Morton Grove leaders took a step forward last week on their longtime desire to get the village’s police force out of a 100-year-old building and into a more modern facility.
They voted during a village board meeting to allow a construction firm which has experience with police stations to perform a “pre-development study,” which Economic and Community Development Director Nancy Radzevich described as a due diligence exercise to see whether the 8300 Lehigh building, which the village purchased last year, would be suitable for a police station.
“We think we need a constraints analysis of 8300 Lehigh to see if it’s a viable site,” Radzevich told board members, who voted unanimously to spend up to $20,000 to have MTI, the construction firm, pursue the evaluation.
Trustee Bill Grear, who serves on the police station committee, said that back in 1980, Morton Grove situated both its police station and Village Hall in the 6101 Capulina building, which is more than 100 years old. If the police station is relocated, then the village must decide whether to leave the Village Hall in the building or move it to the same facility as the police station.
Radzevich pointed out that if both the Village Hall and police station left, the 2.7 acre site on Capulina and School streets could be sold to a developer, since it’s in a residential neighborhood.
“The sale and redevelopment of this property could finance the (new police station) project, and also provide the benefit of adding (the new homes built on the Capulina property) to the (property) tax rolls long term,” she explained. “Everyone agrees moving the police station has to happen, but what about rest of the puzzle? What are the financial implications?”
Village Hall is not overcrowded, but it is a more than a century old building which has had both its furnace and air conditioning fail in the past two years, said Grear.
The committee researching whether to move either the police station or Village Hall asked Village Finance Director Remy Navarrete to draw up numbers on what the village has spent in repairs on the building.
“We have known for 20 years the police station is overcrowded and inadequate,” said Trustee Bill Grear, who added he attended elementary school in the building when it was Grove School.
More Top Picks Best Tonneau Covers For F150
In 2012, the village hired a consulting firm and asked them to evaluate the police department’s space needs and weigh the costs and benefits of constructing an addition or moving to a new location. The consultant presented its findings and recommended a new location.
Subsequently, the village purchased the 8300 Lehigh building from General Bandage.
Radzevich explained that if Village Hall stays at the 6101 Capulina location, there will be costs to renovate the building which will not be fully occupied after the police station moves out.
“All these things should be evaluated so the board can make a decision on the scope of service and the financial implications in all those decisions,” she said.