‘It is a neighborhood’: Arlington Heights officials balk at St. Viator stadium plans
Echoing concerns of residents, Arlington Heights village board members say St. Viator High School’s proposed outdoor athletic complex — two turf competition and practice fields, stadium bleachers for 1,500, an eight-lane running track, eight tennis courts, two video scoreboards, light poles, a sound system and more — is too intense for the neighborhood.
“If there were no neighbors nearby this would be a nonissue,” Mayor Jim Tinaglia said. “It is a neighborhood. And gosh I hope this design team and administration can find a way to get together with the neighbors and make it ‘win-win.’ I want you to have what you want … in some degree of moderation.”
The mayor and village trustees’ comments came late Monday during their first public review of a project years in the making — albeit an informal, early evaluation, as plans now face further revisions.
More than 30 members of the public also weighed in, from supporters like school athletic boosters, coaches, parents and alumni, to neighbors who don’t want the athletic fields redevelopment — dubbed “The Backyard Project” — in their backyards. Hundreds filled the village boardroom and two overflow rooms: proponents donned the school’s Lion logo on T-shirts, and opponents wore “no stadium” stickers, which mirror signs that have been installed in front yards in recent months.
“Our neighborhood supports St. Viator’s academics, their students and their athletics. It’s a land-use issue. It’s an intensity of land use,” said Michael Fettis, who submitted a petition of 568 signatures of people opposed to the project. “Right now we have all these issues: traffic, noise, congestion. But now we’re concerned you’re going to add this sports complex. That’s going to increase that intensity.”
Backers contend a revamp of the Catholic high school’s existing practice fields — located south of the school building along Dryden Avenue — would allow 400 athletes to remain on campus instead of having to travel 20 minutes away to other facilities in the Northwest suburbs. Impacted sports include soccer, football, flag football, lacrosse, dance, cheer and track.
“How can we deny access to modern and competitive sports facilities?” said Barry O’Neil, a 1970 alumnus who also lives nearby. “It’s imperative that this project go through for the long-term viability of St. Viator. St. Viator needs this project, and Arlington Heights needs St. Viator.”
An earlier proposal to redo the school’s athletic space never got past the village’s advisory conceptual plan review committee in November 2022. That plan called for a turf football field with capacity for 2,000, adjoining practice field, softball and baseball fields with bleachers, a concessions building, three scoreboards, and an indoor athletic training building.
School leaders reengaged in conversations with village officials in 2025, held a neighborhood meeting, and in January submitted formal zoning applications, which have already undergone two rounds of review by village staff.
Megan Brunet, the school’s director of communications, said the plan was changed to address residents’ concerns: reducing the bleacher capacity from 2,000 to 1,500; expanding the parking lot with 80 more spots; securing additional parking for staff at the neighboring Clerics of St. Viator property and St. Alphonsus Liguori Church in Prospect Heights; adding landscaping and fencing; and making sure light poles “contain” illumination to minimize impact beyond the site.
But the village’s staff and elected officials said there’s more work to do.
Emily Rodman, the village’s director of planning and community development, raised concerns with the number and size of the proposed facilities on site, the location of tennis courts near homes, necessity for two scoreboards instead of one, the number of light poles (12) and their heights (up to 90 feet).
Trustee Wendy Dunnington said existing issues in the neighborhood need to be addressed first, such as managing traffic before and after school and during events, monitoring noise levels, and assigning parking. She suggested the school provide a community liaison who could respond to neighbors in real time.
“Fixing those issues will provide a lot of goodwill with the neighbors, which is something that’s really lacking right now,” she said.
St. Viator President Ryan Aiello said he would leverage the feedback received into continued conversation to find a “win-win.”
“The school is coming with that intention that we want to build that trust,” he said. “We know that’s going to come not from words but from actions, and I think that by continuing this dialogue both with staff, with the neighbors and with the trustees we can find a positive way forward.”
cplacek@dailyherald.com