Letter: No Dangerous And Unwanted Plaza In Clarendon Hills

This is a letter to the editor from Clarendon Hills resident Angie Sartori. It is a message she sent to the Village Board on Thursday.

Dear Trustees,

President Tech asked if the cost of events was a mouse or a house at the April 25th Strategy Session. Have you seen the analysis? Why is the Chamber of Commerce now asking residents for money to fund events?

If the Village's contributions to events, which has exploded to more and larger than ever before, are closer to the cost of a house than of a mouse, then why are we building a $1M plaza for more events? If the Chamber and Village cannot afford the calendar of events without donations, how will more events on this new plaza over our storefront parking and critical roadway be funded? According to the resident survey, the number of events we now have is a "about the right amount" and residents proposed that some events be moved to parks or our other existing plazas.

Again, why would we build a $1,160,000 plaza if we can't even afford the cost of our events? And why do we keep closing the center of our business district when we have other spaces in our beautiful Number 1 Village for events?

Please reconsider this misuse of TIF on a negative ROI 'event/dining/drinking platform" project which will only hinder residents and visitors from reaching our business district, parking easily and spending money freely. This project is not an infrastructure improvement. It is a massive safety and infrastructure degradation that will inevitably need to be backtracked like they are now starting to realize in Burr Ridge.

There is no measurable support for this plaza plan as you all now know from the survey that was only released on April 27th, after you gave direction on April 13 and April 25. Please change course and listen to residents. Take note of how this worked out in our neighboring community two years after they removed parking and closed traffic to their merchants.

Please do not let this happen here in Clarendon Hills. 80% of residents are satisfied with downtown and do not want transformative projects like this dangerous and unwanted plaza in our downtown covering up our safe and proven passage so close to our busy and only train crossing. The survey said as much. Please listen to your residents. You were elected to represent residents. Not to approve strange, unproven whims that residents clearly reject.