Friends and colleagues are remembering the legacy of John Fischbach, Lake Forest’s former city manager, who oversaw the restoration of the city’s beach and the development of the west side in the 1980s before leaving amid questions about his compensation. Fischbach died of natural causes on July 23, according to his daughter, Kristina. He was 80.
“John was incredibly smart and passionate — well-organized, but he demanded a lot from his employees, which I liked,” recalled Bob Kiely, who worked for Fischbach and later succeeded him as Lake Forest’s permanent city manager. “He set high expectations and held you to those expectations because he had high standards for himself.”
Born in Evanston, Fischbach spent most of his childhood in Albany, Oregon, his daughter said. He earned a master’s degree in city management from the University of Kansas.
John Fischbach, Lake Forest’s former city manager, who oversaw the restoration of the city’s beach and the development of the west side in the 1980s before leaving, died of natural causes on July 23. (Courtesy of Kristina Fischbach)
“He really believed it was all about serving the community and making it a better place. It was also about making sure residents felt they were part of the community and that the city was there to support them,” Kristina Fischbach said of his interest in city management.
Fischbach was hired in Lake Forest in 1973 as an assistant to then–city manager Gerald Hagman. After three years, he left to become the top administrator in Robbinsdale, Minnesota. When Hagman departed in 1979, the City Council hired Fischbach as city manager.
During his tenure in the 1980s, Fischbach oversaw the restoration of Forest Park Beach, which had fallen into disrepair. Current city manager Jason Wicha described the effort as “one of the largest and most transformative capital projects in the last 50-plus years.”
“He was so proud of the beach,” Kirstina Fischbach added. “We would go there every single day as a family.”
Another major initiative was the creation of the city’s first tax-increment financing district on the west side. John Kalmar, who worked in the city’s planning department at the time, said there were several scattered parcels along Waukegan Road at the time, prompting the action.
“It was a real push toward being proactive in development along that corridor and created what there is today,” Kalmar said. “He was the driver behind it. He worked with the City Council, pushed us to create the plan, and then helped put it in place.”
Fischbach’s additional accomplishments included the annexation of the Conway Park office complex and nearby residential areas from Lake County, relocation of the west side fire station, and expansion of the municipal services center, then located on Laurel Avenue, according to former city officials.
Kiely said he learned much from Fischbach about long-term planning. “He had a vision for what he wanted the organization to look like, and he knew Lake Forest residents demanded high-quality service. He was intent on making sure the organization could deliver.”
Peter Cummins, who worked early in his career in Lake Forest and later with Fischbach when Cummins was Lake Bluff’s village administrator, offered a similar assessment.
“He was challenging, demanding, but he was the most effective city manager any town could hope to have,” Cummins said. “Whether you liked it or not, he had a strong vision for what a community should be. He drove the bus to get it there, and he figured out how to get council members on that bus — an art many city managers don’t know how to master.”
Following separate legal issues, Fischbach’s service in Lake Forest ended in 1990 as questions were being raised about his total compensation package, particularly his housing allowance. In May 1990, with new members of the City Council including a new mayor, Fischbach announced he would be leaving in a “negotiated settlement”, according to a published report of the time.
“John was a strong Type A personality, and I think that rubbed some people the wrong way, because there are a lot of Type A personalities in Lake Forest,” Kiely said.
After leaving Lake Forest, Fischbach held city management roles in Vancouver, Washington; Fort Collins, Colorado; Goodyear, Arizona; and served as county administrator in Port Townsend, Washington. He retired in 2013 and returned to Vancouver.
His hobbies included golf, reading, playing board games with friends, and taking drives into the mountains, his daughter said.
In addition to his daughter, Fischbach is survived by his wife, Carol, and his sister, Christine (Mike). A son, Jack, died in 2013. His first marriage to Jane Kearns, a retired Lake Bluff teacher, ended in divorce.
Services have been held.
Daniel I. Dorfman is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
