The fact that two candidates seeking to fill a vacant seat on the Park District of La Grange board of commissioners filed their applications after the deadline set by park officials may not disqualify them, Dean Bissias, the Park District's executive director, said Wednesday.
Bissias acknowledged that emails sent by James Fornaciari and Julie Workman asking to be considered to replace Commissioner Rob Metzger, who announced his resignation in January, were transmitted after the 5 p.m deadline on March 1.
Bissias said he was not authorized by the park board to reject their applications, adding that there had been discussion among park commissioners some weeks ago about extending the deadline if an insufficient number of candidates stepped forward.
Bissias said he forwarded all five applications he received to park commissioners and that they would make any decisions related to the eligibility of the candidates.
Copies of the applications made public Tuesday by Bissias show that Workman's email was sent at 10:44 p.m. on March 1. Fornaciari's was sent at 11:48 p.m. on March 5.
Bissias said that Fornaciari had contacted him by telephone prior to March 1 and stated his intent to submit an application.
Applications from the other three candidates--Bradley Belcaster, James Boo and Daniel Shoemaker--all were received prior to the deadline, Bissias said.
A legal notice published in the Feb. 17 edition of the Suburban Life newspaper and a request for inquiries posted to the Park District website make no mention of a possible extension of the deadline.
A follow-up phone message left for Bissias Wednesday afternoon, asking if the resolution passed by the board stating its intent to seek candidates to replace Metzger contained any mention of a deadline extension, was not answered. (Update: Bissias Thursday said there was no resolution passed in conjunction with the board's decision at its January regular meeting to solicit applicants for Metzger's position.)
Similarly, Board President Tim Kelpsas also did not respond to phone and email messages asking him to clarify the matter.
According to the agenda for the park board's regular monthly meeting, made public Tuesday, discussion regarding the appointment will occur under the heading of Board Business. But the matter is not listed as an action item.
Interviews that the board plans to conduct with each candidate have not yet been scheduled, Bissias said Wednesday.
The board meeting will be held at 7:30 p.m. in the Park District Recreation Center, 536 East Ave, La Grange.
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