Eleven months after being appointed Riverside’s village clerk, Christine Bruton has announced she’ll be resigning from the job. On Nov. 22, Bruton submitted her letter of resignation to Riverside Village Manager Kathleen Rush, stating, “I have really enjoyed my time working as village clerk. The position is interesting and very valuable to the community. Working with the village was very rewarding.”
According to a release issued by the village, Bruton cited increased personal and work responsibilities as her reasons for resigning from the job.
Calls to Bruton for further comment were not returned.
Bruton was appointed to the job in January after Riverside voters approved a measure in the November 2004 election to abandon the practice of electing a village clerk. Between 1999 and 2004, Riverside had five different people serve in the clerk’s role. Bruton had originally been hired as interim clerk after the sudden resignation of Clerk John Coughlin in 2001. She was kept on as deputy clerk after the election of Ronald Bolda in 2003.
When Bolda announced he was not going to run for reelection in 2005, the village board sought a referendum for an appointed clerk to allow for more continuity in the position. Bruton had expressed interest in the job but couldn’t run for office since she was employed part-time in the village Recreation Department.
When Riverside residents voted 61 percent to 39 percent to go with an appointed clerk, it looked as if that continuity would be guaranteed. Rush appointed Bruton to the post in January 2005. While Bruton worked just one day a week in the clerk’s office, she was always nearby at the Recreation Department if she was needed in a pinch.
But that same month, Bruton accepted a full-time job with the Village of Hinsdale. She left her part-time job in the Riverside Recreation Department, but held on to the clerk’s post.
“Chris was so busy with the full-time job that it made it hard to do both,” Rush said. “We didn’t have that access to her, and it was difficult to manage.”
The village has started advertising for the part-time position, which pays a fixed bi-weekly salary of $375. Typically the responsibilities call for at least 10 hours per week, and include attendance at meetings of the village board.
The position is responsible for maintaining the official village records, public relations, business license processing, voter registration, election day activities and processing confidential matters of the village board.
Individuals interested in the position should apply immediately, submitting a village job application, resume and references.
According to Rush, Bruton will stay on to make the transition to a new clerk and will continue to do board meeting minutes until a new clerk can be sworn in.
