LA GRANGE, IL – The Lyons Township High School board is losing enthusiasm for hiring a consultant to gauge what the public wants to do with the school's Willow Springs land.
At a meeting this week, two members said they were ready to vote to sell the 70 acres of wooded land.
This followed a report from Superintendent Brian Waterman on the effort to find a "community relations research specialist."
Waterman said the school contacted a half dozen firms about the opportunity. But only one responded, with costs ranging from $21,000 to $23,000, depending on what the school wants.
Some board members said they thought the lack of interest may be because the firms believed the July 1 deadline was unrealistic.
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But member Michael Thomas said he wasn't so sure. He said the firms could have given proposals contingent on a later deadline.
"I don't think this is the route we even need to take," he said. "I don't think we're going to get anything of what we envisioned."
Board President Dawn Aubert also questioned hiring a consultant.
"We've had a lot of community engagement," she said. "I'm still wondering what our objective is in this community engagement project... To be honest, I don't know what we're looking for."
Member Tim Albores said residents want the school to sell to a buyer that plans to operate under Willow Springs' current zoning. Previously, the school tried to sell the land for industrial uses, which are barred under zoning.
"Let's sell," Albores said. "Or at least do some surveys and town halls without paying somebody to hold our hand with it, and then sell."
Member Elvia Nava agreed.
"It's a fiscal responsibility that we have to do something with the land that's not being used. Time is money," she said. "I think we need to sell. I would be ready to vote for that."
However, member Jill Beda Daniels said she was uncomfortable selling the property without seeking more public feedback.
"I think it's something that has divided the community," she said. "I would like to hear all of the community speak for it in some way that's concrete before I would be comfortable to vote either way."
She also said many residents may have missed the school's updates on the issue, other than what they've read in Patch. She said it was important to find ways to reach them.
The board took no action on the land at its meeting. Officials are awaiting an appraisal of the land under its current zoning, which allows residential and small retailing uses. It is expected soon.
Two years ago, the board quietly got an appraisal for industrial uses. An appraisal put the land's value at $68 million. Under current zoning, the land is expected to be worth much less.
Through much of 2022, school officials privately courted developer Bridge Industrial. Closed session recordings showed the school board purposely kept other public bodies such as the village of Willow Springs and Pleasantdale School District 107 out of the loop.
Once the details went public, Willow Springs residents opposed the idea of an industrial development next to houses and Pleasantdale Elementary School. Other towns also joined in opposition.
Just weeks before last April's election, the board abandoned its effort to sell to an industrial developer. It later ousted its attorney involved in the process.
Last May, the attorney general's office found the board broke state law by holding most of its discussions of the land sale behind closed doors. That resulted in the release of recordings from two January 2023 closed sessions.
The board says it wants to use the proceeds from a sale on building improvements at the school's two campuses.
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