Agreement Reached on Land Purchase for Middle School

Terms of a contract between the Board of Education and the owner of an 18-acre site on Herrick Road in Warrenville have been reached, allowing the district to move ahead with plans for a 2008 referendum seeking funds to build a replacement for the aging Hubble Middle School.

Superintendent Gary T. Catalani announced the agreement with James McNaughton Builders today (February 5), and said the Board of Education is expected to approve the contract at its February 14 meeting.  The District has been in negotiations for the property since last May.  The execution of the contract is contingent on (1) a successful referendum, (2) the receipt of an NFR letter from the Illinois EPA, and (3) a positive report from a risk assessment of the property based on its proximity to the BP Naperville Campus. 

We are excited about reaching this agreement because it brings us one step closer to providing our students with a facility designed for the middle school program and located closer to the homes of most of the students it serves,” Dr. Catalani said. 

“For those who may be disappointed that the referendum will not be held in April, please know that construction of the new school will not be delayed by waiting until the spring of 2008,” Board President Andy Johnson said.  He noted that the architects need nearly a year to design the school and develop technical bid documents.  If architects start the design phase this spring, occupancy of the new school would occur in August 2009.

“I believe the Board will authorize the architects to proceed with those documents,” Mr. Johnson said.

“If the Board authorizes the architect to proceed with the design work, we will be able to bid the project immediately after a successful referendum in 2008 and start construction very soon thereafter,”  Dr. Catalani explained.  He noted this is the same process used in planning for the expansion and additions to the two high schools in 2003. 

The Board had considered placing the question on the April 2007 ballot but, since the occupancy date of the new school would be the same with either referendum date, it felt waiting until early 2008 would give a citizen’s committee more time to plan and execute a campaign similar to the successful high school referendum in 2003.

With a successful referendum, two of the three contingencies in the contract for the school site would be met.  The results of the risk assessment conducted on the site were announced on January 12.  Boelter and Associates, Park Ridge, reviewed the potential hazards near the site and found the risks ‘far lower’ than those most people encounter on a daily basis.  The District now awaits word from the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency on whether it will issue an NFR letter indicating the property needs no further remediation and meets environmental standards for building a school. The agency’s decision is expected later this spring.

The contract for the 18-acre proposed school site, west of Herrick Road between Warrenville and Galusha Roads in Warrenville, includes a sale price of $7.6 million if the referendum is approved in February/March 2008 and the other contingencies are met.

Meanwhile, the District will continue discussions with the City of Wheaton regarding options for the Hubble site should that property be sold.  The District has long maintained that the sale of the site would partially offset the cost of building the new school and expand the tax base of the community through redevelopment of the property.  Those talks will likely be delayed until after the April election when a new mayor and council are elected and seated.