Familiar Face To Take Bensenville Reins

BENSENVILLE, IL – Bensenville is poised to hire its police chief as the permanent village manager Monday.

On Tuesday, the Village Board plans to vote on Chief Dan Schulze's promotion. He is set to get a four-year contract, with a salary of $225,000.

In November, Schulze, who became the chief in 2018, was appointed interim manager after the board fired Evan Summers, who served eight years. The board did not explain its reasoning.

Schulze and Bensenville Village President Frank DeSimone both retired from the Schiller Park Police Department, where they worked as detectives. DeSimone was president when the village hired Schulze.

Also on Tuesday, the board plans to swear in Bensenville detective Sgt. Bradley Swanson as the new chief.

After firing Summers, the board set a referendum for April in which voters would change the form of government, giving the village president greater powers.

It also enacted an ordinance that would have spiked DeSimone's pay to $157,000 if the referendum passed, up from $38,000. The mayor in neighboring Elmhurst, with a population 2½ times larger, gets $8,400 a year.

The board's actions were taken without discussion. Outraged residents made their views known at meetings. In the election, two-thirds of voters rejected the referendum.

The firing and the other measures were all done shortly after the candidate filing period ended; Bensenville's elected officials ran unopposed.

Schulze retired from Schiller Park in 2018, while DeSimone did so last August, making a $72,000-a-year pension.

Earlier this year, Patch reported that at least 14 companies that did business with Bensenville in 2023 contributed to DeSimone's campaign account.

The donors included engineers, car dealerships, consultants, law firms, a construction company and a lobbyist.

In response to a Patch inquiry, DeSimone said the companies voluntarily contributed to his campaign.

Summers has since become suburban Winfield's manager.