Few residents show at Carpentersville meeting

A special Carpentersville village board meeting to discuss a new public works facility drew fewer than a handful of people Tuesday, leaving trustees to make a case for the $12 million facility to mostly village staff and commission members.

The village board convened the meeting Tuesday as an opportunity for residents to learn about the project from planning to construction due in part to criticism that the village board had not openly discussed the matter before its approval and slammed trustees for supporting a project that could force a property tax hike to fund.

"You haven't convinced me yet," said Jim Krenz, a former candidate for village president. "I concur that there is a need for storing some of this stuff, but I really don't see that we need a $12 million facility. I think that is overkill in this kind of economy."

But trustees argued the plan for a 100,000 square-foot facility had been discussed in public meetings 69 times since 2005, with 49 of those discussions coming in the past three years.

"This has not just dropped out of the sky," Village President Ed Ritter said. "There have been long standing discussions among the village board members and anyone in the public who wanted to talk about it. This is not a new idea."

In a presentation, Cole reiterated the need for a new facility, which is planned for a 24-acre site the village owns near the intersection of Wilmette and Cleveland avenues in the Old Town area of the village.

The current 9,000 square-foot public works facility houses 30 full-time employees with space to store 14 vehicles inside. The department owns 76 vehicles and other pieces of equipment, Cole said. A space needs study completed in 2005 indicated the department needed about 142,000 square-feet to operate effectively.

"The village residents have made major investments," Cole said. "We need to protect those assets."

Finance Director Lisa Happ estimated a $62 per year tax increase for every $100,000 of a home's market value could be needed to pay down an estimated $20 million bond the village will need to complete the project and continue its streets program.

Happ said the village should take advantage of the bond market and government rebates that would repay as much as 35 percent of the interest.

"Now is the time to get projects done," Happ said.

Project: Cost remains controversial