Harwood Heights officials are starting 2018 with their sights on moving forward on a renovation of the middle section of the town’s village hall to create more multi-purpose space.
The village had applied for a $2.16 million park and recreational facility construction grant for the project that was put on hold in 2015 after Gov. Bruce Rauner’s decision to suspend all state grants for park programs. The grant has now been released, with work to be completed by June 30, said Mayor Arlene Jezierny.
In her report at the Dec. 28 village board meeting, Jezierny noted that the village would be under a tight timeline, with work beginning right after the start of the year.
The project would open up village hall “for a lot more recreation for our seniors, for our young people, for our teens, for our families and people,” Jezierny said in her report at the start of the meeting.
Officials had hoped to utilize the empty space that exists between village hall, at 7300 W. Wilson Ave., and the police department as a multi-purpose center.
The vacant space in the village hall building met the qualifications criteria for the grant, which provides for the “development, construction, rehabilitation, improvement or architectural planning of a capital facilities space.”
In the past, the vacant space has been used for various purposes. At one time, the village converted the area into a drop-off location for residents to drop off older-model TVs after waste pick-up services refused to accept them. Currently, police and public works are using the space for storage.
“Officials could create a larger break room in the space so that we could accommodate more people. Whether we have a presentation that is important, whether we have a dance, tax appeal seminars — we could certainly accommodate more than that community room can. The seniors may be playing cards on one side, and the other side (may) have little kids coloring,” Jezierny said, providing a visitor a brief tour.
Officials are hoping to hear from community members in the early part of this month on “what types of things they would like to use this for,” she said. “We want to have it light and airy and be a comfortable place for people to come.”
“This is a huge room. We need to put it to work,” she said.
