Board Might Fire Village Manager on Monday

Several sources have confirmed that the Village Board will consider whether to fire Village Manager Anne Marie Gaura at Monday’s board meeting, and the majority of trustees are expected to vote to terminate her contract.

Trustee Andy Kaczmarek confirmed that he asked to place the issue on Monday’s board meeting agenda—at the request, he said, of Trustee Pete Heinz.

It’s a vote that has been brewing since last year’s election, which saw a change in the makeup of the board. Two of Gaura’s supporters—Rob Watermann and Jeanne Felten—were removed, and voters elected Stan Bond and re-elected Heinz, both of whom were openly critical of the manager form of government during their campaigns.

During the election, Heinz stated that Gaura “overexceeded her power” and “makes too much money,” and suggested Montgomery should go back to a commission form of government, in which trustees run the village departments.

Gaura has been with the village for 12 years, and her current salary is $147,940. Her most recent contract renewal in May 2009 split the board, with Village President Marilyn Michelini casting the tie-breaking vote in favor. That contract expires in May of next year.

Balance of power

Bond confirmed that a vote on terminating Gaura will likely take place Monday, but did not delve into the reasons for the move, pointing to a clause in Gaura’s contract that forbids public statements about suspension or termination. That same clause may also preclude public debate on the issue at Monday’s meeting.

“The short answer is, the majority of the board is not sufficiently impressed enough with Anne to continue her service,” he said.

Kaczmarek was more specific. He said Gaura “gets paid too much money for what she does.” He also noted that other neighboring villages, like Oswego and Sugar Grove, have village administrators, not managers.

But Kaczmarek also mentioned issues he had with Gaura’s management performance. He brought up an incident that occurred last summer, in which village staff arranged to lease an undercover police vehicle on a village credit card, without bringing it before the board.

This occurred while Gaura was on leave, and when she returned, the mistake was caught and the purchase brought before the board for a vote, according to Village Attorney Steve Andersson. But Kazcmarek said that issue was never cleared up to his satisfaction, and suggested that a better manager could have prevented it.

Trustee Matt Brolley declined to comment, and other trustees could not be reached.

Last August, the board voted 4-2 to reduce the powers of the village manager, passing an ordinace that eliminated the manager’s ability to hire and fire employees, give raises or cut pay, and add or remove department heads without board approval. The manager also must now provide regular evaluations of all employees to the board, and inform the board of any grievances filed by union employees within five days of receiving them.

When the changes were made last summer, Bond said the issue was not with Gaura, but with the balance of power between the board and the manager’s office.

“It’s not about Anne,” he said at the time. "It’s about that position, and what relationship we have with that position, and what authority we reserve for ourselves.” 

Contract considerations

Gaura's contract allows for the board to terminate her at any time. Should the board take that route, the contract requires the village to pay her 10 months’ salary and benefits as severance, as well as any accrued sick, vacation, leave, holiday and compensatory time.

But Bond noted the village would need to pay that money anyway, since the contract also requires the 10-month severance if the board chooses not to renew once it expires in May of 2013.

“If we’re not planning to renew, the best value may be not to wait until the contract expires to address that, but to make that choice now,” he said.

While Kaczmarek said the board would likely not replace Gaura, Bond said several plans to take up her duties are being considered, including the hiring of a village administrator. He would not speculate on which one the board may choose.

According to the official job description, the village manager “performs high-level administrative, professional and management work in directing and supervising the operations and staff of the village.”

In Gaura’s case, this includes, among other duties, coordinating weekly, monthly and quarterly meetings with staff; crafting the annual budget from department requests; negotiating labor contracts with the village’s two unions; coordinating training for all village employees; and representing the village on several boards and commissions, including the , MetroWest Council of Government, and the Kane County Animal Control Task Force.

Gaura noted that the board has taken no official action on her employment, but provided the following statement:

“It’s been my privilege to have worked for the village these past 12 years, managing the daily operations of a community that has tripled in size in that time period. The capital projects of the village helped move Montgomery forward in dealing with the 237 percent population increase.

“I have appreciated working alongside the residents, the various organizations and the business community. I absolutely love Montgomery. The village staff members through all departments here are extraordinary and the community should be proud of the level of professionalism.”

Monday’s board meeting begins at 7 p.m., and is free and open to the public.