'We waited and found our guy': Hampshire hires first administrator in 5 years

With a desire to return to city management after 30 years in the private sector, Jay Hedges weighed his options.

He could work for a large, established community in the Chicago area with lots of political discourse and the potential to refine his conflict resolution skills. Or he could try his luck in Hampshire, a much smaller town that hasn't had a village administrator in five years but is ripe with development opportunities.

He chose the latter.

Even before his initial interview, Hedges fell in love with Hampshire the first time he took a drive around town, during what turned out to be a rainy but spirited homecoming weekend. Then, he sat in on a couple of village board meetings and was intrigued by the take-action approach of trustees, most of whom he described as forward-thinking and young in tenure.

"What I saw was a board that really wanted to get things done and a community that has all the tools," Hedges said. "They know where they want to go. They just want someone to help them get there."

Hedges, who recently moved to Huntley, started his career in municipal government and eventually ran what was then called the Illinois Department of Commerce and Community Affairs. The past few decades, he served as a leader for various manufacturing corporations, but he promised himself he'd return to public service one day.

One of 21 applicants for the village administrator position, Hedges had the "perfect mix" of government and private sector experience to help Hampshire tackle projects, attract new businesses and responsibly manage growth, Village President Jeff Magnussen said. He started the position Dec. 2 with a starting annual salary of $124,800.

It had been more than five years since the village hired its previous administrator, whose tenure lasted no more than a week. Rather than go through the recruitment process again so soon, "the board decided to save the money and wait for the right time," Magnussen said. "We waited and found our guy."

Hedges' first priority has been to push forward a number of developments that had stalled at the village level. The village has four other department heads but none who specialize in economic development.

His next goal is working with the business development commission to increase outreach efforts and prepare the village for new prospects.

When a new project is on the table, Hedges said, village officials should be able to provide developers with a tentative timeline and anticipated costs for all steps in the process, such as obtaining permits, applying for zoning changes or getting plans approved.

"We have a lot of momentum here," he said, pointing to inquiries from residential, commercial and industrial developers. "We just need to be able to manage it well and have a development process that is easy and understandable and doesn't inhibit growth."

Hampshire now is experiencing a similar energy that was evident decades ago in Hoffman Estates, where Hedges started his career, he said. He also worked in Skokie and Mount Prospect before he was hired as then-Gov. Jim Thompson's assistant for local government affairs.

In 1986, Hedges was appointed the director of commerce and community affairs, where he led efforts to retain the Sears headquarters in Illinois and coordinated the relocation of other businesses to the state. He spent the past 30 years in manufacturing, with his most recent job landing him in the East Coast, before returning to Chicago last May.