Palatine tea party calls officials’ apparel purchase wasteful

Palatine spent several hundreds of dollars on village-themed apparel for Mayor Jim Schwantz and Councilman Aaron Del Mar, according to documents released Monday by the Palatine Tea Party.

In July 2009, a few months after both Schwantz and Del Mar were elected, the village paid $431.93 to buy four jackets and seven short- and long-sleeved shirts from Lands’ End Business Outfitters.

The purchases are standard practice for newly elected officials, Village Manager Reid Ottesen said. The money came out of the village council’s annual budget.

“This isn’t a recurring cost, but rather a one-time expense when they come into office,” he said.

Palatine Tea Party Coordinator Craig Mijares, who the Daily Herald reported is leading a widespread effort to increase transparency at the municipal level, called the purchases government waste and said elected officials should buy their own clothes. He linked the 2009 purchases to tax increases included in the 2011 budget.

Mijares initially believed the apparel didn’t include a village logo since the invoice listed zero cost associated with a logo application fee, but said either way, taxpayer money shouldn’t have been used.

“In good times or in bad, this is a needless expense even if there is a logo,” said Mijares, who obtained the invoice through a Freedom of Information Act request.

Schwantz said he wears his gear to village council meetings, community events and meetings around the Chicago area such as the Northwest Municipal Conference.

“I attend these events as a representative of the village of Palatine,” Schwantz said. “And again, these were a one-time expense.”