An agreement that annexes Fox Valley Evangelical Free Church into Carpentersville also gives the village access to the southeast portion of the property to create a new entry point to the Menards store parking lot.
Approved this week by the Carpentersville Village Board, the deal will allow the 37W073 Huntley Road church to replace its private well and septic system by accessing the village’s water and sewer services, which are needed so a new church addition can be built.
In exchange, Fox Valley Church has agreed to an easement that will allow the village to build a roadway with Huntley Road access so a right-in, right-out entry can be added for the Menards-anchored shopping center on Randall Road, officials said
The new road is needed to improve traffic flow into and out of the shopping center, which has two Randall Road entrances and is difficult to navigate, especially at high traffic times. No timetable for when the road will be built was provided.
In addition to the annexation and easement, village trustees also approved the church’s addition plans.
Fox Valley’s existing 27,801-square-foot building has a sanctuary, administrative offices and religious education classrooms. The 13,507-square-foot addition on the building’s east side will house a new sanctuary space with 700 seats, more classrooms, an assembly area and a kitchen, Fox Valley Community Development Director Matt Dabrowski told the board.
As part of the expansion, the church plans to enlarge an existing detention pond, install an underground storm sewer system and increase its parking lot, Dabrowski said.
According to village documents, the church also needs zoning variances for the size of its freestanding ground signs and other issues.
Work on the expansion will be done in phases, with the village board approving the first part of the project. Officials will return to the village to obtain approval for future phases, Dabrowski said.
Fox Valley Church held a groundbreaking for the addition last weekend.
“They were very appreciative of the village,” Village Manager Brad Stewart said at Tuesday’s board meeting. “They really emphasized how they wanted to be part of our community.”
Village President John Skillman said they’d be a welcome part of the village.
“They do a lot of good things there. It’s a pretty nice setup they have there, and now it’s going to be better,” he said.
Gloria Casas is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.
