DiCianni, District 1 members appoint Itasca Mayor to Water Commission

Itasca Mayor Jeff Pruyn will replace commissioner Larry Hartwig as a municipal representative for District 1 of the DuPage County Water Commission.

Pruyn was selected Thursday at a special meeting called by District 1 Chairman and Elmhurst Mayor Pete DiCianni to select Hartwig's replacement, Terry McGee, water commission general manager, said.

The District 1 members met for several hours before selecting Pruyn as Hartwig's replacement. Hartwig's resignation took effect Friday.

A certified public accountant by trade, Pruyn said the first order of business will be to bring fiscal order to the commission and help restore its public image after a financial audit reported the panel misspent millions.

Pruyn believes his background was what endeared him to the other mayors in District 1. He's excited to get to work, but knows he'll have to prepare himself for his first meeting next week.

"There's a lot of work ahead, but I'm looking forward to it," Pruyn said.

The DuPage County Water Commission is an independent 13-member board. Six members are elected by area mayors and the commission chairman, while the other six members and a chairman are appointed by the DuPage County Board chairman. District 1 includes Elmhurst, Bloomingdale, Addison, Wood Dale, Itasca and Bensenville.

The commission's job is to transfer and sell water from Lake Michigan to 24 municipalities and unincorporated areas in DuPage County. The commission is funded though the sale of the water, plus a quarter-cent countywide sales tax.

Legislation restructuring the commission passed by the General Assembly in July calls for an entirely new board to be seated in January. Pruyn will serve out the rest of December for Hartwig and then remain for a full term beginning in January, McGee said.

The restructuring rules came in response to the commission's financial woes, including the revelation that millions of dollars were missing. An audit discovered the commission misspent $69 million in reserves.

That legislation was sponsored by State Sen. Dan Cronin, an Elmhurst Republican, who will be sworn in as the new DuPage County chairman.

Cronin will announce his seven appointments on Dec. 14 so the county board could vote on them at their meeting that day, Cronin spokesman Julie Kelly said.

"These appointments will be people from the private sector with expertise in areas of finance, accounting and public works," Kelly said, adding Cronin's nominees will be watchdogs over the commission.

Board members generally serve a six-year term. With an entire new board being seated in January though, McGee said the 13 members will cast lots to determine their length of service - either two, four or six years.

Elected officials who serve on the board do not receive an annual stipend, McGee said, while other receive $600 for their service.