Gurnee Police Chief Kevin Woodside to retire

Gurnee Police Chief Kevin Woodside announced his retirement Friday after three decades on the force.

"After 30 years, it is time for the next generation to lead," he said in a news release. "We have a very strong leadership team, and you can be assured that the Gurnee Police Department is in very capable hands."

Woodside was hired as a police officer in 1988 and was appointed chief in November 2011.

As chief, Woodside started the department's visitor-oriented policing team, a group of officers who focus solely on the village's tourist areas such as Six Flags Great America and Gurnee Mills. Woodside also oversaw the department's rollout of body-worn cameras and Taser weapons.

Woodside will serve as chief through the end of the year.

Mayor Kristina Kovarik said she will name Deputy Chief Brian Smith to serve as interim police chief after Woodside steps down. Smith has been with the department since 2000.

Woodside said that the conversation around his retirement had been going on internally for the better part of a year. He said it was important to him that there was a succession plan in place before he left and that he would be succeeded by someone from the current leadership team.

"I've been really trying to develop leaders and establish a collaborative leadership team here," Woodside said in an interview. "It's something that I've dedicated a lot of department resources and energy into, and I think it will pay dividends into the future."

Woodside said he was glad Smith will be interim chief and hoped that the mayor and the village board would eventually make him the chief.

Kovarik said the village has benefited immensely from Woodside's tenure as chief.

"Under his leadership the Gurnee Police Department has strengthened relationships, increased safety, enhanced accessibility, improved transparency and employed technology," Kovarik said.

In Gurnee, department heads such as the police chief are appointed each year by the mayor, usually each May. The mayor's selections are then voted on by the village board.

"I cannot begin to express the mix of emotions that comes with bringing this chapter of my life to a close," Woodside said in a release. "Being allowed to serve as police chief for the past seven years has been an absolute privilege."