Politics & Government
Tinley Park to Mull Term Limits
Voters overwhelmingly supported term limits for elected village officials at Nov. 6 advisory referendum.
A Tinley Park Village Board committee has approved creation of a commission to study mandatory term limits for all elected village officials.
The Budget, Audit and Administration Committee approved the recommendation of village Clerk Pat Rea to form a seven-person commission in response to overwhelming voter approval of the notion of term limits at the Nov. 6 advisory referendum. Voters favored the idea of term limits 16,808 to 6,635.
“The commission would be appointed by the mayor and approved by trustees,” Rea said.
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“Commissioners would then have 180 days to study the pros and cons of term limits,” Rea said, adding information would be gleaned from university research and communities that have or had term limits.
“The commission will present its findings to the village board, which would then have 60 days to take any action,” Rea said.
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“The village board cannot impose term limits,” Rea said. “That can be done only by state statute or through a binding referendum.”
Trustee David Seaman, committee chairman, asked for the recommendation to include the possibility of a minority report, if the commission cannot come to a unanimous conclusion.
The referendum drive was led by attorney Steve Eberhardt, who is running against Mayor Ed Zabrocki in the April 9 municipal election.
Eberhardt said the idea to call for term limits stemmed from a fight in 2010 between the village and neighbors in the Barretts subdivision over plans for a senior housing project near 179th Street and Harlem Avenue called Thomas Place, which eventually fell through.
“Me and my neighbors would go to Village Board meetings to oppose the project and the board would just look at us like they could care less,” he said. “We talked about their lack of interest and decided it was time to impose term limits.”
Zabrocki has said elections serve as term limits and he does not see the need for them to be mandated by legislation.
The full village board is expected to vote on the commission proposal at its Jan. 22 meeting.
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