Booming Or Obsolete? Clarendon Hills Debate Continues

CLARENDON HILLS, IL – Different pictures are being painted of the 55th Street area in south Clarendon Hills.

A village-hired consultant's report says the neighborhood is facing "obsolescence." And the document points to a property tax base that is growing at less than the rate of inflation.

This is why the village says it is seeking a special tax district for areas along 55th Street.

If Clarendon Hills creates the district, property tax income from any growth would be diverted from other taxing bodies for nearly a quarter century. Under state law, the money could be used for projects helping the district.

That is making other government entities uneasy.

Hinsdale High School District 86 is leading the charge against the proposal for the tax increment financing district, or TIF. At the least, the district is holding out for some type of income-sharing agreement similar to the ones in Elmhurst.

The school district's backers don't see the 55th Street area as having major problems.

At a recent District 86 meeting, board President Catherine Greenspon pointed to what she saw as many home sales in the neighborhood in question.

She described the area as "already booming." And Hinsdale resident Linda Burke, who has long attended school board meetings, labeled the neighborhood as "prosperous."

The report from the consultant, Dallas-based Ryan LLC, said the tax base in the proposed district increased 11.6 percent from 2017 to 2022. The tax base for the rest of Clarendon Hills grew by 12.8 percent.

These increases paled in comparison to the rise in the urban consumer price index during the same time – 18 percent.

Patch could find no trend in the value of houses over the last couple of decades in the area in question.

A house in the 5600 block of Western Avenue sold for $824,000 this year, up from $496,000 in 2019, according to real estate records.

Other houses, though, sold for less than they did before.

In an email to Patch this week, Village Manager Zach Creer disagreed with assertions the area was booming.

"I know there has been property value growth, but it's been below inflation," Creer said. "As far as I recall, there has been no new construction in many years, which is what I would typically associate with a 'booming' area."

He also said better water infrastructure was needed.

"The water pressure issue is going to act as a collar, choking growth, as additional businesses will take more pressure from the system," Creer said. "As it stands, homes on Western (Avenue) already have to install booster pumps to get adequate pressure."

Opponents of the tax district note the state requires such districts to be in blighted areas. But the state also allows such a district to be in a "conservation area," which is seen as slowly moving toward blight.

The one area of blight was the old Tracy's Tavern site, which is southwest of 55th Street and Western Avenue.

The bar closed six years ago and remained vacant. Because of code compliance issues, the building, constructed in 1932, was razed some months ago.

For its part, Clarendon Hills does not classify 55th Street as blighted, but rather calls it a "conservation area."

Under state law, a conservation area is where at least half of the buildings are more than 35 years old.

According to the village, 52 of the 65 buildings in the proposed district meet that definition.

Additionally, the consultant's report described the Jewel retail center at 55th Street and Holmes Avenue as having "functional obsolescence."

The building is 56 years old and is no longer consistent with today's retail development standards, the report said.

In a previous statement, Creer said the village needed to be ready to "preserve major taxpayers" such as Jewel, given the trend of grocery store consolidation.

According to the report, the neighborhood has other problems. It has several dead-end residential streets that stop short of reaching 55th.

Those dead-ends make the area "tough to navigate," with residents having to drive down long blocks, extending commutes, the report said.

"The dead ends add to the area's semi-rural character as they often end at unkept greenery or vacant rights-of-way," the consultant said.

The area is also plagued by different zoning districts, the report said. This results in different lot sizes and uses.

Because of this, an older village report concludes, "All of these differences add to the lack of continuity in the area and causes less of a unified atmosphere."

Clarendon Hills plans to rezone the house southwest of 55th Street and Virginia Avenue, which the village bought, to commercial, Creer said. He said the village has no plan to rezone other homes on 55th Street.

At 55th Street and Clarendon Hills Road is Birches Assisted Living and Memory Care.

"The Birches is the type of user that we would love to see grow and expand, as it generates revenue without impacting the schools," Creer said in his email.

The district would generally run along the north and south sides of 55th Street between Western and Holmes avenues.

Under state law, if most local taxing bodies oppose the TIF, then the measure would need a three-fifths Village Board majority to make the district a reality.

On Wednesday, a village committee of local taxing bodies voted to delay a decision on the tax district until Aug. 14.