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Another page was turned in the history of Park Forest when Jon Vanderbilt was sworn in as the eleventh mayor of the village last week. It marked the first time in its 70-year history that someone born and raised in the community gets to steer its course for the next four years.
Some 120 people, many who are fervent supporters of the new mayor, shoehorned their way into the Village Board room to welcome him, and when it came time for his swearing-in ceremony, they cheered and clapped loudly. They had their man.
The event was bookended by a reminder from both outgoing mayor John Ostenburg and 65-year resident Therese Goodrich that what is past is also prologue; that what has happened up to now sets the stage of what may happen in the future.
For nearly one-third of a century, Ostenburg served the village. This included one term in the Illinois State legislature, two terms as a village board member and for the last 20 years as its longest-serving mayor. His institutional memory of events, his skills as an off-the-cuff speaker and a parliamentarian who never let a board meeting go off-track, helped shape his tenure.
In his farewell address he noted how former mayors influenced Park Forest’s growth and development.
Noting the photographs of the previous village mayors hanging on the wall, Ostenburg said these 10 leaders all contributed immeasurably to Park Forest. He mentioned Henry Deitch, who “wrote most of the code” for the village in the first decade of Park Forest’s existence.
He dwelled on the efforts of Robert Dinerstein, who along with a local Unitarian church committee and other civic leaders paved the way for peaceful voluntary integration of the community in the late 1950s, a time when surrounding communities resisted change.
The name of Barney Cunningham, Park Forest’s mayor for 10 years, was evoked, as was that of Jerry Mathews, Ron Bean, and Pat Kelly. They were, Ostenburg said, village leaders with whom Ostenburg worked and who helped guide the community. The accomplishments of these men can be read in their oral histories are on file in the Park Forest Public Library.
“They are,” he said, “testimonies to what Park Forest is all about.”
It was nothing less than a verbal baton pass to Vanderbilt, who grabbed it with both hands by saying “I am ready to lead” after being sworn into office.
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If it were only that simple for the new mayor.
The one phrase heard during the recent election campaign was “something needs to be done about” (property taxes, business development, housing stock, water bills, and so forth). Nothing will come easy. The biggest piece of the property tax pie is eaten by some of the grade school, high school and community college taxing districts in the village. Businesses are supposed to pay two-thirds but without commercial development, guess who makes up the difference?
What new mayor Vanderbilt calls “depopulation” is, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, a loss of a about 3,000 residents in the last 20 years. In the domino theory of government, this leads to more vacant homes, less tax money coming into village coffers and less incentive for new business, all of which can turn into more population losses. Nothing comes easy when it comes to governance and any turnaround always take time.
Therese Goodrich has played an active role in all things good in Park Forest since she, her late husband John and their children moved into town in 1954. When she stepped to the podium during the comments from citizens portion of the evening, she asked, as Ostenburg did, that we look to the past.
“You have such a beautiful village to govern,” she said. “Read the history of Park Forest. It is such a legacy. Take it and love it.”
In addition to a new mayor, two new trustees, Joseph Woods and Candyce Herron were sworn into office and their on-the-job training must be done quickly. Since Vanderbilt moves up from trustee to mayor, his seat is now open. Deadline for applying by letter to fill a two-year vacancy is May 22. In its job posting, the village says the ideal candidate “will have a proven record of community volunteerism and activism.” You must state your case in a letter to the board and be able to pass a comprehensive background check to be considered.
I wish you well.