The Buzz
LAKE COUNTY, IL TO FINALLY HAVE ITS
MINOR LEAGUE “FIELD OF DREAMS”
Actor Kevin Costner Chooses Zion, IL
Project
as Foray into Baseball Team Ownership
(City Hall, Zion, IL) The City of Zion will be making a major announcement in the coming weeks to rollout
its plan to bring minor league baseball to a new stadium in Lake County, IL in the summer of 2010.
Academy Award winner Kevin Costner, whose lovable roles in the movies Field of Dreams and Bull Durham have forever linked him with baseball, is part of a baseball team ownership group that has been working with the City and one of the largest real estate developers in the world to bring a Northern League team to
a new stadium only minutes northeast of Gurnee’s Six Flags Great America and the Gurnee Mills Mall.
 “I've seen many opportunities over the years to be involved in baseball projects, but this one is really special.” says Costner. “The location, the people involved, and the chance to offer families in Zion and the surrounding communities a quaint and affordable setting for minor league baseball means everything. Like that unforgettable movie line says, ‘This field, this game, is a part of our past. It reminds us of all that once was good, and what could be again.’ Play Ball!”
“This project is shovel ready, will provide 300 permanent jobs, and will be a catalyst to attract and maintain even more jobs in this part of Illinois,” said State Senator Michael Bond (D-Grayslake). Senator Bond chairs the Illinois Strategic Infrastructure Task Force, a bi-partisan, bi-cameral committee which is coordinating projects related to the federal economic stimulus plan and an Illinois capital budget.
The Lake County stadium project will be managed and developed by Panattoni Development Company, which has developed over 150 million square feet of major commercial real estate projects throughout the United States, Canada, and Europe in the last 22 years. The baseball team will be owned and operated by Grand Slam Sports & Entertainment, LLC of Deerfield, IL.
The Northern League currently has area teams located in Schaumburg, IL, Joliet, IL, and Gary, IN,
as well as in Kansas City, KS, Fargo, ND, and Winnipeg, Canada.
Details of the stadium location, design, and financing will be provided by the City and its project partners
in the weeks to follow, along with the various employment opportunities for the 300+ permanent jobs
that the stadium will generate.
For more information, visit www.LakeCountyBaseball.com
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Extra! Extra! Read all about it! The City of Zion will soon have its own e-newsletter to keep residents informed of exciting developments, events and the latest on city services. Going ‘green’ just got easier as the city strives to reduce costs and provide vital information to our residents in a timely manner.
The traditional mailer has been a staple for Zion and most communities for as long as we can recall. Residents have come to rely on getting the ‘inside scoop’ every few months as they opened their mailbox to find a friendly update from City Hall. We don’t want to lose that resource and connection with the community, but the reality is that today we need to simply be more mindful of costs as well as the environment.
The city e-newsletter is being prepared for delivery to interested households and businesses beginning in March. If you are encouraged by this news and want to be included on the mailing list, please visit www.cityofzion.com and sign up for delivery. Our plans for now are to create a monthly update in a newsletter format. There may be occasions where we can also use this format for emergency announcements as well, including water main breaks, etc.
There will be information about new ordinances or adopted programs, upcoming events, notices of planned construction projects so you can make adjustments in your travel plans. Be the first to know about new businesses or developments like the new baseball stadium and of course, exciting opportunities for our residents to get involved in all there is to see and do in our community.
We hope you will consider becoming part of our new e-CITY news network and look forward to sending out the first edition in just a few short weeks. Spring will soon be here and what better time to know what’s going on in the Beautiful City of Zion…a great place to ‘bee’!
Recent News from the City of Zion
New Direction for Crane Meadows Apartments
A reputation can be a very powerful thing, both good and bad. In the case of Crane Meadows Apartments, formerly Waterford Place, the reputation has helped create a spiral of neglect and decline as its out of state owners simply seemed to lose interest.
Years of deferred maintenance have left our community with a property in dire need of new investment and renovation. Such an undertaking is not easily managed by private developers when you consider the repair estimates alone are in excess of $10 million.
To meet the extraordinary costs of such a project, the Illinois Department of Housing Authority (IDHA) directs federal funds via tax credits to qualified, proven investors to encourage the renovation of affordable, multi-family properties that conventional lenders simply will not consider. This program has been a blessing to the city in the past with projects such as the newly constructed Zion Senior Cottages and Barton Senior Center as well as the renovation of other sites such as Horizon Village and Carmel House.
