DuPage neutral on eliminating forest preserve board

The DuPage County Board won't lobby for or against a proposed state law that would eliminate the elected board that oversees the forest preserve district.

Instead, Chairman Dan Cronin and several county board members say they're staying neutral on the idea of undoing a 12-year-old split between the county board and forest preserve commission.

State Rep. Deb Conroy is proposing the legislation to return the forest preserve commission's duties to the county board.

If approved, the Villa Park Democrat says the measure would save taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars. The six forest preserve commissioners each are paid $50,000 a year and the commission president is paid an annual salary of $75,000. Commissioners and the president also qualify for taxpayer-subsidized pensions if they meet certain criteria.

On Tuesday, Cronin said he respects Conroy's position and believes it has merit.

“I'm not opposed to it,” he said. “There's no sacred cows when you look at saving taxpayers money and delivering services more efficiently.

“I firmly believe in the mission of the forest preserve,” Cronin said.

The question, he said, is whether the existing commission is the only government body that can fulfill the mission of the forest preserve district.

“The answer to that is obviously no,” Cronin said. “There are other ways to protect open space and to protect environmental habitats.”

Still, Cronin stressed he's not actively supporting Conroy's proposal.

“I'm officially neutral,” he said.

The commission made its historic split from the county board in 2002. State lawmakers approved the separation six years earlier because of concerns about an inherent conflict between the county's development interests and the forest commission's environmental mission.

One example of such conflict commonly cited involved Diehl Road, which was allowed to be built through McDowell Grove Forest Preserve near Naperville.

On Tuesday, forest preserve President Joseph Cantore said in a statement that the commission is opposed to Conroy's proposal and has requested a meeting with her.

“The commissioners were elected by the voters to ensure the preservation of open space in DuPage County,” Cantore said. “This bill undermines local control backed by the voters and the integrity of our forest preserve system.

Cantore has said it would be a conflict of interest to have the same people voting on both development and preservation efforts.

However, county board member Jim Healy, who served on the board back when it also oversaw the forest preserve district, said development in DuPage has slowed and available land is scarce.

Meanwhile, Healy said there have been “issues” in recent years at the forest preserve. He cited the district's difficulty in keeping an executive director as one example.

“I've talked to several forest preserve commissioners and none of them seem to think that it's going in a good direction,” Healy said. “They don't think that it should be merged, but they don't think they're moving in a good direction. Now you have new leadership (Cantore) over there. Maybe that will help.”

But like Cronin, Healy and other county board members say they're taking a neutral position when it comes to Conroy's proposal.

One county board member opposed to the proposed state law change is Jim Zay, who was on the board before the separation.

“I'm not in favor of bringing the two together,” Zay said. “I was there when we divided. I think the forest preserve has its agenda. And I think they are doing a good job.”