McHenry alderman’s resignation opens seat on City Council

Ald. Shawn Strach, 5th Ward, resigned from the McHenry City Council on April 16, citing personal and health reasons.

Mayor Wayne Jett is now accepting applications to fill the seat, which is up for reelection in April 2025.

McHenry City Administrator Suzanne Ostrovsky confirmed Strach’s resignation on Tuesday after residents noticed his seat was marked vacant on the roster of council members on the city’s website and posted a screenshot on social media.

Reached by phone Tuesday, Strach, a McHenry real estate agent, would not elaborate on the reason for his resignation, but did say it was discussed during the April 15 closed session. He tendered his resignation to the city the next morning, Strach said. He served on the city’s planning and zoning commission, including as the board’s chair, for several years before running for the council seat unopposed in 2021.

Anyone interested in the post and who lives in the 5th Ward can email the mayor at wjett@cityofmchenry.org for consideration of appointment. “I will then set up interviews of each candidate,” Jett said.

The 5th Ward is on the southeast side of McHenry, east of Route 31 to the Fox River, and bounded on the north Knox Park’s northern boundary line and Skyway Drive.

By Illinois statute, the mayor and council have 60 days to fill the aldermanic position for the remainder of Strach’s term, Ostrovsky said. To retain the seat, an appointed council member would need to run in the April 1, 2025, consolidated ballot.