Naperville may purchase DuPage Children's Museum

Naperville may be less than a week away from acquiring the financially troubled DuPage Children's Museum in a five-tiered deal that involves money from the city, state, county, bank and private investors.

City officials say the museum parcel at 301 N. Washington St., the northern gateway to downtown, is a strategic piece to the landlocked city's redevelopment puzzle.

If the museum can survive without the weight of a heavy mortgage and an annual $350,000 donation from the city, it will continue to be a colorful, welcoming amenity, officials say. If it continues to struggle, some councilmen say the facility eventually could be shuttered and possibly replaced with a parking deck.

Under the proposed acquisition deal, to be discussed by the city council publicly for the first time on Oct. 5, the museum will have to operate without the city's Special Events & Cultural Amenities funding support.

The proposed deal includes at least five layers of funding. The city will put in $3 million. The state will put in $1.94 million, consisting partially of funds pooled from Reps. Darlene Senger, Michael Connelly and Patti Bellock's member initiatives. DuPage County has promised $250,000 and private donors have pledged between $750,000 and $1 million. The remainder is expected to come from a $3.21 million write down by Chase Bank, which holds the museum's $9.4 million note.

Senger, also a member of the museum board, said she was happy the lawmakers were able to pool their funds to provide a solution for the struggling museum.

"The city is getting a free and clear title for under a third of what the museum was last assessed at in 2008," Councilman Bob Fieseler said. "The fact that the children's museum is getting a new lease on life is a bonus."

The city's $3 million includes about $1 million from the Burlington parking lot fund; the deal calls for the city to acquire 57 parking spots along the train line that are now used by the museum. The other $2 million will come from bonds the city already has issued but has not had to spend thanks to lower-than-expected costs for other projects.

That bond money cannot be used for other purposes, such as rehiring city workers who have been laid off because of declining revenues, officials said.

The proposed deal will allow the museum to operate rent-free for five years, after which it will pay about $140,000 a year to offset the cost of carrying the bonds.

The city also would require that either councilmen or staff members be included on the museum board to ensure the city has oversight of its budget.

"The concern is whether the city would have to pump money in to keep the museum from being evicted," Fieseler said. "Basically the golden rule applies here: He who brings the gold, makes the rules."

Councilman Dick Furstenau, a longtime opponent of purchasing the property, changed his opinion once the city's cost dropped to $3 million. But as far as he's concerned, the city won't pour any additional money into the property to keep the museum afloat.

"I immediately supported (the deal) in executive session meetings as soon as the price hit $3 million because that's cheap money for that expensive piece of property," Furstenau said. "But if for any reason, the museum can't hack it after a few years, we own the property and can force them out, level the building and give the people of Naperville the parking solution they've desperately needed for years."

Despite the "steal" some councilmen believe the deal is, Grant Wehrli said the process the city is using to acquire the land convinced him to vote against the proposal.

"I am not at all opposed to what the museum brings to the city. I am opposed to this being debated behind closed doors for two years and we're only giving our residents six days to react to it," Wehrli said. "This decision shouldn't be talked about in a vacuum. And in addition to the process being flawed, the expense is money we shouldn't be spending right now."

Mayor George Pradel will not be present for Tuesday's discussion or potential vote but said he would like the deal to be researched further between Tuesday's discussion and the official vote, which he said likely wouldn't be taken until late October or early November.

"I support the museum and would like it to continue to be successful and do the wonderful things it does in the city of Naperville," Pradel said. "So hopefully more research can be done and we can work something out."

Fieseler agrees with both Furstenau and Pradel.

"It's a valuable piece of property regardless who the tenant is, but the longer we can keep the museum, the better it is for our kids, our residents and our downtown," he said. "If we lost the museum that amenity would probably disappear and go to a neighboring community like Bolingbrook."

Museum spokeswoman Alison Segebarth said museum officials will not comment on the proposal.