Newly elected Evanston City Clerk Devon Reid says he’s looking for some expert advice ahead of taking office next month.
Reid says he’s looking for several people to be part of a transition team.
- One would have financial experitise to do an audit of the clerk’s budget to try to find savings or efficiencies.
- Another would be an attorney to advise him on issues related to state recordkeeping rules, the Freedom of Information Act and election laws.
- Another, perhaps from the county clerk’s office or another municipal clerk’s office, would have expertise in the process of running elections.
- And he’s also hoping one of the city’s aldermen will offer advice as well.
Reid says anyone interested in helping out can contact him through his website.
Reid also says he plans to expand the clerk’s office hours, now weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., until 7 p.m. each day by staggering the work schedule for the office’s employees.
Free advice
My free advice is to reduce the city clerk’s position to part time — the way it used to be not too long ago.
Why do I have a feeling that ain’t gonna happen.
On the subject of the City
On the subject of the City Clerk, on Feb 20, Evanston Now reported “City Clerk Rodney Greene or his deputies also made six city-paid out-of-town trips to conferences during 2016, including to events in Nashville, Tennessee and Reno, Nevada. And he’s already made reservations for an International Institute of Municipal Clerks conference to be held in Montreal in late May, after the April election.” Are our current elected officials keeping an eye on Mr. Greene, or do they continue to allow him to waste money on their watch?
OMG
Really? I don’t think I ever heard hIm talk about how unqualified he was during the campaign. Good to know. I have a feeling the City Clerks office is ripe for reality TV in the near future. Are these people he wants to help going to be vetted? Is it ethical to have someone off street to audit city books? The alderman should stay clear of this train wreck. Miller has some time on his hands. Maybe he can help.
WHAT
This sounds like an attack. I believe he is a much needed improvement over Greene. If you remember that Greene was caught using taxpayer dollars to shine his owe star. He should have been fired ( if possible) but he ended up being unelected. I wonder if he will be prosecuted if he doesn’t repay the city?
What were his qualifications?
While it might seem that Devon is reaching out for expert advice, it would also seem that some of the advice he is seeking has always been fundamental to the position he just won. If so, one must ask what qualifications did he bring to the position, what did he think this job entailed, and what have we now learned about the person we just elected? It would seem, sadly, that his qualifications for the job could best be summarized as “Not Rodney Greene”. If that is the case, how different is his understanding and his preparation different from the person who received about 13% of the national vote in Evanston last November, as well as the reasons, unfortunately, so many persons in “red states” voted the way they did as opposed to considering who was best qualified for the highest position in the land.
PS This does not necessarily indicate that I thought the former Clerk was deserving of reelection, but it does make one wonder about the newly elected clerk and what he “brings to the table”.
Qualifications were lacking
I would remind everybody that Devon had previously been arrested for driving on a suspended license. The license was suspended over unpaid parking tickets. If you review the comments on the article I linked, he does post and own up to the failure.
Forgetting about parking tickets certainly does not inspire confidence in his administrative abilities.
However, I think what he’s doing now with the transition team is fine. Asking a lawyer about Evanston’s election filing requirements is something that our previous clerk should have done as well; had Greene done this, we could have avoided all that unpleasantness Miller and Smith decided to plague us with.
Just say it – T-R-U-M-P
I find it funny how the “progressives” cannot even spell out the name of our President and use various round-about euphemisms. I do not think Pres. Trump is lacking in “understanding and preparations”, but lacks in out-and-out corruption which the other contender, Mrs. Clinton, had in spades. Most voters, myself included, didn’t care about qualifications of Mr. Devon – just that he seemed like an affable fellow who is not Mr. Greene. The reason for that is that frankly they don’t see clerk’s position as requiring anything beyond basic literacy.
Make the Clerk an appointed position
Part of the problem is that the clerk is elected. Many cities have a clerk who is appointed by the council or city manager. This should be the route Evanston should take. The clerk is largely a bureaucratic–not a policy making–job. This isn’t to say that the city has a stellar record on hiring. However there is no compelling reason the clerk needs to be elected
To these commenters
Looks like he wants community input, and that’s a good thing. He isn’t required to seek outside input and this is a wise move to be more inclusive. Not to mention he’s looking for volunteers with expertise in the community, not jumping to spend taxpayer dollars by hiring these experts. That’s fiscally responsible.
Was Rodney Greene qualified to handle these issues? I doubt it (exhibit ‘A’ being the candidate filing debacle), and since he never asked for any help these things were either done poorly or not at all. To the commentators decrying this move, I say “get a grip”.
Comments
It is not about Rodney Greene. He is old news. Reid is the new clerk. Looking for four “experts,” one of which is an alderman is not “seeking community input”. That is not “inclusive” either, but a nice use of buzz words on your part. He is obviously in over his head and the one looking for that grip. There is absolutely nothing in his background that qualifies him for such a position. I did not vote for him but at least I get to enjoy watching him implode on the level of a Charlie Sheen. WINNING!
Clerk
And…..give him the chance that is due him…….I speak from experience. Many new people in positions need help and advice…mentoring….and well-wishes. Let’s see what he can do. Time will tell. thanks
pro bono advice…..
Well….does anyone know if Mr. Greene actually paid the city the almost $6,000 that he owed them? If he didn’t, then I would say he owes about $6,000 of his free time to help Mr. Reid in free consulting…(minus the unethical stuff that went on with him). On the other hand…(and I know it is old news, but nobody knows for sure…) if he didn’t pay that back, I would hope that the city held back that much from accrued sick and vacation time, and final payout.
Knowledge of the Position of City Clerk
Sometimes the Clerk’s Office is limited to just presenting the agenda and minutes for the legislative and committee meetings. Sounds like he has taken on more than is necessary for his position. One step at a time would be great. In addition is he in office to recruit others to be his boss?
The right approach
I applaud Devon for seeking advice on specific responsibilities of the City Clerk. It’s a prudent step as he takes over the position. And I have great confidence in his ability to be successful there. Knowing Devon for a short while, I’ve been impressed at how thoughtful and ambitious he is, his passion for the community and government, and his experience in Springfield. Concerns over his seeking advice is an unwarrented overreaction; successful government officials and corporate executives do this all the time.
job description/duties City Clerk
Perhaps a review of the City Clerk’s duties found on the City of Evanstons website would shed some light.
Perhaps consult a copy of “Who’s Who”?
I mean we spent $5000+ for the last City Clerk to be listed in it.
Unless it is worthless. It wasn’t worthless was it?
Maybe the previous City Clerk can come back in a pro bono advisory capacity?