South side Mt. Prospect community center ready to open

Mount Prospect's new Community Connections Center will open to the public early next month, according to Clare O'Shea, a senior planner with the village.

"We're getting our phones and computers up and running this week," she said. "The total build-out costs were pretty reasonable because we were our own general contractor. We did all the flooring, lighting and basic plumbing."

The community center will open in the Crystal Court Shopping Center on Algonquin Road and provide south-side residents a branch for village hall, library and police services. The space will also provide room for a library substation, reception area, offices and community room.

Representatives from Northwest Community Hospital and school districts 214 and 59 will also have information at the center, O'Shea said.

The center will have weekend and night hours, O'Shea said.

"Residents how live on the southern part of Mount Prospect have a hard time getting to village hall, the bus routes don't have a north-south connector," O'Shea said.

There are 7,000 housing units within one mile of the center, she said.

The center will open in two store fronts that have been abandoned for years. Work started on March 1.

"We've been talking about this substation for years," O'Shea said. "It all started with a $50,000 grant we received in 2007 for a feasibility study."

The center will host an official grand opening in late August.