After sending Glenview’s experienced financial director packing under an early retirement program, Village Manager Todd Hileman has hired a new finance director from Daytona Beach. The state of Florida recently completed an audit there and concluded that on Ricardo Kisner’s watch, the city misspent redevelopment money by paying $661,000 for land appraised at $490,000 and $400,000 for another lot that was never appraised.
The auditors questioned the use of special development funds to pay for promotions of Bike Week, the Beach Street Barbecue Festival, the Bill McCoy Rum Festival and the Martini Walk. They did not report any missing money, but Daytona Beach’s development director conceded there was “lots of room for improvement,” and the city hired a consultant to assist with future financial dealings.
Auditors also said more than $500,000 in police operating expenses were paid from a fund established to redevelop Main Street — a violation of state law. Other questionable expenditures included $98,000 for lobbying, $83,000 for electric bills and thousands of dollars for food, board member tours, dues and city employee training. In addition, the state report charged Daytona Beach had been paying salaries and benefits from redevelopment funds that were not supported by time records, failing to use appropriate property values to determine the amount of tax increment revenues to collect and paying severance pay to a former redevelopment director who resigned voluntarily.
As Kisner was packing his bags for Glenview, Daytona Beach was struggling to make ends meet. With a slumping economy, the city posted a $2.8 million operating loss last fiscal year and was projecting another this year because of a decline in the housing market and possible changes to Florida’s property tax laws.
Rather than cut staff and services to close a gap between revenue and expenses, Kisner proposed taking $4.2 million from the capital projects fund. Critics questioned the fate of construction already underway – a new fire station and aquatic center. Kisner said the city could use bonds or impact fees from growing communities near those two projects to pay for the capital improvements.
Kisner admitted the city’s water and sewer funds had been operating at a loss for years and recommended using $355,000 from capital projects to help make up the difference. Also, Daytona Beach’s self-insurance fund was operating in the red, and Kisner hoped to take $1.8 million out of the capital projects fund to remedy that situation.
Kisner, who started work here June 9, will be paid $150,000 annually. His predecessor earned just $138,295. For more information, visit the home page of the Daytona Beach newspaper: http://www.news-journalonline.com/index.htm and search the archive under “kisner.”
Editor’s note: At the last village news conference on May 19, spokesperson Janet Spector Bishop declined to reveal the name of the new finance director, but as early as May 8 Florida media were reporting Kisner had taken a job in Glenview.
Unbelievable. He must be some Glenview official’s relative. Here’s the heading of an article from realdaytona.com (I realize this isn’t a regular newspaper. It appears to be something somewhat similar to Glenviewwatch):
“City Finance Director Resigns…Thank God!
One of Daytona’s ‘Axis of Evil,’ Ricardo Kisner has resigned and is heading to Glenview, Illinois.”
http://www.glenview.il.us/departments/finance/
just noticing the fine job in selection of weeds in the border signs @ the enterances to town and the fine respect the landscape has recieved in the ” Central Business Dist. Re: Glenview Rd in particular . Looks like the managed competition thing is working real well. It’s a shame the people that have left and to see it all go to crap. All the right people in all the right places ???
After living in Glenview for over 20 years, many changes in village board members yet the same issues never change. The Village Board continues to over spend my tax dollars again for another village employee with a higher incoming than the previous employee’s salary . And it seems only natural they would hire someone with a poor track record on managing the municiple’s budget. Kisner has found a perfect home and job here in Glenview.
This is the same village that started plans to rebuild the library ten years ago and I’m not surprised with no library yet, who designed the terrible 5 way traffic lights in the Glen and we all can think of many more poor choices.
Todd Hilleman should publish his accomplishments. He completely decimated a loyal and experienced staff. He has hired *young* staff members at higher salaries to further inflate his ego. The CFO from Daytona must make a very good martini. Hilleman has not only violated the ADEA, but he has behaved in an arrogant manner. He will leave Glenview in a mess and move on to his next ego trip. The board should be ashamed of allowing him to behave this way.
