By Mallory Mankin, Staff Writer
Attending a City Council Town Hall meeting is not quite the hullabaloo one would expect from depictions in films like Field of Dreams or shows like Gilmore Girls. There are the fancy podiums and agendas, but the Wheaton Town Hall on Jan. 21 was over and done with in 17 minutes. And in that time, the council approved more than $2 million in spending.
“Wheaton runs really, really well,” Councilman Bradley Clousing said.
On this particular night, there was only one door to the building open — not the front door, not the side door, but the back door that opens out to the parking lot. After following the signage and climbing up two flights of stairs, I found the Town Hall Chambers just across the empty sitting room.
Inside were five rows of chairs set to seat about 70 people, and along the wall nearest to the entrance were framed photographs displaying all the mayors of Wheaton since the town’s founding in 1859.
The evening of Jan. 21, five people were sitting in the audience section. Three of them, however, had notes and engaged with one another, like one would with co-workers, thus appearing to work with and for the council. Then there was an older man wearing a Bears beanie — and me, a college student reporter.
At 7 p.m., the meeting started with an invocation by Eric Channing, a pastor at Hope Fellowship Church, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. Most meetings include an invocation, but it is not required for the council to convene.
City Manager Michael Dzugan and City Attorney Dawn Didier were each given the opportunity to report on their respective sectors, but said they had nothing to report.
Afterward, citizens were given the opportunity to address the council with their grievances or questions. The agenda is careful to note that there are rules of decorum that a citizen must follow in order to participate. Audience members who were not present in the room but tuned in via Zoom were also given the opportunity to speak, signaling that they want to by “raising their digital hand.”
The agenda progresses with votes on a host of propositions, including everything from tax increases, gas rates, the purchase of three new 2026 Ford SUVs, land acquisition through eminent domain and budgets for the design consulting of the fire house and police station. Every item requiring a vote was passed unanimously — a feat that seems unthinkable in today’s political climate.
Two reappointments to one of the city boards were also approved by the whole council. Wheaton has 15 volunteer commissions and boards that make recommendations to the City Council; that night, two men were being renominated to the Police Pension Fund Board. They have served since 2012 and 2017, respectively.
Next, council members got to comment on events or updates they deemed relevant. One council member remarked on the weather and noted that the library serves as a warming center, a public place providing heat during extreme cold. Another council member celebrated a board member for their devotion to their duties, which resulted in the town receiving a $30,000 grant from the state as a part of the Tourism Marketing Partnership Program, which promotes cities in Illinois as a travel destination. The council also noted a new digital kiosk, which can function as an interactive map of restaurants and businesses in the town, had been installed near the parking garage on Wesley Street.
Improvements, however, are not as exciting as a Stars Hollow shouting match.
Approval of city bills wrapped up the meeting, including Warrant No. 912, which authorized $2,309,009.73 in spending. The warrant compiles the city’s expenses for the allotted time period — typically two weeks between council meetings. On the intermittent weeks, the group has planning sessions that are also open to the public and usually take more time.
According to Clousing, warrants vary in cost depending on the expenditures of that time period. “I’ve seen warrants as high as $2 million,” Clousing said. The price tag depends on the projects involved. This warrant in particular paid for capital expenditures like concrete replacement, contractor payments and insurance dues.
The warrant added to the thousands of dollars the council approved earlier in the meeting for police and fire station renovations, new vehicles and land acquisition, though a tax increase should help offset some of those costs.
The meeting was adjourned at 7:17 p.m., a feat of timing that would likely flabbergast both Hollywood and the U.S. Congress.
