David Barber will be taking over as Public Works Director when Steve Van Winkle retires October 1. According to WMBD Radio:

Barber has over 20 years experience as a Public Works Director in four communities in Illinois and Ohio including Downers Grove, Naperville and Evanston, Illinois and Bowling Green, Ohio. Barber’s first day in Peoria will be September 6th working closely with current Public Works Director Steve Van Winkle before he retires October first. Barber, who is 57, will be paid $116,000 a year.

As far as I can put together from searching the Internet, Barber worked in Naperville from 1996 to 2001. He was the Public Works Director there from 1996 to September 1999, at which time the city spun off a new Department of Traffic and Engineering to focus specifically on traffic issues (Chicago Tribune, 9/23/1999). Barber became the director of that new department and Naperville hired a new Public Works Director. On Jan. 31, 2001, Barber left the city of Naperville to take a job at Harza Engineering of Chicago (Chicago Tribune, 1/24/2001).

In January 2004, Barber went to work for Downers Grove as Public Works Director, and he worked there until June 5, 2007. According to DGreport.com, a local Downers Grove blog, Barber was asked to resign by the Village Manager:

Barber and Village Manager Cara Pavlicek reached the decision together, according to a Village Hall staffer. Barber, who has also been working as a continuing education instructor at the University of Wisconsin has decided to focus his interests in academia. He came to Downers Grove in January 2004 after more than 30 years experience in civil engineering and public works.

Some of the complaints during his short tenure included “residents of Oakwood Avenue challeng[ing] the department’s computations on the cost of repairing their brick street,” “complaints about the sidewalk matrix, the tool by which new sidewalks are prioritized for construction,” and “storm water drainage problems,” according to the site.

There’s no indication that Barber has any experience with the principles of New Urbanism. If that’s so, it’s a real disappointment. It will indicate that familiarity with and advocacy for those principles was not a high priority for the selection committee collectively, which included council members Van Auken, Jacob, and Turner. I’ve written to Van Auken and City Manager Oliver asking what experience Barber has with the principles of New Urbanism; I’ll update this post when I receive any information.

Given Barber’s age and recent job history, I will be surprised if he stays in Peoria more than five years, if that long.