Elmhurst Park District eyes site for indoor sports facility
Elmhurst Park District has identified a site for a proposed indoor sports facility that's part of its Vision 2020 plan.
Working in response to community input, the district is developing plans to build a new adult center, an indoor sports center and a dog park. The long-term plan also calls for expanding the Wagner Community Center, acquiring more outdoor space and improving park maintenance.
"Finding a site was a big step in illustrating to the community that this project could really happen, if funded," Executive Director Jim Rogers said this week.
Officials have approved a referendum contingent-based agreement to buy the 16.4-acre Kieft Brothers Inc. property at 837 S Riverside Drive for $15 million.
Because of its location, Rogers said, the property is ideally suited to serve both residents and out-of-town visitors.
In previous surveys, residents expressed support for a 160,000-square-foot center that would include two full-sized synthetic turf fields, six convertible basketball courts, an indoor walking track, multipurpose rooms, a lobby with food services, locker rooms and possibly physical therapy and eSports gaming. The projected construction cost is $57 million; the annual operating subsidy is $220,000.
The purchase has a due diligence period until Dec. 30 with a projected closing in June 2020 - assuming taxpayer approval of a referendum question.
The district also closed on Sept. 26 to purchase land at 123 E. St. Charles Road - the former Redeemer Center - for $5.5 million. It will be used for the proposed adult center and also serve as a park for the surrounding neighborhood.
The board's next step is to procure financing and, working with Mesirow Financial, it plans to use general obligation bonds.
Given the progress on the new adult center, the board is considering the future of its current senior center, The Abbey, at 407 W. St. Charles Road.
It is beginning discussions about an intergovernmental agreement to sell the property to Elmhurst Unit District 205, which plans to use it as a permanent location for its Transition Center. Park officials then hope to reinvest the funds from the sale into the property for the new center.
The district also is surveying registered voters and plans open houses next month to gauge support for a possible referendum question to raise property taxes to pay for the Vision 2020 projects.
The projected cost for all six projects is roughly $105.2 million, officials said, with an annual operating subsidy of about $2.5 million.
To fund all that, the district would need to boost its property tax levy to $16 million - roughly double the current amount. If voters approved such an increase, the owner of a $500,000 home would pay roughly $497 more a year in park district property taxes.