Village board approves appointment of Gerald Dietz as hearing officer

The Village Board of Beach Park voted to approve a contract appointment of Attorney Gerald Dietz as the village adjudication hearing officer. Mayor (name not stated) said Attorney Dietz "has been a village prosecutor for quite a while now" and that the previous hearing officer had resigned after taking a position elsewhere. The resolution (No. 18) authorizing an independent contractor agreement with Gerald Dietz passed on a roll-call vote after a motion by Trustee Gus and a second by Trustee Miller. The board also accepted Dietz's appointment to the general duties described in the contract and noted Dietz would relinquish his village prosecutor role to avoid conflicts with the hearing-officer duties. No public comment opposed the appointment during the meeting.

The board discussed filling the prosecutor role that would be vacated and said staff was "working on a solution" for matters extending beyond the normal adjudication process. The vote to approve the contractor agreement carried on the roll call called by the clerk; trustees voting "aye" were recorded during the clerk's roll call. The appointment took place under the mayor's report and is effective per the terms of the contractor agreement referenced at the meeting.

Discussion versus decision: the board's deliberations on Dietz were limited to the appointment and logistics for replacing prosecutorial duties; there was no extended debate. The formal action (resolution approving the contract and appointment) was approved by roll-call vote.