Park District Board President Kevin Carter had organized a friendly betting pool to determine how the votes would be cast among village trustees.
When it was all over, Carter stood last week in the Village Hall and quietly handed a dollar back to each of the 14 participants. No one had won.
The Village Board had voted 4-2 against the district’s proposal to build a 62,000-square-foot community center on 9 acres near the corner of Parkside Circle and Park Boulevard. The building would have been bounded almost entirely by homes.
Village officials did not object to the construction of the building, which was approved in March in an advisory referendum. Rather, they had concerns about the site being so close to homes. Among other concerns were increased traffic on the roads in that area and potential parking problems in front of the residents’ homes. Flooding also was a concern.