County Board talks building updates and administrator hiring

Kirsten Wisniewski | April 9, 2025

The Cook County Board of Commissioners officially appointed Rena Rogers as interim administrator at the April 8 board meeting. Rowan Watkins, now former interim administrator, spoke with WTIP after the meeting to provide an update.

Building project updates

There are several major building projects that the county is working on moving forward with. Both the transfer station and the addition to the Law Enforcement Center (LEC) are moving into the next phase of planning.

The board has set a public hearing for April 22 at 9 a.m. to move forward with the next step on the transfer station. The county will be issuing bonds to help cover the nearly $6 million funding gap for the project. Before they can move forward with bonding, a public hearing is required.

The county is also asking for public comment on the LEC project. On May 22 the public will have the chance to weigh in on and ask questions about the LEC expansion. Watkins said the date is based on when the county, design team, and BKV, the architectural firm working on the project, will be available to meet with county residents.

Administrator hiring update

As Watkins wraps up his time as interim administrator, Rena Rogers will move into the role. She will serve as the board moves forward with finding a permanent administrator. This will be the second round of recruitment for the job. Watkins said the updated timeline for the hiring process would aim to have a new administrator hired in July.

On his last day in the position, Watkins said his feelings about the transition go beyond just being glad to be able to return to his role as Management Information Systems director. He said, “Mostly at this point, it’s just gratitude for the support that everybody’s shown, and happy to have been able to hopefully help out in some small way.”

WTIP’s Kirsten Wisniewski spoke to former Interim Administrator Rowan Watkins. Audio of that interview is below.