Kane forest commissioner questions proposed Elburn deal
Kane County Forest Preserve Commissioner Drew Frasz has changed his mind about whether the forest district should buy a site in Elburn for its natural resources department.
Frasz - who spent June and July trying to persuade the Elburn village board to approve the idea - now opposes it.
There's a better deal to be had on a site elsewhere, he said. Plus, he doesn't like going against the wishes of Elburn-area residents who protested the proposal.
The forest district wants to buy the 18-acre site at 1001 S. Main St. from Patten Rental. The Elmhurst-based company operated a Caterpillar construction-equipment rental business on the northern part, but shut it down several years ago.
The natural resources department is located in the Aurora West Forest Preserve near Aurora. District officials want more space for the department, and want it to move closer to the center of the district.
The forest preserve commission voted in June to buy the Patten property. It needed Elburn's permission, however, because half the site lies within the corporate limits of Elburn. Frasz represents District 18, which includes Elburn.
But the village board voted 4-0 in July to deny permission for the sale, with one trustee abstaining and another absent.
"I took that as a clear signal the village did not want it," Frasz said. Village officials were concerned about the loss of property taxes for other agencies, such as the Kaneland school district, if the forest district obtained the land. They also had hopes the land could still be used commercially, generating sales tax for the village. The school district would have lost about $21,000 a year under the original proposal.
So he was somewhat surprised, he said Tuesday, to learn of a new proposal put forth by the forest district's staff and President Mike Kenyon. In it, the forest district would agree to sell 5 of the acres to a landscaping-equipment sales and service company.
The village board discussed the new idea at a committee meeting Monday, and three trustees and President Dave Anderson indicated they liked it, because the new business would offset some of the property-tax loss, and bring in sales tax.
"I'm just really uncomfortable with the staff and the president ... the deal hasn't been discussed at any forest preserve meetings," Frasz said Tuesday.
Frasz said he could not say what other site is available, but said the property was larger, less expensive, and within a 10-minute drive of Elburn.