In a surprise move, the Forest Park Village Council fired Moses Amidei from his village administrator position.
Mayor Rory Hoskins declined to give a concrete timetable for when he will be replaced.
Village staff received an email from the mayor’s office last Tuesday announcing that Amidei had been “placed on administrative leave until further notice,” two sources with knowledge of the situation told the Review. The village council made that permanent Monday night in a 4-0 vote, with Commissioner Jessica Voogd abstaining.
She requested they discuss some of the issues related to the separation before the vote, saying that she had “a couple of unanswered questions that [she] would like to discuss with the council,” but added that she thought they should be asked in a closed session where personnel issues are discussed. Although Commissioner Michelle Melin-Rogovin seconded the motion to go into closed session, she joined the majority of the council in voting against it.
Voogd declined further comment for the Review after the meeting.
After the meeting, Hoskins also declined to elaborate about the reasons for the firing, saying only that it was a “personnel matter.” He also declined to say when the village would hire another administrator, saying there was “no set timetable” for appointing Amidei’s replacement. Hoskins added that he did not have any candidates waiting in the wings.
Hoskins said that department heads will handle at least some of Amidei’s duties in the interim.
“We’re going to be assessing what projects [that Amidei was working on] are the highest priority,” he said. “Staff may be able to fill in the gap.”
The Review learned of the termination last Thursday. At the time, Hoskins declined to comment beyond saying “stay tuned.” Amidei did not respond to calls and emails seeking comment. None of the commissioners responded to requests for comment before the council meeting.
The separation agreement approved Monday night makes the firing retroactive to Aug. 23. It states that Amidei will continue to be paid his regular salary over the next three months, and he will be able to stay on the village insurance plan until Nov. 30. Under the current budget, Amidei’s salary was set at $125,931.
Amidei was hired as the village administrator on May 11, 2021. Before that, he served as served as the village administrator of Wadsworth, a largely rural Lake County suburb bordering Wisconsin, for 14 years.
When he was hired in Forest Park, Amidei told the Review that he left Wadsworth in October 2020 in what he called “mutual parting of ways.” Before that, he served as an interim city administrator in his hometown, the north suburban city of Highwood.
Under the commission form of government, the village council runs the village, with commissioners responsible for their respective departments. In practice, much of the responsibility for the day-to-day village operations has been delegated to the village administrator and department heads.
