Mayorship Can Be A Part-Time Job: Bolingbrook's Full-Time Mayor

BOLINGBROOK, IL — The last Bolingbrook Village Board meeting of the decade was a long one, taking more than 90 minutes. Some 40 minutes of that time was dedicated to a small Christmas concert by Bolingbrook High School students, and to the recognition of village residents whose homes were judged to have the best Halloween decorations. During the remaining time dedicated to more substantive issues, Mayor Roger Claar spoke at length about a single topic: himself, and the nature of his job.

"I'm just going to talk a little bit about how this all happened," Claar said, kicking off an almost 25-minute monologue on his history as Bolingbrook mayor. He spoke about the responsibilities he said he has taken on during his tenure, including those of a village administrator - typically a separate position.

All of this was to frame his proposal that as of the next mayoral election cycle, the mayorship of Bolingbrook should be transitioned from a full-time job to a part-time one.

Claar explained that he wanted to see the position changed because "it's time."

"The town is built out, and now we can put a professional man in charge and go back to a part-time mayor so that more people will be able to do it without giving up their job or career," he said.

Claar served as a part-time mayor two decades ago, he said, before the board at that time voted to convert the position to a full-time gig. His vision for the new part-time position was something of a return; one wherein the mayor set their own hours, devoting "so much of his time to the duties of his office as a faithful and efficient discharge thereof may require," the agenda document related to his proposal said.

For their work, the future part-time mayor would be compensated a flat $35,000 annually. Claar currently makes about $150,000 plus benefits in his position; this is due, he said, to also taking on the responsibilities of a village administrator. Claar said he would not be pursuing re-election as mayor after his present term expires.

"I will not be a candidate next election," he said. "So whatever people are conjuring up about my motive for this, that I want to be this or that or the administrator; I'm done."

Some of the other village trustees were surprised by Claar's proposal. Trustee Robert Jaskiewicz said Friday, Dec. 13 — when the trustees received the meeting agenda documents — was the first time he heard about it.

"I didn't find out about this until Friday when we got the agenda... By switching to a part-time position, that's going to change a lot of the dynamics of people that were considering running, now, for a full time position," he said.

Jaskiewicz also expressed concern that if the mayorship transitioned to a part-time gig, more money than is currently used to pay Claar would have to be spent paying a both a part-time mayor and a full-time village administrator.

"Especially if the board approves that and goes with a village administrator ... my concern is, is the cost going to be more or less in salaries?" He mused. "Right now, let's just say we cap [our total salary budget] at $200,000. If you're going to pay the part-time mayor $35,000, you've got $165,000 left over for a village administrator. Is that doable in this day and age?"

The board neither heard nor passed a motion officially changing the mayorship from a full-time to a part-time job. Such a change to an elected position must be made at least 180 days before the next election. The mayor said he simply wanted to make the Board aware of his proposal well ahead of that time.

"We're talking about it now in December," Claar said. "We'll be talking about it again in January and probably February before an action is proposed."