A sigh of relief was breathed Oct. 27 at village hall when trustees Baker, Brady, Brock and Milstein stood up and supported a return to Oak Park’s long-time commitment to preservation of its historic fabric.
Their decision to save the Colt building and oppose a new north-south street between Harlem and Marion was based on the fact that DTOP already offers a unique sense of place with its collection of historic commercial buildings and mix of small businesses and national retail, and is a gem in need of polishing, not demolishing.
This was a courageous decision in light of significant opposition from Taxman and a few DTOP property owners who, for the past five years, have been planning their own vision for downtown without community input. Their vision includes demolition of historic buildings on Westgate and Lake Street to build what they call a “new sense of place” for Oak Park, four corners of national retail on a new street.
This is the first board in many years to articulate so well the values that have made Oak Park what it is and the need to safeguard the intangible things that can’t be quantified in a bottom-line analysis. No compelling need for demolishing buildings, building new streets and bringing in major new national retail at the expense of small business was made by the Steering Committee.
The argument that significant new retail at the west end of Lake and Westgate will revitalize the small businesses on Marion and Westgate was not convincing. Trustees pointed to the Lake/Avenue district and Madison Street in Forest Park as successful models for revitalizing retail based on principles of historic presevation and prefer that approach for DTOP.
Contrary to Trustee Johnson’s statement, the board did accept many of the Steering Committee’s recommendations, i.e. opening Marion Street and Westgate to traffic, building a garage on North Boulevard and significantly upgrading the streetscapes. But they were clear that TIF funds should be used for public improvements that will enhance the entire area vs. subsidies for private developments.
The Steering Committee’s recommendation to demolish the Colt building was shared only by Taxman and the Forum Group (the reconstituted VMA), though all other presenters favored preservation of the Colt building.
The board will be under great pressure the next few weeks to change their positions. Trustee Johnson and former trustees Troelstrup and Gockel are already attacking this decision as being anti-development and anti-additonal tax revenues. They are accusing them of dragging out the process.The facts indicate otherwise. It was Trustee Troelstrup who 10 years ago advocated for the demolition of seven buildings (including two English Tudors on Westgate) containing 80,000 sq. ft. of successful retail space (including the original GAP store) to be replaced with The Shops containing 40,000 sq. ft. of retail developed by Taxman with over a $5 million subsidy.
A review of the tax records shows that The Shops are generating significantly less than the existing buildings that were demolished, making the schools, parks, library and the public the losers. And this was all made possible with TIF funds.
The Steering Committee’s “careful” economic analysis failed to disclose that the real estate taxes generated by the 75-year-old Colt building ($7/sq. ft.) exceed by 100 percent the taxes generated by the 8-year-old Shops of DTOP ($3.44/sq. ft.). The pro-development mantra of increased real estate taxes does not always hold up. In fact, many studies have shown that revitalized historic districts generate higher taxes.
Trustee Johnson voiced anger with the board for not taking the Steering Committee’s recommendation to demolish the Colt building. We should not forget that on the last board, Trustee Johnson voted to over-rule the Plan Commission’s initial vote against Whiteco, refused to let them make a recommendation in writing, and revived negotiations with Whiteco, all at a vote taken at 8 a.m. on a Monday morning with no public notice.
Both trustees Gockel and Johnson were on the boards that dragged out the Whiteco process to nearly five years now?#34;a no-bid $8 million TIF subsidy project?#34;that sent a clear message to the development community that Oak Park is not a level playing field.
So as the DTOP special interests regroup to lobby for a change in “votes” on the Colt building issue, we should be diligent in holding them to the facts.
A word of advice to the board: Please, no more 6-hour public meetings that end at 1:30 a.m. Starting discussion of economic analysis at midnight makes little sense. Consider setting a reasonable deadline for public meetings for everyone’s benefit, including your own. You are sending a message to the public that you don’t want their participation.