DGreport.com

Long-time observers of the village council will be watching closely this evening to see if commissioners have put aside the differences that led to last week’s contentious 4-3 levy vote.

The split was unusual and clearly frustrating to some on the dais, as has been reported. In conversations with the DGreport, commissioners offered their interpretations of the rift and the outlook for putting it behind them — and for disenchanted residents to do the same.

Commissioner Marilyn Schnell noted the various commissioners hear from different constituencies within the community, which she considers a positive. Not surprisingly what qualifies as a “core service” to one group, may not be considered such by another.

“The people I’m hearing from are saying in this economy they can’t afford to have property taxes raised,” she said. “My philosophy is to spread (the impact) so no one group in the community is hard hit. It’s not palatable to me or to the people I’ve talked to,” she said.

In the past, there has been more give and take during the budget process, Schnell said. “I’m not knocking anyone, but I don’t think I have had the dialogue I might have wished for.”

This year’s budget has been one of the hardest in Schnell’s 20 years on the council – so difficult that she considered canceling a vacation planned for months. “From the very beginning we said it would be a budget none of us would be happy with.”

“It’s been a very difficult time and everyone is tired,” she said. “Now we need to figure out how we move forward and how to work as a group to represent the entire community. We’re all going to have to dig deep now.”

Commissioner William Waldack also expressed frustration with the limited opportunity for discussion. There was “no attempt to reach consensus,” he said. The mayor “might have brought Schnell or (Bruce) Beckman along if there had been some discussion but he didn’t bother.”

“I agree we have a crisis,” he said. “They have turned it into a disaster to get rid of this stuff…To restore all the cuts would be an additional $15 – the cost of a can of soda a month – for each home valued at $300,000.”

Waldack had suggested raising the maximum levy by that amount in order to allow for more discussion.

“This weekend, someone told me that they watch the council meetings and asked if all those people coming to the meetings and writing us will have any effect on the outcome,” Waldack said. “I took a moment and honestly answered, I don’t think so. The majority has already made up its mind.”

Other commissioners seemed ready to put the contention behind them. “I’d  suggest that seven of us left the meeting frustrated,” said Commissioner Bob Barnett. “While I suspect the same frustrations can be found in our community at large, I do not believe they are debilitating.”

“As a group, this council and as a community, we need to strive for consensus and compromise. There are however, limits to both,” Barnett said.  “To suggest these folks will always compromise on each and every subject is folly…We’ll continue to have subjects arise that we cannot agree on, yet as long as we’re all confident in the intentions and motivations of each other, we’ll move forward just fine.”

A day after the meeting in which his desire to maintain the Department of Counseling and Social Services failed to muster adequate support, Beckman was already looking forward.

“I communicated with (Mayor) Ron (Sandack) and we agreed “let’s move toward a better Downers Grove,” Beckman said.

His vote against the levy “doesn’t mean I won’t support the budget,” he said. “This is an issue I took very seriously, regarding counseling services. I would think if we can do something in the next step that would be great. But if the majority chooses to stay put, that’s it.”

Beckman said his take-away from the Nov. 17 meeting was “I needed to communication more effectively to some commissioners…I think good will come out of (it) for future decisions.”

Commissioner Neustadt, who chairs the Community Events Commission, said he left the meeting resolved to make Heritage Fest the best it can be and also self- sustaining.

“When Commissioner Schnell asked if we can hold the event while we are laying off people – that was a new concept for me, perhaps because of my desire to continue Heritage Fest and maintain the police officers,” Neustadt said. The tentative budget calls for two officers to lose their jobs.

For Commissioner Sean P. Durkin, the debate came down to the definition of “core” services.

“You can argue all day on what a core service is. Unfortunately, it divided the council (Tuesday) night,” he said. “The dividing factor was they didn’t want to make the cuts that majority of us wanted to cut.”

Although he personally believes there was “ample time for discussion,” Durkin suggests his council colleagues may need to clear the air one-on-one and “not in a public forum.”

While acknowledging the stress inherent in budgeting during unprecedented times and in the face of complex challenges, Mayor Ron Sandack said he isn’t concerned about the cohesiveness of the council “or how we’ll relate to one another going forward.”

“Look, all seven of us care deeply about the village and the future of our town, otherwise why serve and spend the time we invest? Does this changing landscape cause some to pause, worry a bit and possibly act out in emotional ways? Sure, me included.”

Sandack said in retrospect he would probably “say some things differently” in his remarks last week, which he used to call out colleagues who saw the process differently.

“The substance of my message however –that the village must re-shape the way we do business and stick to core services because the ‘old way’ is no longer sustainable– would remain. The math is the math,” he said.

“We’ll all continue to try and do our best and I assure you we’ll work just fine together after this budget and levy are concluded. I’d bet on it.”