Jan. 01--A group of Downers Grove residents wants a vote on whether the village should proceed with multimillion-dollar plans for new town offices, a police station and a fire station.
Members of the Downers Grove for Responsible Government coalition, formed in December, are gathering signatures favoring an advisory referendum on the April 7 ballot, according to co-chairman Tim Harms.
Harms said about three dozen people have collected more than 2,000 signatures. The DuPage County deadline to file such petitions with the village clerk's office is Monday.
"With a community-altering village facilities project being proposed, we believe the time is now to place a referendum before voters so residents have a clear voice in this important decision," Harms said.
There were multiple discussions on new buildings throughout last year. Officials say that both the Village Hall and police station are ill-suited for operations and in need of costly repairs. The majority of council members have supported preliminary plans to scrap both buildings for price tags of $46 million to $52 million.
The police station would be demolished and rebuilt at Ogden and Lacey avenues. Alongside it would be the maintenance garage for village vehicles and a fire station relocated from the north side of town. The front of the property would be reserved for commercial space. The complex would cost around $32 million.
The new, smaller Village Hall would be built on the same Burlington Avenue property while the rest of the land would be sold to a commercial developer to construct a mixed-use condominium building. That part of the project most recently was estimated at $18 million.
Many residents have questioned if the village truly needs new facilities and if officials are underestimating the expenses involved. Some suggested at a recent community meeting that voters should be able to weigh in at the ballot box. But several council members rebuffed the call for a referendum, drawing accusations that the village was not interested in resident input.
The referendum question on the petition, should it be added to the ballot, would ask voters if the village should spend $46 million or more building the new facilities.
Commissioner David S. Olsen has advocated for a referendum and thus far has declined to support the proposals for the new buildings.
"I strongly feel the people of Downers Grove need to speak and the best way to do that is the ballot box," Olsen said in December. "If the residents show that they wanted to move forward with this, I would support that."
According to state law, the number of signatures needed to place a referendum on the ballot is equal to 8 percent of the votes cast in the most recent gubernatorial election. Just under 19,400 Downers Grove residents voted in November's election, according to the DuPage County Election Commission, meaning that 1,551 signatures are needed.
Jim Tenuto of the Illinois State Board of Elections said that the clerk need not verify that every signature is valid for the petition to be accepted, a provision known as "apparent conformity."
"They just accept what's filed," Tenuto said. "As long as they have enough valid signatures, it would go on the ballot."
However, as in the case for election candidates, registered voters have five days to challenge any part of the petition. That objection then would be reviewed in a hearing before the village's Municipal Officers Electoral Board of Mayor Martin Tully, Commissioner Geoff Neustadt and Village Clerk April Holden.
cdrhodes@tribpub.com
Twitter @rhodes_dawn
