Kane Co. development director given tough task before retirement

Phil Bus, Kane County's planning and development director for more than 30 years, will retire Nov. 30. But instead of a nice watch, county board members gave him a mandate to reorganize the staffing and priorities of his entire department before he leaves.

County Board Chairman Karen McConnaughay praised Bus as "a legend in Kane County and a legend within the world of planners," in the official announcement of his retirement. "Phil is seen as a guru. The unwavering leadership he has shown and his courage to challenge the status quo and ask the hard questions has, I believe, helped make Kane County a far better place to live and work than it otherwise might have been."

Bus will now be called on to ask the hard questions within his own department. Development Committee Chairwoman Cathy Hurlbut challenged Bus to seriously look at the structure of his operations and present some possible internal changes to the structure and functions of employees he's worked with many years. The call to action is in part a response to a 2010 budget presentation made by Bus' department last month. It called for increases in spending for projects such as improving local drainage, perhaps to show the crucial nature of the department at a time when the county is making budget and staff cuts.

The functions of Bus' department have also been questioned this year as new economic development and population growth nearly flatlined in the county, reflective of the nation's recession.

But Bus didn't site any of that as a reason to retire in the official announcement. Bus, 62, reasoned that the time is simply right for a new perspective as the county prepares its vision for the future extending out to 2040.

"It is the right thing to do," Bus said in a written statement. "I also want to go out on top, to leave in style."