Retreat pitched as new entry in Hubble derby

Debate over the future location of Wheaton Warrenville Unit District 200's Hubble Middle School had retreated from the spotlight from recent months.

Now a group of citizens wants an actual retreat to become the new Hubble.

Educate 200 has long opposed the site the school district is targeting to construct a new Hubble because it's just down Herrick Road from a BP research center.

The site seemed to be the only available and affordable space big enough to build a school. But Friday, a new site went on the market.

The 42-acre Warrenville Cenacle Retreat House is for sale. Both Warrenville and DuPage County Forest Preserve officials want the land opened up for public use.

That's at least part of why Educate 200 believes it could be the only "win-win" site available. Michelle Senatore said the Cenacle property would allow enough space to build a new Hubble and incorporate all the public uses and community space tied to the existing Hubble school in Wheaton. That would include a running track, park district use, more parking and a larger school.

"If this was a location that was viable and realistic, then I do think at this point it would be their job to look at it," Senatore said Tuesday. "This is the only location that would truly give the voter the option to choose between two equal properties."

Voters could be asked sometime next year to consider a ballot question on whether Hubble should move to Warrenville or stay in Wheaton.

"If Hubble goes on the Cenacle property, I can sleep at night," Senatore said. "I wouldn't have to worry about BP Amoco."

For others, the major concern is less about space and more about getting Hubble students in a new school as soon as possible.

Cathy Mousseau said it may not hurt to keep the Cenacle property in mind, but only if the Herrick Road site falls through.

Mousseau is a member of CommUNITY Forward, a citizen's group in favor of moving Hubble to the Herrick Road site.

"A deal is never done until the closing, but there's no reason to change course at this point," Mousseau said. "A lot of time and money has been invested in the site along Herrick Road. We know it's a pristine site, and it's ideal because it's quite centrally located for the Hubble population."

The school board would make the call to investigate the Cenacle property.

Rosemary Swanson, the school board's vice president, said she wouldn't agree to any more delays in building a new Hubble unless school staff found a "really astounding reason" to look at the Cenacle property.

Swanson estimates switching focus to the Cenacle site would add another year of delay.

"The kids have waited long enough," Swanson said.

District 200 spokesman Bob Rammer said school staff spoke to Warrenville officials about the Cenacle site in the past. The district learned 26 of its 42 acres is flood plain, not developable land. There also would be difficulty for traffic to access the usable portions, and an emergency access route could be impossible to create, Rammer said.

District 200 also would lose $200,000 in earnest money if it backed out of the Herrick Road property at this point, Rammer added. That wouldn't include attorney's fees and the loss of money spent on environmental testing. Architects also would have to redo 30 percent of the new Hubble school's design work.