La Grange Eyes Possible Development At West End Site

LA GRANGE, IL – A La Grange official said Monday that a West End parking lot the village was buying could be the site of a future development.

Village President Mark Kuchler made that statement in response to public questioning during a Village Board meeting.

At the meeting, trustees decided to pay FNBC Bank & Trust $915,000 for a parking lot in the 700 block of Burlington Avenue. The village owns land next to it.

The stated purpose in a village memo was to address a lack of parking on the West End, a longtime concern among residents and businesses in that area.

After resident Jonathan Robinson questioned the purchase, Kuchler said it made sense for La Grange to buy the parking lot.

"That will allow us more say in controlling any future development that goes on in that area," Kuchler said.

"So is the intent for that to be future development?" Robinson asked.

"Perhaps," Kuchler said.

After further inquiries from residents, Kuchler said parking was considered the short-term need in the village's purchasing decision.

He said La Grange saw the land as particularly valuable because the village owns property next to it.

"Will the property go up in value? Probably," he said. "That's why we went ahead and purchased it."

He continued, "Maybe in 10, 20, 40 years we will look at it and that will be the best decision we ever made or maybe it won't."

Charity Jones, the village's community development director, said the village's other plot is flagpole-shaped, coming off of Brainard Avenue and expanding midblock on Burlington Avenue.

"There are other users on the block that are infringing on the village's parcel," she said.

Trustee Beth Augustine said the village's staff persuaded her that the purchase was a good idea.

"For me, it wasn't an easy decision to just say yes to this opportunity," she said.

The Village Board's vote for the purchase was unanimous. Trustee Glenn Thompson was absent because of a work event.

Until Monday, La Grange officials hadn't spoken publicly at Village Board meetings about buying the property. Information was made available Thursday through the release of the board's meeting packet.

In late January, the board discussed buying the parking lot behind closed doors, which is allowed under the state's open meetings law.

Earlier in Monday's meeting, Robinson said the board could release the closed session's meeting minutes once the board approved the purchase.

"That portion of the meeting can be given back to the public," he said.

Officials did not respond to his request.