A Day in the Life Profile: Huntley Village Manager Dave Johnson

The 2010 U.S. Census reports 24,291 residents live in Huntley.

And the village is still growing. Last year, Huntley had 107 new residential units. Another 175 new residential unit permits have been issued this year through May 2011.

All this makes Huntley the fastest-growing municipality in the Chicago metro area.

At the helm of this thriving community is Village Manager Dave Johnson.

Johnson runs the day-to-day operations of the village, from coordinating the Route 47 construction project with the Illinois Department of Transportation to making sure the village is on track with its budget.

His days are packed with talking to residents, going to meetings and making sure the village is running effectively.

An average day has Johnson heading out to Route 47 to check on the progress of the construction project. Project Manager Keith Schaedel and his crew have been replacing the last of the underground utilities. The aging infrastructure was upgraded to fit the needs of this growing community, he said.

One of the main concerns with the Route 47 project is its effect on local business, Johnson said. Access is very limited, and people avoid route 47 as much as possible. That is something that Johnson and his staff are very concerned about. They have tried their best to keep the businesses open and make sure that motorists know, with signage throughout the stretch.

Growth is still happening in the “Friendly Village with Country Charm.”

Recently, General RV opened near the Huntley Outlet Center at Interstate 90 and Route 47. Johnson has been having regular meetings about the planned interchange at that location.

Nearby, a manufacturing plant is being built in the village, and is building a retail store near Walmart on Kreutzer, he said.

Johnson said that he is very impressed by the growth given the economic situation. Every day he takes a drive on Route 47, normally during his lunch break, to see progress and talk to people to make sure the businesses and residents are minimally affected.

After a recent tour, Johnson went back to Village Hall and gave a visitor a tour. The Village Hall staff and the Huntley Police Department share the building. Johnson pointed out that they have consolidated the offices very well, and some rooms haven’t even been built out, but likely will be used for future growth.

Johnson then walked into the office of Mayor Chuck Sass and talked about some village business before going into a meeting with two Sun City residents who are starting Huntley Community Radio, a radio station that will serve the village and will broadcast news, talk, music and other local programs to residents.

The Sun City residents simply came to bring Johnson and Sass up to speed, to see if the village had any ideas, and to ask Johnson to be on their advisory board.

After his meeting, Johnson checked in with Public Works Director Jim Schwartz to see how everything was going before heading out to lunch.

His day included a few more meetings throughout the afternoon.

The Day in the Life of a Village Manager seems very hectic at times. Johnson recalled the blizzard in February and said that he and a few other village staffers made it to Village Hall and started answering the hundreds of calls coming in. He said the village has made some improvements based on the feedback from residents and other people in the community.

“Every day is something different,” said Johnson, who has to deal with a ton of diverse issues and make sure the village is following the budget when doing everything.

He may have a lot on his plate, but somehow during the course of the day, he knew everyone by names, said hello every time he saw someone and showed how much he really cared for his staff and the residents and businesses of Huntley.