Vernon Hills to revise plan for community’s future

The landscape is much different now in Vernon Hills than in 1994 — the former Nike missile site is a sprawling athletic complex and the village has its own high school and library, for example.

At one time, those bricks and mortar projects were wishful thinking on the part of village officials, part of a strategic plan that is revised every five years or so. The constant was that those projects remained part of the collective consciousness even as elected officials changed.

With the recent groundbreaking for the Victory Centre of Vernon Hills, a senior living facility, the last of the original plan has been accomplished and officials say it is time to look ahead.

The village board is hosting a special meeting at 9 a.m. Saturday at village hall, 290 Evergreen Drive, to consider its strategic plan for 2011. It will be the fourth revision of the original suggested by longtime Mayor Roger Byrne.

“We’ll brainstorm what’s important going forward,” he said. “Obviously the high school and the Nike site were wonderful additions for the whole community. The only question is did we miss anything that’s a public or institutional use.”

The physical improvements that resulted from the original plan also include the Arbortheater, post office, village hall and commuter station. While those have contributed to the foundation of the village, the next update is expected to be more nuanced in terms of what the village wants to be rather what it wants to be built.

“What’s the mission of the village? What should we do going forward in our policy on sales tax rebates?” Village Manager Mike Allison explained as some of the possibilities.

Issues to be discussed Saturday include transportation, retail growth, what services the village provides and how they are delivered, and community facilities.

There still will be room for projects, be it a big-picture issue such as widening and improving Route 45 through the village, or something more immediate such as improving the Vernon Hills Athletic Center.

Byrne, for example, regards the Victory Centre project as a start for expanded offerings for seniors in the Phillip Road area.

“That need is not going to go away,” he said.