Algonquin Seeks New Village Manager After 20 Years

Algonquin's Village Manager for the past two decades, Bill Ganek, officially announced Tuesday he plans to retire next year.  "Dang," he said as he dug out a news release he'd prepared in case someone like FEN inquired why the Village Board had just, without discussion, hired a governmental executive recruiting firm.

Voorhees Associates, Deerfield, will look for a replacement for the Village's top administrator who oversaw the Algonquin's growth from 12,000 residents when he took the helm to over 30,000 today.  During Ganek's tenure Algonquin's collective assessed worth ballooned from $211 million in 1992 to $1.08 billion last year.

Ganek also held the reins when the growth basically stopped four years ago, too. "I think we kept the wheels on," he said.  "We've got a balanced budget," interjected Trustee Bob Smith.  "I wanted to be part of that," Ganek said.

After 35 years of administration including stints as Director of Planning for Crystal Lake and Senior Planner for McHenry County, Ganek said it seemed like a good time to hang up his spurs.  As for what he's going to do next, "I don't have any definite plans yet," he said.

In the pic:  Algonquin Village Manager Bill Ganek, soon to retire.