Glen Ellyn's historic Stacy's Tavern won't become strip mall

An anonymous $200,000 donation appears to have helped the Glen Ellyn Historical Society retain control of a lot east of the historic Stacy's Tavern, leaving the lot open to house a possible history park.

That and the donation of a portion of a nearby lot in Stacy's Corners to the village will eliminate most of the $1.4 million debt the local historic society owes the village.

Last month, the village's finance commission, following a six-month study, recommended the lot near Stacy's Tavern be developed, possibly as a strip mall.

The $200,000 donation would be used by the commission to pay the village back for the property at 820 N. Main St., which sits just east of Stacy's Tavern museum.

But the commission also will give the village a large portion of its property, a partially unoccupied strip mall at 810-816 N. Main St., to whittle down the $1.4 million debt on the land.

A tentative agreement with the village would leave the historic society with a 50-foot strip of that property that leads from Stacy's Tavern to the Glen Ellyn History Center, 800 N. Main St. In return, the village will eliminate the group's debt on the property.

With the donation and $230,000 of reserve funds, the total remaining debt would stand at $56,053, a total the village has said it will excuse.

Historic society President Bill Peterson said several events conspired to keep the group from making its annual debt payment to the village. That included the loss of tenants in the strip mall, which provided rental revenue; a drop in donations from the public; and a tightening of the village's budget resulting in fewer resources being spent on development and upkeep at the location.

Village Manager Steve Jones said the village and historical society entered long ago into something of a gentlemen's agreement, with the village buying land for the historic society with the understanding that the society would pay back the money. In return, the village owns the land but lets the agency run it as it sees fit.

"When the money's flowing, there's fewer problems," he said.

The finance commission's recommendation of selling the lot to a developer pushed many residents to bring their concerns to the June 28 village workshop and urge the village board to help preserve the property.

"I don't think people move to Glen Ellyn to see strip malls," Peterson said. "It's a unique town. It has shunned a lot of development in its history because it has wanted to keep a small-town identity."

"We are feeling much better about the fact that the most important property (820 N. Main St.) has been preserved," Peterson said.