ELMHURST, IL – Neighbors of parkland in east Elmhurst continue to campaign against selling it to a developer.
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They are speaking at City Council and committee meetings. Earlier this month, their children spoke out about the park’s benefits.
The park in question is between Schiller and Third streets, at the end of Second Street and Elmhurst Avenue. It is the site of the old Elmhurst Hospital, given to the city nearly a half-century ago.
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So far, city officials have been silent about what they will do. A 50-year agreement to bar development on the land ends next April.
Recently, Patch emailed both Ward 4 aldermen who represent the neighborhood in question. They are Noel Talluto and Brian Cahill. Neither has responded about what they would like to see happen to the land.
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Talluto, who heads the council’s finance committee, has sounded warnings about the city’s need to find money for big-ticket items such as stormwater improvements and other projects.
In August, a resident said she emailed the mayor and all 14 aldermen about the land, telling them she heard that an alderman referred to the property’s sale as a “done deal.”
The resident said only one alderman – Ward 6’s Emily Bastedo – responded.
“This is definitely a long way from being a done deal, so I’m happy to report your source had bad information,” Bastedo told the resident. “We will continue to explore options for the space and I look forward to a dialogue with residents.”
At Monday’s council meeting, two residents spoke up about the need to protect the land.
One of them, Sara Enright, who lives on Second Street, urged the city to work out a deal with the local park district to preserve the land.
“Today, the value of this space as it exists is immeasurable, and it would do Elmhurst a disservice to sell it for development,” she said. “I feel it’s disingenuous for the city to attempt to profit from the sale of land, especially considering, at best, it may have a minimal financial impact and, at worst, be fiscally irresponsible.”
According to the city, the property is expected to pull in $5 million to $6 million. It could be the site of up to a dozen houses, with values around $1.5 million each, the city said.
In August, the council’s finance committee talked about ways to pay for a new police station, now expected to cost $48 million.
The committee’s file included a document detailing the possibilities for selling city real estate, including the park in question.
For a couple of years, neighbors have been speaking out against the property’s sale.
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