East Aurora School District 131 administrative offices will be moving to the new Copley development on the site of the East Side’s old Copley Hospital if a planned Intergovernmental Agreement with the City of Aurora is approved during the Tuesday, May 14 City Council meeting.
City Council members placed the agreement on the consent agenda during their May 7 Committee of the Whole meeting at City Hall.
The District offices are at 417 Fifth Street. Because of a lack of space at that location, three other locations are used for District officials. If the plan is approved, all administrators (close to 100) would move into the new offices. The Copley location is bounded by Seminary, Lincoln and Weston Avenues and South Fourth Street near Bardwell Elementary School.
The Intergovernmental Agreement stipulates the School District invest $7 Million over six years to construct a new building. The city government agrees to provide monetary payments, grants, property donation, or in-kind assistance totaling $1.5 Million over the next 20 years, including $500,000 to be paid in cash in 20 equal installments beginning in 2020 and ending in 2039.
In-kind assistance from city government will be in the form of labor, engineering, improvements to public works, infrastructure, or landscaping.
Part of the proposal is to close down a portion of Seminary Avenue by the end of 2021, to make for a safe buffer around Bardwell School. The School will gain additional open space. “It will be a great improvement for this neighborhood and this School,” said Fourth Ward alderman Bill Donnell.
Aurora attorney Mike Poulakidas, who is part of the team developing the property, said Fox Valley Developers is on schedule for being finished with Phase I of the project by June 1. Ninety-eight percent of the asbestos removal and remediation is done, he said. The development agreement with Fox Valley Developers includes the City contributing as much as $3 Million toward the $12 Million estimate to clean up the site.
The buildings were constructed from 1888 through the 1970s during the peak period of usage of Asbestos Containing Material, according to the city government’s website. The hospital closed in 1995 when the new Rush-Copley Medical Center opened on the City’s far Southeast Side.
In other business, aldermen placed several items related to establishments that intend to sell liquor on the May 14 City Council consent agenda.
• The Café Jefe restaurant needs a special use liquor permit because its establishment, to be at 1271 N. Lake Street, is within 500 feet of residential property. The restaurant will be owned by a family business that has locations in Joliet, St. Charles, Batavia, Oswego, and in Indiana.
• The Venue, at 21 S. Broadway, is a project of the Fox Valley Music Foundation. Its grand opening is set for June 1. The Venue intends to book nationally-recognized talent in all genres of music from blues and big band, to rock and world music.
• Axe-throwing bar Chill’Axe Aurora will be in the Pacifica Square Shopping Center at 4302 E. New York Street. Axe-throwing bars, where customers throw axes at targets on the wall, are a growing trend. Owners Judy Ni and Denny Ma said this is their first foray into owning a business. They said they will have 10 throwing lanes with one coach for every two lanes. There will be security guards at the location on weekends, and patrons’ drinks will be supervised by the coaches.