Don't Sell Elmhurst Open Space To Developer: Residents

ELMHURST, IL – Residents in an Elmhurst neighborhood on Monday pleaded with the city not to sell nearby green space to a developer.

The city owns several plots of land at the eastern ends of Elmhurst Avenue and Second Street.

In 1975, the city entered into an agreement with Elmhurst Hospital to keep the land as a buffer with the hospital's old complex on Berteau Avenue.

A dozen years ago, the hospital moved to a much larger campus in the southwest part of the city.

The 50-year covenant to keep the land as green space ends in April 2025.

The city is considering what it should do after that, but officials said no one should expect a quick decision.

On the west side of the land is an older, more established neighborhood. On the other side is the newer Nitti development that includes Joanne Way, which replaced the old hospital.

The city is looking at which properties to sell. On Monday, officials presented the city's options at a meeting of a City Council committee.

According to a memo, the highest and best use for the open space in question is single-family homes. The land is big enough for up to a dozen buildable sites, the city said.

The houses, the city said, would provide $4.9 million to $5.8 million in property tax income to local taxing bodies over 16 years. The homes are expected to be valued at $1.5 million each.

The city projected it could sell the land for $5 million to $6 million.

Elmhurst Alderwoman Noel Talluto warned Monday that the city needed to eliminate a $13 million gap in funding for stormwater projects that are already completed. She spoke during a discussion of selling city property. (David Giuliani/Patch)

Resident Steve Zielke, who lives three doors down from the green space, urged the city to hold onto the land. He questioned whether the city needed to build on every square space that appears available.

"If you want to talk about the quality of life, this green space ensures it for my family and my neighbors," said Zielke, who has lived on Elmhurst Avenue for more than four decades. "It's a break from the cement and stone and other materials. It's a filter from highway noise."

Sara Enright, a mother of two who lives nearby, said she strongly opposed selling.

She said she understood the city government doesn't deal in "smiles and green space and happiness." And she noted the appeal of the added income for the city.

But she also read the city's mission statement, which calls for protecting and enhancing the quality of life.

She said the city should consider other options, such as selling land with a reservoir that some see as unnecessary or a building that the city rents out.

Elmhurst owns green space at the ends of Elmhurst Avenue and Second Street. It once served as a buffer for the old Elmhurst hospital. The covenant to keep it as open space ends in April 2025. (Google Maps)

Brian McIntosh, who moved to the Nitti development from Chicago two years ago, said he would like to see the land reserved as green space.

"We were very deliberate in where we wanted to live," said McIntosh, who has two young sons. "We were ecstatic to have the home that we now live in today. I can see our kids growing up and playing in that (green) space."

Alderman Mark Mulliner said he preferred keeping the land in question as green space. It's a break from the nearby busy streets, he said.

However, Alderwoman Noel Talluto said the city faced a funding gap of $13 million for stormwater projects that the city has already completed.

Selling city land, she said, could take a bite out of that shortfall.

"If there is money being held up in real estate assets that the city doesn't need to own, we could sell for $5 million, and our stormwater gap is $8 million," Talluto said.

Then the city could reduce the tax burden on residents, she said. The city is considering a stormwater fee for all property owners to help with the gap.

Officials said the city should approach the Elmhurst Park District to see if it wanted the land. They suggested that residents do the same.

A couple of residents suggested in their comments that officials were talking in secret about what to do with the land.

Mayor Scott Levin said that was not the case.

"I know there's a perception that this is going on behind closed doors," he said. "We're not foreigners. We're neighbors."