The Village of Grant Park will have a new police chief come May, following the retirement of current Chief Carl Frey. Frey’s replacement has not yet been announced.
Frey originally became the Grant Park Police Chief 12 years ago when he agreed to serve as chief for just a few years.
“I guess I missed that mark,” Frey wrote in a statement on March 3.
“I never expected to stay so many years, but progress takes time. We worked hard to recover the image of the Grant Park Police Department, mostly hiring great personnel who can continue the mission. We have overcome many challenges over the years and have come out better on the other side,” Frey said in his statement.
Frey’s retirement was not addressed at the village board meeting held March 2.
Other Police News
The village and police department’s computer server, which has been on the agenda for the past few meetings, again was tabled after additional discussion. Trustee Gerry Morgan said he was awaiting some information.
The board unanimously approved the purchase of a used police vehicle for $25,000 from the Bradley Police Department. Frey continued the discussion from the last board meeting about the police vehicle and explained why the police department needed one. He added that it was far less expensive obtaining one used from another department than it was buying new.
Frey also explained the added benefits they could receive with the used vehicle, such as the video system that works with the donated body cameras, which only need new batteries.
Ahead of the vote, Morgan quipped, “As long as we don’t have to buy another one for six years,” to which Frey said the police department would make do.
Village Clerk Scott Dillman asked if there were any additional questions, which there were none. The unanimous vote was motioned by Trustee Angie Nowak and seconded by Morgan.
Community Center Rental
At the last board meeting, the board voted to cancel the free community line dancing that was held at the Grant Park Community Center. Board members were concerned it was a liability, and it would set a trend that other people would want to come to the village and do things for free.
Nowak raised the topic about that vote at the March 2 meeting, noting the village previously voted to allow the free line dancing on April 7, 2025, which she said implied it was village sponsored.
“I don’t understand why we had to take another vote unless it was to be voted on like yearly, but when I looked through the video and the notes, nothing was stated,” Nowak said.
Nowak said some have been looking for an alcohol-free event the whole family could enjoy. She explained some people may not have wanted to attend the Cabin Fever Reliever because there was alcohol there.
“I feel we did a disservice to that part of our community, and we did a disservice to a young lady who went there to meet new people in the community,” Nowak said.
Additionally, Nowak raised issues with another Ag-Ed organization holding an event at the community center for free, which she said likely had alcohol.
“It’s sort of a little embarrassing for our community. I think we really all need to take a look at what we want our community to look like. I think a lot of the people who showed up last week were very put off, and they might not ever come back to Grant Park because of that,” Nowak said.
Nowak advocated for transparency and clarity on the rentals, noting the village lost rental income from the other organization that held events for free.
“I know I’m new, and I may be ruffling a little bit of feathers, but I’m always looking out for the little man,” Nowak said.
Nowak wants to see rental information clearly laid out on the village’s website.
Morgan suggested they have a written contract that specifies what needs to happen to have it for free, that way, if anyone else wanted to use the community center for free, they would know what they had to satisfy in order to do so.
Nowak also noted the line dancer’s instructors, known as Boots on Fire, paid to rent the hall for an event.
“So, what does that tell you? They want to bring more people to our community to show them what we have and the facility that we have that’s available for them to rent, too,” Nowak said.
“I agree with you, Angie,” Trustee Julie Quinn said.
Quinn expressed regret over how the board handled the event, and noted the last board meeting had standing room only, from the amount of people who showed up to support the community line dancing.
“We probably, as a board, should have taken much more into consideration [with] the amount of people who were here from the community telling us that, hey, this is something we should support. So, I too was, uh, embarrassed and disappointed,” Quinn added.
Trustee Jason Martin nodded as Quinn spoke.
Trustee Jodi Wackerlin said she, Susie Wiedl, and Martin fielded questions from attendees to explain why they voted against it.
“It has nothing to do with favoritism or anything like that,” Wackerlin said, stating transparency was why she voted against it.
“It specifically says in the contract who gets it for free,” Martin said of why he voted against the line dancing. In response, Nowak questioned why the Ag-Ed group was able to get it free then, which Martin said he agreed that they shouldn’t have.
Project Updates
Mayor Ben Detloff advised the board he is in talks with the village’s attorney to discuss zoning issues stemming from a property owner wanting to change the use of an old church building they purchased, as well as a solar project in the village’s vicinity.
Downtown improvements are slated to start when the weather breaks, Detloff reported to the board. While it’s taken a long time, they should be making headway soon.
Hilgert Park will be completed by the summer.
Michael Lask approached the board on behalf of Sean McDermott with The Huddle, a sports card collectible business with a golf simulator that will be relocating to Grant Park from Beecher.
Lask is requesting a liquor license from the village. They will not have a restaurant, but will allow patrons to bring in food. Detloff invited him to speak to the board to gauge how the board felt before getting in touch with the village’s lawyer and pursuing the liquor license.
Overall, most board members seemed in favor of issuing the liquor license, though Jason Martin stated he did not have an opinion, and Susie Wiedl said she would abstain.
The board is still totaling up expenses from the Cabin Fever Reliever, which the board said was a success
At the end of the meeting, Detloff brought up an issue where, apparently, his wife had been the subject of negative political commentary, but did not disclose what was said or more details about the alleged incident.
“I signed up for what I’m going to receive, as far as negative comments, people being upset with me. But you have to draw a line, and the line was crossed because my family was brought into it, and I don’t appreciate that,” Detloff said.
“Leave my family out of your comments,” Detloff added.