Wheaton Government
The City of Wheaton: Here to Serve
By Becky Cline
The vibrant city of Wheaton, with its friendly neighborhoods, spanning recreational sites and abounding shopping, dining and entertainment venues, would not be what it is today without the guidance and support provided by the city government. Serving as the county seat of DuPage County, Wheaton boasts a growing populace of more than 55,000 residents and hails as the hub for government life.
Incorporated as a village on February 24, 1859, Wheaton prospered under a Board of Trustee form of government, and on April 24, 1890, became a city. Nearly 40 years later, on April 17, 1917, Wheaton chose a Commission form of government with a mayor and four commissioners, only to be changed to a Council-Manager form in November of 1961, with the first city manager appointed in July of 1962.
The current seven-person non-partisan city council is comprised of a mayor and six councilmen and councilwomen and practices all policy-making and legislative powers of the city of Wheaton. This year, Wheaton welcomed the first new mayor in 13 years, Mayor Michael Gresk, who was sworn into office May 8, 2007. Striving to continually improve the already high-quality of life for residents in the area, the city provides a great number and variety of services ranging from consumer and public safety services to youth and senior services.
Staffed by more than 100 full-time employees, the Wheaton Police Department is comprised of 68 sworn officers, 25 civilian employees and a part-time police auxiliary unit of between 15 and 20 members. Located at 900 West Liberty Drive, the Wheaton Police Department provides organized and effective law enforcement services to the area’s residents.
Thirty-four full-time firefighters and 18 full-time contracted paramedics provide fire protection and emergency medical service to Wheaton residents. Three fire stations are located throughout Wheaton, with the headquarters positioned at One Fapp Circle. Some fire prevention and emergency programs offered in the city include Carbon Monoxide Prevention, CPR Training, Firefighter Training and Senior Citizen Programs, to name a few.
In addition, the city of Wheaton affords resources on the Pandemic Flu, West Nile Virus and counseling services, as well as tips on child passenger safety, energy saving, lawn and garden, water saving and summer pet safety. All of this and more can be found on the city’s extensive, informational website www.wheaton.il.us.
The D.A.R.E. program is prominent in numerous communities across the U.S., including Wheaton. This prevention program is geared towards the country’s youth, providing the tools and resources children may need in recognizing and combating the pressures of trying tobacco, alcohol and other well-known drugs.
The area’s seniors can rest assured with a handful of helpful services made available to them by the Wheaton City Council. The city offers a senior housing assistance program, a senior meals program coordinated by the DuPage Senior Citizen Council and a reduced fare taxicab program. The county also affords additional senior services, which can be viewed at www.dupageco.org/seniorsvcs.
This truly only scratches the surface on the wealth of human services provided by the city of Wheaton and the county of DuPage. With all of this and more, it is no wonder Wheaton was recognized as “the healthiest of Chicago’s largest suburbs” by a 2005 Chicago magazine survey. Of 19 suburban communities, Wheaton was ranked number one after its evaluation of public health, safety and environment.
For a complete list of services, visit the city of Wheaton website, www.wheaton.il.us.
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