Amid Transparency Concerns, Orland Board Reinstates Former Village Manager

ORLAND PARK, IL — In a special meeting Monday night, the newly cemented Orland Park Village Board showed its first cracks.

In a move that some residents said lacked transparency, Mayor Jim Dodge and the trustees approved the hiring of George Koczwara as Village Manager—marking his return to the role from which he previously resigned under former mayor Keith Pekau. Since Koczwara's departure in October 2024, Jim Culotta has served as interim village manager, appointed by Pekau.

Koczwara has been locked in for a year-long contract, at a salary of $207,000.

The first significant decision for the board since its newest members and Mayor Dodge were sworn in on May 5, the appointment stirred dissent among the board and public prior to the vote.

Residents criticized the board for the way in which the meeting was announced. Though the agenda was shared ahead of the legally required 48-hour deadline, many said they learned about the meeting informally, with no announcement issued by the Village. The agenda was posted on the Village website in advance; the Village's social media did not alert residents to the meeting until Monday just before 10 a.m.

At the start of the meeting Monday, the board immediately entered into executive session, taking nearly an hour to deliberate and discuss before returning. Public comments opened with concerns about Koczwara's appointment.

Carol McGury—who ran alongside Pekau on his People Over Politics slate and lost her bid for election—questioned the decision.

"I know part of the platform you ran on was transparency, civility, and fiscal responsibility and some other things," McGury said. "And those are great tenets, incredible tenets to run on.

"… when I think about how you ran about the audits being delayed, you ran about there being budget issues, all these personnel issues that you all talked about publicly … he was the Village Manager during that time," she said. "So I question, if this was your platform that you ran on, the thought process or the business process to reinstate the man who was accountable for all the things you were running against. ... I have nothing against the man, I don’t know him, but from making a sound business decision, I think you have to look at the statements you made during your campaign, and think about the action you’d be taking now."

Resident Darold Barnum—an outspoken critic of Pekau throughout his leadership, but most notably in the months leading up to the election—called it "practical and responsible" to appoint a village manager immediately.

"Given the urgency of the insurance stable leadership and uninterrupted village operations, I believe it’s both 'practical and responsible' to appoint a qualified village manager now, rather than delaying it for a long search," Barnum said. "The normal hiring process makes sense under normal circumstances, but after a hard-fought election with critical decisions ahead, we need someone now who can step into the job immediately and restore professional management. I don’t know if we’re talking about George or not, but if we are, George is already familiar with our operations, has a proven track record, and can provide continuity and stability we need right now."

Alluding to the previous mayor's leadership, Barnum called Pekau, "highly opinionated," and a leader who "often made questionable personnel decisions.

"I strongly suspect that any disciplinary action taken against George reflected more on the former mayor’s flaws than on George’s performance. So reinstating George, it would not only correct that wrong, it would send a strong signal that we’re returning to professionalism, fairness, competence and transparency."

Another commenter, Joe Solek, pointed to Koczwara's presence at the May 5 swearing-in ceremonies as signaling his appointment "was a done deal," even prior to the night's vote. Koczwara was among hundreds who attended.

"Tonight, it all becomes clear," he said.

On Tuesday, Dodge told Patch, "there was nothing rushed about the meeting," and that it had been previously discussed to address issues around the 143rd Street development. Publishing the agenda was a matter of coordinating with attorneys, he said.

As the public responds to the news, Dodge stands by Koczwara's return to the role.

"I’ve personally worked with nine different village managers," he said. "I know what I’m looking for in the qualities of a village manager.

"When you look at my experience with the village, and my experience with George—I was very comfortable that George coming back, giving the circumstances of him leaving the Village, was a good move for me to make progress on what people voted me in to do."

Dating back to June 2024, when Pekau announced that the then-board would not renew Koczwara's contract upon its expiration in October 2024, Pekau stressed that he was not being terminated, and was not performance-related. He called the measure necessary to prevent a "devious practice" taken by a previous board. Citing the Village's contentious relationship with former village manager Joseph LaMargo, and the actions taken in 2017 that put LaMargo in the role, Pekau explained the move as proactive. LaMargo, Pekau said, was appointed to the role by the previous mayor and board, after Pekau was elected but before he was sworn in. Conflicting political viewpoints created an environment fraught with tension, initially culminating in LaMargo's departure from the role and, ultimately, years of legal battles.

By deciding not to renew Koczwara's contract, Pekau said at the time that the current board would be allowing room for a future board to choose their own village manager, should Pekau not be mayor in 2025. It was a courtesy the existing contractual system did not extend officials, Pekau said, adding that the role did not require a contract.

Still, a month later, Koczwara resigned, unwilling to work without a contract in place.

In the months that followed, the Village was at the center of reported financial malfeasance, including alleged delinquent financial reporting—missed deadlines that put the Village at risk for forced audits. The village's finance director cited reasons for the delinquencies including staff turnover and loss of institutional knowledge dating back to 2021, in addition to a firm merger that delayed the completion of its 2021 reports, transition to a new finance management system, and staffing disruptions.

Pekau on Monday night took to his recently relaunched social media to openly question the decision to bring Koczwara back into the role, also intimating Koczwara's role in prior issues within the village.

"And, if this is accurate on who they are hiring, wow," Pekau wrote. "In our form of government, the Village Manager is responsible for audits and budgets. I was attacked for his mistakes during the campaign — Interesting first decision."

