A group of residents opposed to the Baker Hill project has formally organized and has taken its case to the DuPage County Forest Preserve District.
Citizens for the Intelligent Development of Baker Hill, a newly formed organization founded by residents who lives around the site at the northeast corner of Roosevelt Road and Illinois Highway 53, opposes Town & Country Homes’ plan to build 234 town homes and 140,000 square feet of retail space on the 50-acre site.
The group received a victory of sorts Thursday when the DuPage County Forest Preserve’s Acquisition Committee agreed to recommend that the full forest preserve board place the property on its list of targeted acquisitions.
The panel will take a formal vote on the matter Tuesday.
Purchase of the land may be easier said than done, however. Town & Country last year paid $4.48 million for the property. Group members have acknowledged that for a public body to buy the land from the home builder, the price tag might reach $9 million to $10 million.
Group member Lee Mulder said Citizens for the Intelligent Development of Baker Hill has the support of more than 4,500 area residents.
“We would like to bring together many different public entities, including the village, the Glen Ellyn Park District, the forest preserve district, local land trusts and private donations, to help preserve the `Gateway to Western DuPage,’ ” Mulder said.
Although the forest preserve district may need a considerable amount of time before it alone is able to buy the land, Mulder said he was heartened by the emergence of several potential obstacles that could block the project’s approval. Those could include the purchase by the forest preserve district of land immediately to the east of the Baker Hill site and the potential pullout by the Dominick’s grocery chain, the proposed mall’s key tenant, if the project generates too much bad will.
