The Harvey City Council voted unanimously Monday to elect 1st Ward Ald. Shirley Drewenski as acting mayor, following the death last month of Mayor Christopher Clark.
Clark died Jan. 30 following an unspecified illness. A memorial service is planned for 11 a.m. on March 28, according to the city’s social media. A location has not been specified.
Drewenski has been mayor pro tempore since Clark’s death, as the senior member of the City Council. She said she has been on the council since 2011.
At the conclusion of the meeting, Drewenski said she never aspired to be mayor.
“I didn’t wake up and say that I wanted to be mayor. Sixteen years ago, people asked me, would I run for mayor. That was not my goal,” Drewenski said. “Sometimes God has different plans.”
In remarks after the meeting, she commemorated Clark and offered condolences to his family.
“Chris Clark was a very dear friend of mine,” Drewenski said. “It’s very difficult to accept this role because we were so close, and he should be standing here.”
Drewenski will serve out the remainder of Clark’s term, which will end in spring 2027.
She said she had not yet given thought to the question of appointing someone to fill her 1st Ward seat.
Drewenski’s first act as mayor was to appoint an acting clerk, following a process of seeking and interviewing applicants from the public that was discussed at the previous City Council meeting.
She appointed Janet Rogers, the wife of 6th Ward Ald. Tyrone Rogers. Drewenski asked Tyrone Rogers to abstain from the vote to confirm his wife.
Fourth Ward Ald. Tracy Key, who oversaw the interview process along with Tyrone Rogers, also abstained. Janet Rogers was confirmed by a vote of 3-1, with 2nd Ward Ald. Colby Chapman voting against.
Multiple members of the public criticized the appointment, alleging nepotism.
“He recused himself, but that’s still nepotism, favoritism and certainly not impartial,” resident Glynis James-Watson said.
Tyrone Rogers defended the choice of his wife, saying she was the best candidate of those available.
“On a scale of one to 10, my wife was a dozen,” Rogers said. “If you want what’s best for the city, then you got what’s best for the city.”
Janet Rogers is the Harvey Elementary District 152 board president and a member of the South Suburban College board. She was previously found guilty of felony fraud, a crime for which she was pardoned in 2013.
Drewenski said she had no concern about Janet Rogers’ fitness for the position of city clerk, despite her past conviction.
“The past is in the past,” Drewenski said. “It has been expunged.”
Monday’s meeting was the Harvey City Council’s second attempt at selecting an acting mayor. The first attempt, at a special meeting called shortly after Clark’s death, ended in failure when the council deadlocked between Drewenski and 5th Ward Ald. Dominique Randle-El.
elewis@chicagotribune.com
