Elk Grove Village buys property for community events, concerts
Elk Grove Village is planning to pave over a portion of land it recently purchased on Lions Drive to expand parking and host community events such as concerts during RotaryFest and the Fourth of July.
The 2.7-acre site at 150-164 Lions Drive is a “prime” piece of vacant land, said Mayor Craig Johnson, because of its location near Lions Park, Rainbow Falls, and Elk Grove High School.
The village board in November approved a $500,000 purchase of the land from Lutheran Church of the Holy Spirit.
The village will elevate the land, grade and grow grass over most of it, but reserve a portion to construct a 50-car parking lot, Johnson said.
The public lot will be across the street from the high school's girls softball diamond, and will be the site for the entertainment stage at the annual RotaryFest and the Lions Club's Fourth of July concert. As such, the site will have electrical capabilities, Johnson said.
It's possible the area could be the future home of the Mid-Summer Classics Concert Series, currently held in between Elk Grove's municipal building and library, but officials are taking a “wait and see” approach on that option, the mayor said.
Because the land is being elevated, compensatory storage for stormwater is being installed nearby at 901 Brantwood Ave., another publicly-owned site. The land is now vacant, after a 1960s-era building — the former home of the village's second library — was demolished. The property is being kept as open space by the park district.
The village is contracting with Batavia-based EarthWerks Land Improvement and Development Corporation for $375,425 to grade the Lions Avenue site.