Elk Grove Township voters OK public property sale
Elk Grove Township residents voted Monday to let officials sell two public properties, turning focus to potential development plans on the sites in Arlington Heights and Elk Grove Village.
The lengthy public hearing attended by more than 150 voters ended with the approval to sell the township's headquarters at 2400 S. Arlington Heights Road in Arlington Heights, and a township building at 711 Chelmsford Lane in Elk Grove Village, which holds day care services for about 100 children.
Residents voted 84-72 to sell the Elk Grove Village property valued at $2.5 million. In a 77-45 vote, residents authorized the sale of the Arlington Heights property valued at $955,000.
Residents raised concerns about the future of day care services at the 6.2-acre Chelmsford Lane tract. The township gives grant money to the nonprofit day care center, which offers services for low-income families. The facility will close at the end of August.
The township plans to provide qualifying families with day care vouchers to be used at other day care centers, Township Supervisor Mike Sweeney said. He said the move will allow the township to spend more tax money on services for residents, rather than costs to maintain the aging property.
"I argue it empowers families - it gives them more flexibility," Sweeney said. "It allows the township to have fixed costs year to year."
Elk Grove Village officials prefer the site be turned into a park or a residential development of single-family homes, which would be required to include about one acre of green space, Mayor Craig Johnson said. Johnson supports building a park on the residential property, if the Elk Grove Park District wants to buy the property.
The park district has been leasing space for a soccer field and two playgrounds on the property. Elk Grove Park District Executive Director Tom Busby said the district is interested in the property.
"Anytime open land becomes available, we definitely take a look at it to see whether it's a part of our long-term plan of providing green space," Busby said.
Arlington Heights officials want the Arlington Heights Road property, located near Interstate 90, to be developed for commercial purposes such as an office building or a hotel.
The township will hold another vote to authorize officials to buy property for new public facilities. The vote could occur during the annual township meeting in April, but a date has not been set, Sweeney said.
Bids are due for the Elk Grove Village property in May and the Arlington Heights property in July.
Township residents have already authorized officials to sell the youth services building at 401 W. Golf Road. DiMucci Cos., a real estate development firm, sought to buy the property and potentially use the 25,000-square-foot lot to improve traffic flow in and out of the neighboring Golf Plaza II shopping center. The firm owns the shopping plaza located east of the youth services building, as well as open land to the south and west.
The property was appraised at $245,000. Township officials could decide whether to accept bids on the property during a meeting Feb. 27.
The township must get at least 80 percent of the appraised value in order to sell any of the three properties.