Orland Park officials are convinced that all of their problems with recent audits are behind them.
During the village’s March 17 meeting, they heard from Anthony Cervini of Chicago-based Sikich that the 2023 audit is complete and is a “clean audit” and was ready to be sent to the state.
Last fall, the village was taken to task by political opponents and Illinois Comptroller Susan Mendoza for the delinquency of the 2022 and 2023 audits, with Mendoza threatening to offset payments of $120,000 annually until they were complete.
The board said that replacing staff in the village’s finance department plus a switch in auditing firms caused the delay.
Months ago, Sikich analyzed the 2022 financial statements and gave the village a clean opinion and the 2023 report checks out the same, according to Cervini.
“I’m pleased to report that we’ve issued a clean, unmodified opinion for the Dec. 31, 2023 financial statements,” he said. “That financial statement opinion is the highest level of assurance that we can provide as auditors and it means the financials, based on our audit, are fairly presented in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles.
“And they are free of material misstatement.”
Trustees praised the staff and the Sikich firm for getting the audits done quickly.
Mayor Keith Pekau is happy to put this behind him.
He quizzed Cervini about a few controversial points that critics have brought up about malfeasance on the village’s part.
“There has been a lot of misinformation about missing money in the village,” Pekau said. “Specifically, about an $800,000 mistake. You have completed your audit, is there any hint of any evidence to support that?”
Cervini said there was “nothing that we noted in terms of any missing funds.”
Pekau added, “Just so everyone knows, it was a comment taken out of context from a board meeting when there was a budget amendment of that amount and the comment was ‘this was a mistake? This is unacceptable.’
“[Critics] took that part out and tried to make it sound like there was missing money. There is not. And you heard that from the auditor.”
Playground grant
The village is receiving up to $600,000 from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources which will go to the second phase of Schussler Park.
In December, the village received a $600,000 Open Space Lands Acquisition Development grant and that also is going to the $1.5 million project, which will include an all-inclusive playground, a pavilion, a half basketball court and improvements to the park.
“It’s great we received the awards to build this all-inclusive park,” Trustee Michael Milani said. “It’s truly something many residents want. It will be nice to see this project completed.”
I am not surprised that the audit was clean. Having worked for a CPA firm specializing in governments while I was in grad school, I found accounting department employees to be skilled and capable. Nor am I surprised that accounting employees quit unexpectedly and without training replacements, due to the toxic organizational culture caused by the Pekau administration.
The problems can be seen in sharp relief by the police officers unanimously opposing the current mayor Pekau and supporting the challenger Dodge: For the first time in 60 years, Orland Park’s police officers have taken a stand in a mayoral race – and their message is clear. Orland Park’s 75 police patrol officers (all members of the Metropolitan Alliance of Police union) held a vote on whom to back for mayor. 65 officers voted for Jim Dodge, 10 abstained, and 0 voted for incumbent Mayor Keith Pekau
In their endorsement letter, the officers praise Dodge: “His decency and fair-minded temperament are cornerstones for a more prosperous community.” But about Pekau, they warn: “With a proven track record of backroom deals, duplicity, and bullying, the current Village leadership imperils independent, effective, and professional law enforcement.” The letter outlines serious failures under Pekau’s administration that undermine public safety (https://bit.ly/4hMC2Dp):
• No commitment to strong leadership or transparency
• No ability to retain and recruit the best officers
• No real engagement with the community
• A toxic culture of bullying and backroom deals
This unprecedented rebuke of an incumbent mayor by our own police force signals deep dissatisfaction and underscores the urgent need for change in Orland Park’s leadership. Our police – the people who protect our streets every day – are pleading for new leadership at Village Hall. We should listen.
I wrote a lengthy comment which explained why OP’s toxic organizational climate led to the delayed audits, and illustrated it with the public problems in the police department.
I wonder why it was deleted?
Of course, private organizations don’t have any free speech restrictions. But it seems that any publication that strives to be unbiased would not delete comments.
Perhaps the person at the paper that zapped my comment can explain to all of us.
Oops, sorry, my original comment is back. I apologize to the paper for doubting their voluntary commitment to free speech!