Severance Deal For Evanston City Manager Erika Storlie On Agenda

EVANSTON, IL — Evanston City Manager Erika Storlie appears to be headed out of the Lorraine H. Morton Civic Center — just as an investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct among lakefront staff and how senior city officials responded gets underway.

A separation agreement between the longtime city staffer is on the agenda for Monday's City Council meeting. Mayor Daniel Biss recommends approval of the deal, the terms of which were "negotiated in good faith," according to a memo from city attorney Nick Cummings.

According to the agreement, Storlie's last day at the city will be Oct. 8. She is also set to receive a severance package including at least 20 weeks of compensation. Her contract calls for her to receive the payment unless she gets convicted of a serious crime or fired from the job as a result of "the willful breach or habitual neglect" of her duties.

Storlie did not respond to a request for comment, but city spokesperson Patrick Deignan provided a statement.

"Storlie has advised the City that she seeks to pursue other opportunities, and both she and the City of Evanston have mutually agreed that she will leave her employment with the City to pursue those opportunities," Deignan said. "We wish her success in her future endeavors. The City does not comment on personnel matters and we have no further comment."

Storlie, 45, has spent more than 16 years working for the city, starting as a communications coordinator before being promoted to former City Manager Wally Bobkiewicz's top deputy by the time he departed in September 2019 to become a city administrator in the Seattle suburbs.

After working as interim city manager for more than a year, Storlie was hired on a full-time basis last fall, with the City Council voting 7-3 to approve her contract in October 2020. Only three of the seven council members who voted in favor remain in office after April's election.

In May 2020, former Mayor Steve Hagerty had sought to fast-track her appointment, suggesting he did not want to hire any municipal administrator who would apply for a new job during the coronavirus pandemic.

But aldermen rejected his effort in June 2020 and continued the search, eventually publicly naming three finalists.

In July 2020, a group of female lakefront staff presented a petition to supervisors in the city's Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department and its Human Resources Division.

The petition called for city officials to admit that it had placed minors "in oppressive, uncomfortable and dangerous situations and in close proximity with sexual predators," and sought a public apology for the "blatant sexism, sexual harassment, assault, racism, and discrimination that occurs at the lakefront."

The details of the petition was first reported publicly by WBEZ on July 16, nearly a year later.

Jennifer Lin, the city's human resources manager, was placed on administrative leave, Storlie told council members, after the city manager said she determined her HR chief had not shared the details of the petition.

Biss later issued a statement explaining he first learned of the allegations from a constituent in June.

"It seems obvious that anyone reading this document would instantly commit to doing anything and everything possible to address this issue," Biss said. "Nonetheless, it is apparently the case that nobody even showed it to the City's most senior leaders."

Following closed-door discussions, the City Council hired the outside law firm of Salvatore, Prescott, Porter & Porter to conduct an independent investigation of the allegations and the response from city officials.

Hagerty has so far declined to answer questions regarding when he learned about the allegations and what steps he took in response. But, he told Patch, he would provide the information to the law firm "if contacted."

Storlie's separation agreement, scheduled for a vote at Monday's meeting, calls for her to "reasonably cooperate" with any litigation arising out of her time as city manager.

"Further, Storlie agrees to reasonably cooperate with the City’s independent investigation into the allegations of misconduct among lakefront staff," it said. "In connection therewith, City shall provide Storlie with the reasonable opportunity to review the resulting full Report upon completion and release to the City."

Read more:
Lakefront Sex Harassment Scandal Probe Assigned To Outside Firm
Sexual Harassment Allegations Trigger 'Impartial Investigation'
Lakefront Sexual Harassment Petition Not Shared By Staff, Biss Says
Sexual Harassment Rampant At Evanston Lakefront, Staff Warned
Divided Evanston City Council Approves City Manager Contract