Trustee Cythhia Katsenes, a holdover from Pekau's term, urged the board to table Monday's vote. She noted Koczwara is alleged to have violated the code of ethics to which he agreed in his employment.

Patch has filed a Freedom of Information Act request seeking Koczwara's personnel and any disciplinary records.

"The village manager is the chief administrator responsible for day-to-day operations, budget management, and policy implementation," Katsenes said. "Some would say and argue that the village manager actually has more control over the village than the actual mayor or board dealing with the day-to-day.

"The appointment of a village manager is one of the most important and certainly one of the most serious votes a trustee can make. The process should be as with any other position in our village—is to be posted and seek the best qualified candidate to lead our great village and our employees—heck, even a seasonal employee working at the pool has more oversight than we’re getting this appt.

"In my opinion, George Koczwara inserted himself in a political campaign in order to return to a position he resigned from. This is certainly not someone I could vote yes to hire back."

Dodge said while he has heard their concerns, he disagrees.

"Members of the board were effuse with their praise in October, and now they’re trying to cast aspersions and blame," he said. "I’ve taken in their feedback, I’ve thought about their input and their feedback, and I disagreed with their conclusions, and so did the majority of the board."

Koczwara is also named as a defendant in a lawsuit filed by former Orland Park Police Sgt. William Sanchez. In it, Sanchez alleges that he was fired in February 2024 in retaliation after he filed a complaint of racial discrimination, harassment and retaliation against then-Deputy Chief Brian West and Chief Eric Rossi. His suit names Koczwara, as well as the Village of Orland Park. Sanchez's suit seeks reinstatement, back pay and unspecified damages. He wants a jury trial.

The Village is indemnified by virtue of Koczwara's contract, Dodge said.

"I would ask for the patience of the good people of Orland Park, to wait for the truth to come out, for all that needs to come about the Kovac and the Sanchez lawsuits," Dodge said Tuesday.

"Settling up those matters, and getting to the bottom of what actually happened, is a work in progress."

Trustee Michael Milani, another of Pekau's slate mates, also openly disputed moving forward with a vote.

"'Civility and transparency,'" he quipped. "Last-minute board meetings, and here I am on a Monday night, missing dinner. Not very transparent, and that’s not the way we do it here anymore.

"We don’t have one-on-one private discussions on the phone, we have meetings, we get into a conference room and with advice and consent of the board, we make informed decisions, and that’s what I’d like to see happen here."

He said he was not aware of the terms of Koczwara's contract until just before the meeting.

"… You know we’re probably going to vote on this, and it’s not probably not going to go the way that I would like to see, but we’ll all do the best we can to still work for Orland Park no matter what happens for this decision," he said. "Just for the sake, I will entertain a motion to table this or I will make a motion to table this appointment."

A motion to table the vote failed, with a vote of 4-2. Trustee William Healy was absent.

"I tried," Milani muttered.

The vote on Koczwara's appointment was cast, approving it 4-2. Milani and Katsenes voted no; Lawler, Leafblad, Lawrence and Dodge voted yes.

In a release issued Monday night, the Village said Koczwara's "comprehensive expertise in municipal finance, community development, and operational management positions him as uniquely qualified to lead Orland Park during this pivotal time of growth and development."

"George's deep knowledge of our community and proven track record make him an invaluable asset for our village," Dodge said. "We are excited to welcome him back into this important role. His competence and reliability are qualities that will help guide Orland Park into the future."

Dodge also addressed residents' concerns about the Village's financial missteps, and Koczwara's status as village manager at the time. It happened, he said, "with a severe staffing crisis.

"... because a lot of people didn’t want to work for the Village of Orland Park precisely because of the political environment," he said.

The Village is now going beyond a forensic audit, Dodge said, taking steps to prevent future faltering in the Village's finances.

"A deep diagnostic on the processes and technologies on finance to make sure we never go through this again," he said.

Dodge said they're working to ease tensions felt by those who work within the village and its departments.

"We are working to make sure that staff feels the political pressures are gone," he said. "... Orland’s staffing problems were exacerbated by the perception of what it was like to work for the Village, and we’re going to try to fix that. ...

"... The outside-in perspective is going to take a bit to reset."

Orland Park Public Works employee and AFSCME Local 368 President Tim Lynch, who in June 2023 aired concerns about alleged retaliation, low morale, "toxic" work culture, abuse of power and mismanagement by Village staff, said he welcomes the change.

"We were all excited that Jim Dodge won, and the other trustees won," Lynch said. "I feel like our biggest issue was with Keith Pekau—I don’t feel like anybody there was able to do their best while under his thumb.

"I feel like under the new leadership, George will have more of an opportunity to get out there, do the job to the best of his abilities.

"We’re just happy to be out from underneath the thumb of Keith. I don’t think that half the residents of this town realize what it was like working for him. We’re looking forward to hopefully having a better working relationship."

In addition, the board appointed as new Mayor Pro Tem Trustee Joanna Liotine Leafblad, who will serve as mayor in the instance of the mayor’s absence.

"Broadly, I’m not surprised that [Pekau's] side just can’t get over the fact that they were beaten so soundly," Dodge said. "It was complete and utter repudiation of their approach.

"We expect them to stay on the sidelines and continue to snipe at us."