Suing Willow Springs? LTHS Official Addresses That Issue

LA GRANGE, IL – A top Lyons Township High School official said this week she wanted to clarify the school's position on selling its land in Willow Springs, which sparked an outcry earlier this year.

At a school board meeting, Dawn Aubert, the board's president, spoke about last week's meeting at Willow Springs Village Hall.

A village consultant said Willow Springs' zoning for the high school's 70 acres was proper and consistent over the last three decades.

The property is zoned for residential and light commercial uses, not industrial. The school board, however, tried to sell to an industrial developer earlier this year, keeping the village and a nearby elementary school in the dark for months.

At last week's meeting, residents and the village's attorney raised the possibility of the high school and a developer suing the village over the zoning. Residents also worried the school had not abandoned its effort to sell to an industrial developer.

Aubert acknowledged those concerns in a prepared statement at the school board meeting

"I would like to clarify that the board is not actively engaged in the sale of the property and that there are no potential buyers for the property and there is no pending litigation with respect to the district-owned property," Aubert said.

At the same time, she said, the board remains committed to using the land as an asset toward achieving its goal of upgrading the school's two campuses, referring to the money generated from a sale.

"Any future board of education discussions will be publicly posted per our normal procedures," she said.

Those normal procedures apparently weren't followed in January when the board held two closed meetings about the Willow Springs land. No notice was given.

Later, the attorney general's office found the board broke the law by discussing a land deal behind closed doors. The agency ordered the board to release the recordings, which the board did.

Those recordings gave some basis to the suspicion that the high school or a developer may sue the village.

In the closed sessions, the board's lawyer, Ares Dalianis of the Franczek law firm, suggested a lawsuit may be filed.

In his comments, Dalianis referred to the highest bidder, Bridge Industrial, which the school had privately courted for the better part of a year. He then imagined what he would be thinking if he were a Willow Springs official.

"I'm a trustee for Willow Springs," Dalianis said. "I'm like holy cow, these guys have nailed every one of the standards. They met the requirements to change (the zoning). They have the right expert here. I really don't have a choice but to vote yes or if I vote no, it's going to be the subject of litigation, and Bridge is going to file a lawsuit saying they didn't get fair treatment through the process."

A few months after the attorney general's order, the board replaced Dalianis' law firm.

Willow Springs officials have vowed they would stick to their zoning.