Elmhurst Mayor Softens Words About Council Panel

ELMHURST, IL – A month ago, Elmhurst Mayor Scott Levin said a City Council committee did not get it right on the price for a relatively small land transaction.

But he told aldermen this week he should have used different wording.

"Although I did not agree with the result, I should not have said the committee got it wrong," Levin told the council. "I think we put a great deal of faith in our committee process, and I appreciate all the work that our committees do, so thank you for that."

In last month's case, Levin's criticism was directed at the Public Works Committee. It is headed by Alderwoman Emily Bastedo and made up of aldermen Michael Bram, Brian Cahill and Karen Sienko.

In an 8-6 vote, the council approved the committee's recommendation to sell 375 square feet of an unused alley to a neighboring homeowner for $2,952. Other aldermen favored reducing the price to $1,952, saying it was more consistent with past sales.

Levin did not weigh in during the discussion, but told aldermen afterward that the price was an instance in which a committee didn't get it right.

Levin said no one on the committee articulated a reason to go beyond the standard.

"In fact, one of the committee members said it should be (at the recommended price) because that was their opinion. Hence, the compromise," the mayor said at the time. "But that's not how we set policy. People in our town have a right to know that when they come forward, they have an expectation that the precedent, though not legally binding, sets an expectation. And now we have set a new expectation."