A Civil Engineer: City Manager Tom Borchert's Career Focused on Solving Problems

When Tom Borchert arrived for his first day of work in Elmhurst, on Groundhog Day in 1971, the city's borders had largely been determined. Then, as now, if you said that you were an Elmhurst resident, you probably lived somewhere between Roosevelt Road, Route 83, Grand Avenue and Interstate 294.

That doesn't mean everything has stayed the same for the past 40 years. Borchert's job titles changed as he rose through the ranks from engineer to city manager, just as residents' lives have changed. One-story ranch homes have made way for more dramatic façades, the city's commercial districts have taken on new life, and business that used to require a trip to City Hall can now be done online.

As he prepares to hand over the day-to-day operations of the city to a new manager, Borchert answered some questions about the past few decades in Elmhurst and what it all means to him.

Early Days

Borchert grew up in the Morgan Park neighborhood of Chicago and graduated from Indiana's Valparaiso University. He started his career at People's Gas, but changes in the regulatory atmosphere in the utilities industry had him sitting around with a lot of time to think, so he thought he would try city government. As an engineer in Elmhurst's Public Works department, he helped with curbs and gutters, sidewalks and the installation a new streetlight system. He assumed he would some day return to the private sector and work for an engineering firm.

“It's one day at a time, but it goes fast,” he says.

One day, an acquaintance at the Elmhurst Park District introduced him to young woman who worked for attorney Lee Daniels. Daniels would go on to be a leader in the Illnois General Assembly, and Joan would go on to be Mrs. Borchert. The couple settled in the city in 1975.

Suburban Renewal

Since then, Borchert has guided some of the biggest changes in the city, many focusing on reconfiguration, revitalization and renewal: an underpass directing traffic under the railroad tracks downtown, Salt Creek flood levees, changes in the central business district, the rebuilding of Elmhurst Hospital and the turnover of housing stock.

He remembers a time just a few years ago when it seemed almost every block had a construction site on it, and the city processed hundreds of building permits each year. While the change in the streetscape often creates mixed emotions, Borchert says it's a good thing when people want to invest so much in a community, and he notes that about 50 homes are on target to be constructed this calendar year.

Borchert has seen a whole evolution in office technology, and in attitudes toward municipal government. Mimeographs have turned into Web pages, and cities have learned to go beyond providing basic services to inform, educate and communicate with their residents. The issues are not more complex, Borchert says, but expectations are higher.

“We are truly doing more with less. We've always paid attention to details, but the whole playing field has been lifted up in response to the expectation of the community.”

The city is also working more with businesses and private groups. It used to be that a town created a comprehensive plan and then sat back to see what would happen, he says.

Life of Leisure

After June, Borchert will have the luxury of not needing to make comprehensive plans of any kind. He hopes to work as a consultant in the Chicago area and to stay active with Yorkfield Presbyterian Church, but he is also eyeing the Grand Rapids area, where his four children and six grandchildren live. All of his offspring went to Calvin College, but the youngest, who will be graduating this spring, is the one most interested in public service.

As his time with the city winds down, he expects to help launch the new manager and “then get out of the way.” An announcement on his successor is expected any day now.

When he talks to young people, from elementary school students to college graduates studying government, he stresses that public service is about helping people solve problems.

“Government is here to stay,” he says. “If you like what you are doing and are good at it, you will be in demand.”