Villa Park continues work on redevelopments in and near Lions Park
The Villa Park village board approved a slew of measures Monday to help with two major redevelopment plans in and near Lions Park.
To help pay for a new recreation center planned in the park at 350 E. Wildwood Ave., trustees passed an ordinance authorizing up to $7.5 million in bonds to be issued, if needed. The bond issue likely will be necessary to augment a $10 million state grant awarded for the project last year by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.
In order to receive the grant, Villa Park has to submit planning documents to the state before an already extended deadline of March 31. The village would then have two years to complete the recreation center.
Villa Park Parks & Recreation is in the midst of hosting public input sessions on the project. One is scheduled for 9 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 15, and another is 7 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 19, both at village hall, 20 S. Ardmore Ave. A previous session was held Dec. 29.
"I am very enthusiastic about the process," village Trustee Deepasriya Kumar said Monday. "We need Villa Park citizens to stay well-informed and participate in the process of getting our new community center."
Trustees also approved measures related to plans from Wisconsin-based developer Catalyst Partners and Naperville-based Marquette Companies to purchase 100-110 S. Villa Ave. and build a $50 million, housing and retail complex called "The Union."
Trustees gave the go-ahead to Plainfield and Evanston-based Teska Associates, Inc. to conduct an eligibility study for the creation of a new tax increment financing district along the entire St. Charles Road corridor, which would include The Union.
In a TIF district, property tax payments to local governments are frozen for up to 23 years. Any extra property tax money collected as a result of rising values within the area goes into a special fund controlled by the village. The money in the fund then can be used to help pay for improvements in the district, such as roads and other infrastructure.
Most of the village-owned land at 100-110 Villa Ave., currently a parking lot, sits within the existing St. Charles Road TIF district. But Villa Park economic development officials expressed concern that the TIF's expiration in 10 years would be "inadequate to provide the necessary increment for the proposed private and public improvements."
Trustees also approved an inducement resolution that could allow The Union developers to be reimbursed for TIF eligible expenses such as environmental assessment, architectural, engineering and legal services conducted during an eight-month due diligence period. But any reimbursement for expenses would have to be worked out in a future redevelopment agreement.