I am not surprised by anything I am reading here but I just want to back up Kelly. Todd Hileman is the most arrogant person and I have dealt with village officials of much larger burgs than Glenview. Normal business discourse is made intolerable by his rudeness and he just gives the village such a bad image. I cannot believe the trustees and citizens tolerate this asshole.
The following comment from M.M. has been edited by The Watch to remove profanity. We respectfully request that all readers who wish to comment keep it clean:
I am not surprised by anything I am reading here but I just want to back up Kelly. Todd Hileman is the most arrogant person and I have dealt with village officials of much larger burgs than Glenview. Normal business discourse is made intolerable by his rudeness and he just gives the village such a bad image. I cannot believe the trustees and citizens tolerate him.
One question for the watch…how can we go about getting rid of Hilleman. Residents need to start getting rid of these politicians that are abusing thier positions and making poor decisions with our tax dollars.
Vote out the Village Board that appointed him.
Kisner and the Daytona City Manager, Jim Chilsholm presided over an unprecedented orgy of waste of taxpayer’s assets whose effects we will feel for decades. We are happy you took this piece of work away from here, but are concerned about the future of Glenview.
Daytona Beach has become one of the most corrupt cities in the USA and that’s the legacy he brings, great practical expertise in financial cover-ups. Fit for Chicago’s Daley gang.
Read more in http://www.DaytonaPost.com
Todd Hileman is abusive and should be reported to the EEOC. I find it hard to believe that the Village has not been sued. He had to go to Daytona to find a Finance Director because he would only hire someone under the age of 40. He set out to rid himself of anyone older and more experienced. He did not replace the older workers at lower salary levels. This is a clear violation of ADEA. The other reason to recruit from Florida is that none of the talented Finance Directors in Illinois would consider working for him a viable option. He will resign his position before the true impact of his “management” is felt. Glenview once had a talented, respected and experienced staff. Hileman is now paying more, for less experienced employees. Am I the only person who can read the numbers? I expect more consultants, at a very high price tag, will be needed to do a “professional” job. Show me the savings, show me the new ideas, show me anything……….
Todd Hileman has been out of control for a few years now, didn’t anyone look at where he came from and the damage he created there?? This guy is a nightmare and someone didn’t do a very good reference check on him. He was a disgrace in AZ and he will resign and leave Glenview a mess as he did with Avondale AZ. This man will cause a great deal of embarrassment!!
Has anyone noticed the number of middle-management employees Todd Hileman has added to the Village rooster? I don’t think that it is accepted business practice to eliminate positions at the customer service level and pad the middle management while out-sourcing village services like street sweeping, snow plowing, landscape maintenance and I.T..
Do you feel that you are not being represented by our current Village Board? Glenview is a diverse community according to the last census. We have a broad range of income levels, age, ethnicity, religion and geographic-caused neighborhood concerns. Our Village Trustees should NOT be elected “at large” but, rather by area. The only way to accomplish this is to change our form of government from a Village to a City. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a trustee living and elected in your neighborhood who would understand and care about your problems?
Kisner did one thing right. The last budget template he submitted showed actual water and sewer revenues to the tune of 60 million when the city tries to say they are in the low 30 million dollar range. Maybe that is why the sent him packing, he outed the truth. Good luck to you all, we are still trying to dig out here in Daytona. Our problems are fraud and corruption by a small group of land speculating campaign contributors and the elected officials who do their bidding. Kisner was the least of our issues.
Todd Hileman is in the process for Scottsdale AZ, looks like he’s trying to run from Glenview.
why is it that when someone new comes into an office or job, they get the blame for what went on for years prior to their arrival. why is it that things which went bad for years. Some may feel can be corrected in a moments times. It took time to get fat with issues , it takes time to lose the fat with new solutions. Nothing happens overnight to resolve a mess which was created over many years. Stop blaming those who try to make a change of what was messed up many years ago.
people who sit back and criticize should run for office or apply for the jobs that they think they know or since they have all of the answers. why wait for someone to get hired so you can criticize every move they make. Get a backbone and apply for jobs or give solutions to others . Maybe then there can be success in areas which seemed to be doomed. Stand up or shut up. Stop complaining if you won’t stand up and really be heard.