Roselle interviews final fire chief candidates

The search for a new Roselle Fire Department chief has come down to five candidates.

All were scheduled to be interviewed by the village board Thursday during a closed meeting.

After interim chief Robert Tinucci was appointed in July to replace retiring Chief Robert Gallas, village officials launched a regional search. A 35-year firefighter and retired chief, Tinucci was never a candidate for the top post, Village President Gayle Smolinski said.

"He was simply interested in helping us out until we get our new chief," she said.

Village officials conducted their own assessment of all the candidates and did not hire an outside search firm.

"We didn't spend a lot of money as other communities might," Smolinski said. "We were looking to save taxpayer dollars."

Instead, the village hired a single consultant who helped with selecting resumes and top candidates and creating a detailed questionnaire for the prospective chiefs.

From those responses, village leaders selected about 10 people, who then participated in an all-day assessment panel led by the consultant and Trustee Kory Atkinson. The five finalists were chosen from that panel.

Smolinski said the ideal chief will have municipal experience and want to remain in Roselle for many years.

"We are looking for people who will not be using this as a fun thing to do in the couple years before they retire," Smolinski said. "We want our chief to stay in our community for some stabilization and we're hoping for someone who also has community involvement outside of the fire service."

The new chief ideally will have experience in a department similar to Roselle's, which is a mix of paid on-call, contract and full-time firefighters and paramedics, she said.

Of the five men interviewed Thursday, all have a bachelor's degree and several hold master's degrees. Roselle officials hope to announce their decision in November.