The Village Board of Trustees met last Monday evening, and one person stated the following during public comment:
“My name is (name). I live at (address). I’ve been a resident of Barrington Hills for eighteen years. I’m the Deputy Clerk and I also sit on the Plan Commission.
I’m here tonight to express my opinion that I think it’s inappropriate to have a family member of an employee (Building Department) that’s a spouse of the Village President. I believe the situation doesn’t reflect favorably on the Village of Barrington Hills. I think it exposes us to criticism, conflict of interest, favoritism, nepotism – any number of words that you can come up with.
In my opinion, no Village employee should be related to any of the Trustees. I think that’s best. I think just the situation in this particular situation – because it’s the Village President and his spouse – it just accentuates it a little more as a potential conflict of interest, so, that’s my comment.”
Her comments begin at the 00:40 minute mark of Monday’s meeting recording found here.
We applaud this resident for coming forward and voicing what others believe, and we agree.
ABSOLUTELY 100% agree. How can Brian Cecola & the rest of the board be so oblivious to the obvious conflict of interest & demonstration of nepotism with the continued employment of his wife?? He signs her paychecks! He signs Anna’s paycheck – her direct supervisor.
He’s really going to sell his soul to keep her in a piddly part-time job that any temp could fill immediately?
All of us who voted for Brian assumed that she would step down immediately after he was sworn in. Are they really so hard-pressed for money?
Do the right thing Brian. Now.
Fully agree. I also do not think it is right to put the other staff at the village hall in this position either. The Clerk and the Treasurer must be uncomfortable. If I were the Village Administrator I would be upset and if she is not upset she must be ok with being told what to do and she is not doing the job of village administrator effectively. If we want to be taken seriously we cannot be a village run by a few people. There needs to be proper checks and balances.
It’s starts on the micro level, but this actually speaks to a much larger macro problem. Government is now so fully corrupt that it openly flaunts malfeasance and conflicts of interest without fear of repercussion. From Hunter Biden stating that “plausible deniability” (and, of course, the Democrat Party media) provides cover for his egregious and criminal profiteering including kickbacks to his father, to this type of silly local level nepotism, government has grown so large and powerful that we are now experiencing tyranny at every level. This unbridled authoritarianism tramples our natural and Constitutionally guaranteed rights, and sows the seeds of at a minimum cronyism and government controlled capitalism (think China light) and at worst fascism/communism. The examples of this trend are everywhere as the attacks on our freedom continue almost unimpeded. As Adams wrote on October 11, 1798, “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious People. It is wholly inadequate to the government any other”. We are now so far beyond a “moral and religious” people operating almost all levers of power in the nation, that one wonders what it will take to be recovered – as it ultimately must for the Republic as constituted to survive.
No question this smacks of all that was mentioned. Conflict of interest, favoritism, nepotism and above all it just makes our town look bad.
Section 1-7-1 of the VBH Code entitled “Interest in Village Contracts, Business Prohibited” provides that:
“No officer of the Village shall be directly or indirectly financially interested in any contract, work or business of the Village, or the sale of any article, the expense, price or consideration of which is paid from the Treasury, or by any assessment levied by any act or ordinance; or in the purchase of any real estate or other property.”
The appointment of a spouse of an elected official to an employment position with the Village was improper an improper appointment to begin with and now is compounded by the fact that the spouse of this elected official is Village President. While I view Brian Cecola and Stephanie as friends it would be disingenuous of me to have raised this provision with a Trustee and political adversary who appeared before the ZBA as counsel for an applicant while remaining silent in the face of a more egregious violation because it is a political ally.
Successful government in a free society requires laws be enforced equally among those in power and among those whom they govern. I am confident Village Counsel, Village Manager and BOT have brought §1-7-1 of the Code to the attention of VBH President Cecola and now equipped with this knowledge Mr. Cecola and Stephanie are taking immediate steps to rectify this wrong.
Why should a resident of the community be the one to bring to light the contents of the Village Code? Shouldn’t that be the role of the Village Attorney, in the least….or the Trustees and Village President, all of whom should be intimately familiar with the contents of the Code?
No claims have been made of impropriety or incompetence, but rules are made to place the actions of all Village Officers, Trustees and Administrators beyond reproach!
Why risk the reputation of the Village of Barrington Hills by maintaining the status quo?