The Crane Meadows Property is being purchased by DKI, Inc., a real estate investment and development group that specializes in the acquisition, renovation and management of multi-family properties in northern Illinois. DKI is very optimistic that they will be able to reclaim this once pristine site and provide a safe and attractive housing option to our local residents.
The condition of the property has created a nearly 35% vacancy rate and invited serious issues into the area over the years including drugs, vandalism, arson and guns. This dangerous situation has been an ongoing concern for the City Council and our fellow taxing bodies. In partnership, all are working together with DKI to bring about serious change and a brighter future for everyone involved with Crane Meadows.
The City has approved the formation of a new Tax Increment Financing District for this project. Simply put, the owners will continue to pay the current taxes, but as they make improvements that increase the taxes due, that new amount will be used to fund the ‘gap’ between the IDHA credits, CDBG Home funds and private equity. This creative financing tool does not reduce or eliminate the taxes at all. The entire bill is paid by the owner, but the taxing bodies simply allow a portion of the bill to be used to offset the initial costs. Once up and running, all of those new improvements will benefit everyone an estimated addition $150,000 per year.
Rt. 173 Corridor Plan Receives National Recognition
The National Association of Counties (NACo) selected the Rt. 173/I-94 Corridor Intergovernmental Agreement as a recipient of a 2007 Center for Sustainable Communities Award. Lake County is one
of ten communities to receive this distinguished recognition. When announcing the award, Abigail Friedman, NACo Program Director, Community Services, stated, “The award is a testament to Lake County’s success, innovation and collaboration in creating communities that embody economic vitality, environmental stewardship and social equity…and is a tribute to your county leaders, your partners
and your community.”
The Rt. 173 Plan addresses future growth along the corridor from Hunt Club Road to Rt. 41. It is the result of a unique collaboration between Lake County and the municipalities of Old Mill Creek, Wadsworth and Zion. The Rt. 173 Corridor Council was formed in 2003. The Council developed and adopted an inter-governmental agreement that establishes land use, building, site design and infrastructure standards for this area, which includes approximately 800 acres of undeveloped land.
The I-94 inter-change at Rt. 173 is the last undeveloped freeway interchange in Northern Illinois and is located just south of one of Wisconsin’s premier industrial parks. The purpose of the agreement is to: encourage economic development, contribute to a positive tax base for the school systems, develop
high quality community services and create complimentary development standards along the corridor.
The council consists of: Lake County board members Randy Whitmore and Judy Martini, Old Mill Creek President Tim Smith, Zion Mayor Lane Harrison and Wadsworth Village President Glenn Ryback. Ken Furlan, the former Wadsworth Village President, served on the council during the development of the agreement. The group met regularly to study development alternatives by analyzing surrounding developments and best practices.
County Board Member Randy Whitmore, who represents Wadsworth, Beach Park and parts of Waukegan said, “This agreement will give us the ability to compete with Wisconsin for economic development. All of the partners recognized the potential here, so we worked together to realize
these opportunities.”
Lake County Board Member Judy Martini, who represents Antioch, Old Mill Creek and parts of Wadsworth said, “This is the first inter-governmental agreement of its kind in Lake County and will serve as a model for future multi-community collaboration. We are proud and excited that NACo has recognized our efforts.”
The NACo Sustainable Communities Awards will be presented at a special ceremony held in January in Washington D.C. The agreement will also be the subject of a detailed profile in a NACo best practices publication highlighting this year’s ten winning initiatives. For information on the Center for Sustainable Communities, visit www.naco.org/sustainable.
The complete agreement is available at www.co.lake.il.us/planning/support/projects/projects_173.asp. |
Walk thru Zion and you're bound to see "Bees" that swarmed into Zion
and are now on display in the windows of many Zion Businesses.
We're happy to announce that A NEW book,
named American Art Parades, reflects the animal and cultrally themed
art projects that stampede and swarmed thru communities across America including
This book is available locally at:
Paige Turner Books,
2700 Sheridan Road
Zion, IL
(847) 731-7300
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NSSD Receives Gold Awards for all 3 plants
from Natl Assoc of Clean Water Agencies!
NACWA's Gold Awards are presented to member agency facilities that achieve 100% compliance with their National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits for an entire year. This year 191 NACWA member agency facilities were recognized with NACWA members achieved 99.97 percent compliacen with their NPDES permits - member agency facilities logged only 351 permit violations compared to 1,150,754 permit violations nationwide. These numbers are truly impressive and reflect the level of excellence in environmental protection that all NACWA members strive for.
Gold Award honorees were recognized at an Awards Ceremony during NACWA's 2007 Summer Conference on July 18 in Cleveland, Ohio.
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Click HERE to View More Information (PDF)
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