Hospital willing to give up land for Winfield fire district

The Winfield Fire Protection District has secured a "plan B" site for a planned expansion of its headquarters in case it fails to forcibly acquire a parcel along County Farm Road.

The fire district last week received a verbal OK from Central DuPage Hospital officials to acquire a 1.28-acre parcel just west of its headquarters at Winfield and Highlake Road.

The property was donated to the village in 2000, with the contingency that trustees use the land as part of plans to redevelop town center. Winfield trustees had hoped to use the land to relocate a post office across the street.

But the project was never materialized, and Central DuPage reacquired the land in 2006.

Deputy Fire Chief Bryan Lewis said his agency remains committed to relocating its headquarters outside of town center.

"Right now, (expanding along Highlake Road) is a plan B," Lewis said. "We would rather relocate near the underpass by County Farm Road, but that is not a guarantee."

The fire district still is in court proceedings to try to forcibly acquire a 5-acre parcel near County Farm and Parkway Drive for a new headquarters.

Village officials have expressed their desire to see the fire district move off its existing site and make the property available for commercial development.

The fire district headquarters is part of 11 acres on the northwest corner of Winfield and Highlake roads the village hopes to eventually market to developers for town center redevelopment.

Central DuPage likely will have a big say in what is developed on the site, as most of the property is owned by the Winfield hospital.

"The fire district's current headquarters is probably the most valuable piece of land in the whole downtown," Village Manager William Barlow said.

"It's one of the few parcels in town that hasn't been bought by the hospital," he added. "We need to hold onto those opportunities as much as we can."