Three Palatine parks rec plans in running

Three different plans for a multimillion-dollar recreation center in Palatine are now being looked over by local officials.

One of them will be chosen in the next month, which will start the long process of planning for a massive project that will bring a fitness center, sports fields and other athletic opportunities to the northeast area of Palatine.

Since the 1990s, the Palatine Park District has been looking for land in that part of town for a rec center. In 2004, it bought a little more than 14 acres for the cause -- northeast of Rand and Hicks roads.

Over the past year, the park board visited recreation centers from Wisconsin to Bartlett to Glenview to get a feeling of what's needed in Palatine for what is being called the Falcon Park Recreation Center.

Park officials have set a preliminary budget of $10 million to $12 million, knowing they likely will need financial help from the community.

At a meeting Tuesday night, three architectural firms gave presentations on their plan for such a complex. All of them included outdoor sports fields, green space, as well as a large building as the central activity center.

PHN Architects of Wheaton is proposing a 58,000-square-foot building that is partly sunk into the ground. This will minimize the mass of the facility. There would be heavy use of stone on the exterior, and it is estimated to cost $14.5 million to $17 million.

Gilfillan/Callahan Architects of Rolling Meadows came forward with a plan that puts baseball and football fields on the east side of the property and a walking path that would loop around the entire site. The two-story rec center would be 70,000 square feet. The project is estimated to cost $16 million.

Williams Architects, of Carol Stream put forth a design that shows the entire park area being the focus with a recreation center in the middle. The 71,500-square-foot building would include 54,000 square feet of athletic facilities. It's expected to cost between $16 million to $18 million to build.

Each firm was paid a $1,500 stipend by the park district for its planning work.

Staff and park board members now will pick a plan before the next board meeting, Sept. 11. After that, changes will be made to the plan and residents will have input.

Funding details also will be discussed at a later date, including a possible referendum. Officials say a larger recreation facility is one of the No. 1 things people want, according to park district surveys.