New Fire Chief Picked For Clarendon Hills

CLARENDON HILLS, IL – An official in the Roselle Fire Department is expected to take the helm of the Clarendon Hills Fire Department.

Michael Korzen is now the battalion chief in the Roselle department, where his LinkedIn page says he was hired in January.

Korzen is expected to start work Aug. 20, a day after the next regular meeting of the Village Board, which must approve the appointment.

In an interview with Patch on Friday, Assistant Village Manager Mera Johnson said Korzen accepted a conditional offer from the village, pending background checks. She said he is set to be sworn in after the board's vote on the night of Aug. 19.

In a statement to Patch, Village Manager Zach Creer said Korzen was selected after an exhaustive process, which included highly qualified candidates.

"In our interviews, we talked a lot about the future of the department, and we believe he is the best person to move forward with the strategic objectives of increasing training, increasing professionalism and delivering high-quality service," Creer said. "Having served Clarendon Hills previously, he understands that we are a fiscally conservative town and that controlling costs is of utmost importance."

Korzen's career as a firefighter and paramedic goes back to 1998, when he worked as a paid-on-call firefighter with the Hillside Fire Department. He has served several suburban departments, including the Clarendon Hills department from 2004 to 2013.

Korzen holds a master's degree in public administration from the University of Illinois in Springfield and a bachelor of arts degree from Western Illinois University through a joint program with the National Fire Academy.

In November, the village put then-Fire Chief Patrick Leahy on leave during an investigation.

In February, Leahy and the Village Board struck a severance deal. That ended his 52-year career with the fire department, the last 39 as its chief.

Lt. Dave Godek, a fire department member, has been acting chief since November.