manager's contract expires when a new village president is seated. In Glen Ellyn, that changing of the guard occurred May 11.

Jones, who took the manager's post last June, currently is working under the terms of his original contract, Village President Mark Pfefferman said Wednesday.

"This is not unusual," Pfefferman said. "(The contract) is still in effect until it's canceled. There's no real fire or sense of urgency."

Discussions concerning Jones' pact have been taking place in executive session. If his contract is changed or not renewed, that vote would have to take place in public.

Most of the village board declined to comment on the discussions, but Trustee Pete Ladesic has been vocal about not wanting to renew the contract.

"I just don't feel that Steve is a fit for the village," he said. "I just think that the climate and the environment in the village has changed since he's gotten here, not in a good way."

Ladesic said employees, and the village in general, have been under more stress with Jones at the helm.

He also referenced a vote in December, when the village board decided against demoting two department heads who used village phones to send thousands of texts to each other. Jones had pushed for that demotion, which Ladesic said was unwarranted.

"I certainly would hope that I wouldn't have any vindictive tone to not supporting him," Ladesic said. "I just don't feel that from what I've seen he's going to be a good fit to take us into the future."

Ladesic said he's not the only one unhappy with Jones' performance, but other trustees remained mum.

"Nobody should be talking about it," Trustee Jim Comerford said. "I'm really disappointed that others have."

Ladesic said it's also been brought to his attention that Jones is looking for other jobs, which doesn't speak well to his commitment to Glen Ellyn.

Ladesic compared the issue to a rocky marriage.

"Why would you go out and find another boyfriend or girlfriend?" he said. "It seems like it would be in your best interest to get some counseling. I don't get the sense that Steve really wants to be here."

Jones would not talk about whether he's looking for another job.

Pfefferman said it ultimately will be up to the board to decide what to do about Jones' contract.

"Certainly there's been some feedback in the community about Steve's job performance," he said. "It's been both positive and negative."

He said the community was very polarized when it came to the department head demotions last year, but he sees that as separate from an overall evaluation of Jones' contract.

In the few weeks Pfefferman has been village president, he said Jones has been easy to work with.

"He has great experience and technical expertise in his job," he said.