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New life for Roselle's Turner Park field house?

The old field house sitting in the middle of Roselle's Turner Park may get a second life.

Park district officials this month will apply for a grant they hope will fund 75 percent of a project that includes demolishing the field house and building a new structure for recreation programs.

The current field house has been vacant for about two years and was formerly used as administration headquarters for the park district and, later, the Roselle Chamber of Commerce.

But park Director Robert Ward said the building, which was built in the 1960s, suffered damage and needs costly upgrades.

“It just needs some general love and care,” Ward said.

The building is not accessible according to standards set by the Americans with Disabilities Act. It also has suffered wood damage and needs new siding, among other repairs.

So the park board voted this month to approve plans for building a new field house, with the project's total price tag reaching about $900,000. The project will not move forward, however, until the park district learns whether it has earned a grant through the Park and Recreational Facility Construction Act, which would fund 75 percent of the project, or about $675,000.

The proposed building would resemble the current one-story field house, Ward said, since it originally was built to conform to the Georgian-style homes in the subdivision behind the park. But it also would double in size to about 2,700 square feet and would include two recreation rooms inside, as well as an 800-square-foot deck outside.

The project would include construction of restrooms that can be accessed from outdoors for residents who are using the soccer field, walking paths and splash pad.

Residents were invited to give feedback on the building design last week. Ward said, and the few who responded provided “positive” input.

“They liked that it stuck to the current look and feel of the building and it fit the current area where it stands,” Ward said.

Park district officials won't learn if the grant is approved until late winter or early spring. If funds are available, however, Ward said he estimates construction would begin this coming summer with a completion date aimed for spring 2012. The grant allows for a full two years of construction.

  Plans for reconstructing the field house at RoselleÂ’s Turner Park include doubling its size, keeping the same outside look and building an 8,000-square-foot deck. Scott Sanders/ssanders@dailyherald.com