Wauconda voters reject $4.75 million community center expansion

A $4.75 million plan to expand the Wauconda Park District's community center was narrowly rejected by voters Tuesday.

With ballots in all 10 precincts counted, unofficial results showed the proposal losing 1,813 to 1,741.

Although those totals don't include late-arriving mailed ballots or provisional ballots, parks Director Nancy Burton acknowledged the loss.

"It was very close, and we knew that going in," she said.

The park district board asked voters if they wanted to fund a 10,000-square-foot addition to the building in Cook Park, 600 N. Main St. Proposed highlights would have included an expanded fitness area, group fitness classrooms, an expanded dance room and an early-childhood classroom.

Officials said the extra space was needed because of the 21-year-old center's popularity and the growth of programs through the years.

If voters would have approved the expansion plan, the owner of a house with an average value of $223,500 would have paid an additional $72 in annual property taxes, officials said.

The loan that funded the center's construction will be paid off next month.

The voters' decision won't affect operations at the center. It will remain open and programs will continue.

"We will continue to do what we do best, which is to offer recreational opportunities to our residents," Burton said.