Public Forum on Oak Lawn Dist. 1 Trustee Vacancy Is Tonight

Oak Lawn residents living in District 1 are invited to weigh in on their next village trustee tonight (7 p.m.) at .

Mayor Dave Heilmann, who must appoint a new trustee is hosting a public forum for interested applicants.

“The idea is to do something in public and to give people the opportunity to express their opinion on the person they want as representative versus it coming from the mayor or board members,” Heilmann said. “We live in a society that is very distrustful of government, and rightfully so.”

According to Illinois law, the mayor has 60 days to appoint a new trustee from when the vacancy occurred. Hurckes left the village board to go back to his old job as the chief of staff to Congressman Dan Lipinski. His last day as a was Aug. 31.

After an applicant has been selected, to approve or reject the appointment. Should the village board reject the mayor’s first appointment, the mayor will make a second choice.

If village board trustees reject the second appointment, the mayor would select the next trustee from the two applicants.

“My understanding is that appointments were made in the past for (Dist. 1). The process was through interviews and a recommendation, which I don’t criticize,” Heilmann said. “I thought I’d try something different.”

So far, few residents have expressed interest in filling the Dist. 1 trustee’s seat. The mayor said he’s received only one resume, from resident Eileen O’Sullivan.

“You hear chatter,” Heilmann said, “which is why I think it’s better to say, ‘I’m interested.’

“The people who are interested in being candidates will step forward tomorrow,” he said.

Village Clerk Jane Quinlan said no one has inquired at the village hall about the vacancy either, although someone did approach her at Fall On the Green.

Hurckes ran unopposed in the consolidated election earlier this year. He was re-elected to a third term on the village board, winning 341 votes. Because more than half of his term remains, the appointed trustee will fill that seat until the next consolidated election, in April 2013.

Heilmann is hoping for an open forum in which residents can ask questions of interested applicants. Applicants also will be asked to give statements of why they’re the best person for the job.

Walk-in applicants who haven’t submitted a resume or reached out to the mayor or other village official are also welcome to join the dais and speak to residents.

A map of District 1 is included with this article. Only recommendations from residents living in the village’s first district will be taken into consideration.

Those still in doubt can contact the village clerk’s office at 708-499-7738 to see if they live in District 1.

The forum starts at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 20, at