Conspiracy theories have swirled this week as to why Oak Park Village Hall is buying a downtown office building from a middleman, rather than directly from the doctor who owns the building on Westgate. But village officials say no funny business was going on when they snatched up the piece of land, and they say the village has bought buildings this way before.
Last Monday, elected officials gave the green-light for village hall to purchase a two-story office building at 1133 Westgate for $965,000. Oak Park has gathered an assortment of other nearby properties in the past several years, and officials say the office building is “key” to redeveloping downtown.
The building is owned by Dr. Lou Ivanovic, who first bought it four years ago, for $1 million. But rather than buying 1133 Westgate directly from the doctor, the purchase was negotiated by an Oak Park-based entity called S.P.A. Incorporated, which sealed the deal in August, and is transferring the sales contract to the village.
S.P.A. is actually affiliated with the Oak Park Development Corp., a local nonprofit that receives tax dollars and works to try and spur economic development in the village, according to Village President David Pope. Village hall has used S.P.A. in the past to acquire properties, as it helped to have a private buyer, with expertise in real estate and finances, negotiate these deals, said Village Manager Tom Barwin.
“When people see the government coming, in my experience, they’ll expect more and add to the sales price,” he said. “But when it’s private negotiations, I think they’re a lot more realistic. It’s a smart way to do business on behalf of the community.”
S.P.A. was first formed in November 1999, and is overseen by Community Bank CEO and Chairman Marty Noll and Richard Gloor, head of Better Homes and Gardens/Gloor Realty, according to the secretary of state’s website. Both are members of the Oak Park Development Corp.’s board of directors.
Calls to Noll and Gloor on Thursday were not returned immediately, and Ivanovic and his attorney could not be reached for comment, either.
Oak Park is buying the property for the same price that S.P.A. negotiated, at $965,000, and is reimbursing the corporation for the $50,000 it paid in earnest money, as well as an additional $2,333 to cover interest, attorney fees and other costs.
For more on this story, see the Sept. 21 print edition of Wednesday Journal, and check OakPark.com for updates.