With the retirement of Village Clerk Vanessa Belmonte last month, the village is now hiring for her replacement. With the changing of the guard, Forest Park is looking to restructure the clerk’s office and create a finance department.
At the Oct. 14 village council meeting, commissioners unanimously passed a resolution to contract a human resources consultant from MGT Impact Solutions through February. The consultant will help manage the clerk’s office during critical year-end operations, like those for insurance open enrollment and income tax documents for staff. The consultant will also help the village develop a new HR coordinator role, as it works to separate such functions from the clerk’s office.
Currently, the clerk’s office is its own department, and the finance director works within the clerk’s office. But village staff want to rename the government entity as the finance department, with Finance Director Letitia Olmsted serving as department head. And the next village clerk will report directly to the finance director.
Village staff is also suggesting that, with the hiring of a new village clerk, human resource duties be separated from that position and designated to a new HR coordinator role. Though the clerk’s primary responsibilities are maintaining official records and collecting fees, Belmonte also effectively served as the village’s HR lead, overseeing employee onboarding, coordinating staff benefits, managing employee insurance and payroll. The new HR coordinator will report to the village administrator.
At the Oct. 14 council meeting, Commissioner Maria Maxham said the village clerk and HR coordinator will likely be two separate positions moving forward.
“This is a part of a pretty big process in place to replace Vanessa Belmonte now that she’s gone. She had been doing basically two jobs as village clerk and also being in charge of the HR function,” Maxham said. “This person coming in is going to give assistance to us regarding HR, but also guidance in the overall look and feel and future of the department.”
Commissioner Michelle Melin-Rogovin thanked village staff for “being very strategic about, how do we function as a village now, and how can we think about the functions that we have and what we need going forward?”
Following Belmonte’s retirement, the clerk’s office will be closed daily from 2 to 3 p.m. until Monday to allow staff to have a lunch break. It will remain open from noon to 2 p.m. during the standard lunch hour.
“We wanted to make sure that people who would be coming on their own lunch hour still had access to village hall services in the clerk’s office,” Village Administrator Rachell Entler said at the Oct. 14 meeting. “Right now, the village also has a staff member out on medical leave and will remain closed at that time until she returns.”
New village treasurer
As a part of the creation of a finance department, at the Oct. 14 village council meeting, commissioners approved a recommendation to appoint Olmsted as village treasurer. At the Oct. 27 meeting, commissioners officially approved Olmsted for the new title.
Though Olmsted has long fulfilled the duties of a village treasurer, the title of village treasurer will allow her to act as a signatory on behalf of the village.
Mayor Rory Hoskins recommended the appointment ahead of the Oct. 14 meeting, saying in a memorandum to the village, “Tish has been serving as the village’s finance director, where she has demonstrated professionalism, diligence, and strong financial management. The statutory duties of the treasurer substantially overlap with the responsibilities she already fulfills as finance director. Combining these roles under her leadership will streamline operations, maintain consistency and ensure continued accountability in our financial practices.”
Melin-Rogovin also praised Olmsted during the Oct. 14 meeting.
“Director Olmsted has been an outstanding contributor to our village staff,” Melin-Rogovin said. “Her leadership with the village finances has been exemplary, and I think this is an excellent move for the village.”