Hanover Park brings back collector job
Hanover Park Mayor Rod Craig couldn't save his wife's job, but on Thursday he said he did his best to "make things right."
The village board, by a 4-2 vote, backed his proposal to reinstate the collector position, which was eliminated last year in a move Craig called personal and vindictive.
"My interest is to reestablish (the position) as it was disemboweled ... without merit and without discussion," he said.
He will appoint newly elected Village Clerk Eira Corral to the post, which was held by Craig's wife Sherry for more than 20 years. In February 2008, the old board of trustees fired her as collector, citing a need to free up the $55,000 salary for police staffing.
Corral, 24, was set to earn $48,723 a year, which Trustee Toni Carter quickly quashed. The board backed her recommendation to change the position's pay grade from a management level to a lower grade on a pay scale that will range from $32,000 to $63,000.
"(Corral) has only been in her role for two weeks," Carter said. A higher salary is "not justifiable."
A few hours after he handily won a second term last month, Craig said he had no plans to reinstate the collector position. However, the mayor spoke strongly Thursday about the need to have an elected official working full-time in village hall. He recalled moving to Hanover Park and meeting the late Sonya Crawshaw, who served as clerk and collector before three terms as mayor.
"Sonya made us feel welcome and represented the board in an exceptional way," Craig said. "That should continue."
Though Trustees Lori Kaiser and Joe Nicolosi knew their remarks would prove futile, they questioned the move since the finance department absorbed the collector duties more than a year ago. An information technology department was created, automating many of the tasks, and an employee was made deputy clerk and given a raise.
Craig said the job responsibilities will be outlined once the village hires a new finance director.
Past collectors were appointed by the village manager, whom Craig has forced out since winning re-election. Now, the mayor makes the appointment with board approval. Kaiser said Craig was bringing politics into the hiring a full-time salaried employee.