Island Lake changes hiring procedure for parks director

Island Lake’s parks and recreation department has been without a director for years, and there are no plans for that to change.

But if village officials eventually decide to hire such an administrator, the process for doing so will be different.

The village board on Thursday amended a local code to change how the parks department director is hired.

From now on, the director will be hired by the village board, and the director’s salary will be set by the board. Previously, the village codes called for the parks director to be appointed by the mayor with the advice and consent of the board.

The change was approved by a 5-0 vote. Trustee Laurie Rabattini was absent.

In an interview before the meeting, Trustee Don Saville hailed the change, saying the new process is “going to get (us) away from cronyism.”

Trustee Connie Mascillino had a different view of the change, saying it merely cleaned up the language of the ordinance.

“I don’t read anything more into it than that,” Mascillino said before the meeting.

Island Lake hasn’t had a parks department director since the 1990s or the early part of last decade, Mayor Debbie Herrmann said.

The department had been run until late December by Karen L. Luebbers, the department’s program supervisor.

Luebbers was placed on unpaid administrative leave after she was arrested Dec. 30 and charged with misdemeanor battery. Those charges followed a Dec. 10 fight at a local bar.

The case is pending in Lake County court.

Herrmann said the ordinance change has nothing to do with Luebbers’ case.