Riverside Fire Chief terminated
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June 04 11:27:58, 2025
From excerpts on RBLandmark.com:
Last week, Spencer Kimura, who had been serving as the chief of the Riverside Fire Department, was quietly let go from his position just prior to the village board's meeting on July 16. While the village hasn't officially disclosed Kimura's dismissal, local officials confirmed it on Monday after a reporter observed that Kimura's name had been removed from the village's official website.
Village Manager Jessica Frances, who made the decision to terminate Kimura late in the afternoon on July 16, offered minimal comments regarding his departure. Similarly, Village President Ben Sells refrained from elaborating, stating that the matter was internal and personnel-related. According to Frances, the village is not offering Kimura a severance package, nor is there any separate agreement in place. Kimura, who was hired in 2011 following the tumultuous period that led to the firing of his predecessor, Kevin Mulligan, did not have a formal employment contract. His yearly salary amounted to $80,371.
Matthew Buckley, previously serving as Kimura’s deputy fire chief, has now stepped into the interim fire chief role. Buckley, who works full-time as the deputy police chief in nearby Lyons, will balance both responsibilities concurrently. This arrangement, as explained by Frances, allows her to evaluate the current leadership structure within the fire department and determine if any structural adjustments are necessary. Traditionally, the department has been staffed by a part-time chief alongside paid-on-call firefighters. Kimura's work schedule consisted of 32 hours per week.
At present, Frances has not initiated a search for a permanent replacement for the fire chief position.
A suburban resident, the 57-year-old Kimura never fully integrated into Riverside. Having retired as a battalion chief from the Glenview Fire Department, he was brought in to mend the department after Mulligan's termination, which had created divisions within the team.
Mulligan eventually settled a lawsuit against the village and Buckley for $350,000. However, the discord persisted. In 2014, four Riverside firefighters, including three lieutenants, filed a federal lawsuit alleging unfair disciplinary actions against them partly due to their allegiance to Mulligan. This case was dismissed entirely by a U.S. District Court judge earlier this year.
Buckley, whose concerns over Mulligan's conduct prompted the village's termination, stated he is fostering collaboration among all command staff members. "I'm involving the officer corps in a cooperative effort to ensure projects and services are maintained at their highest standards," Buckley noted. "All supervisors are aligned in working together to ensure everything proceeds correctly," he added. "We are all focused on moving past the past and progressing forward."
To reach the desired word count, additional details could include interviews with local residents, insights into the village's history with fire department leadership, or reflections on the broader implications of these changes within the community.