St. Charles City Council votes to reject all proposals for former police station site along Fox River

St. Charles alderpersons want to start over the process to redevelop the former police station site along the Fox River.

At Monday’s St. Charles City Council meeting, alderpersons unanimously approved a motion to reject all the concept proposals for the former police station site. During the City Council’s Planning and Development Committee meeting Dec. 12, the committee directed city staff to put together a request for proposals in order to engage a consultant to conduct a feasibility study for the property.

Staff plans to develop an RFP document for alderpersons to review at a future Planning and Development Committee meeting. Plans are for the feasibility study to start in May, with the study estimated to take six months to complete.

There has been much public opposition to Frontier Development’s plans for the site. Frontier Development, in partnership with Chicago-based The Prime Group and Architectural Wood Expressions, proposes to build one six-story building and parking garage that would contain 107 residential units, four restaurants, 164 hotel rooms, a spa/fitness center and conference space. An 85,000-square-foot outdoor plaza, two rooftop pools and 750 lineal feet of public riverwalk also are part of the plans.

The project would cost about $150 million to build, with the developers asking the city for up to $20 million tax increment financing and revenue sharing financing provided by the city.

Alderpersons also have been reviewing Murphy Development Group’s proposal to build a five- to seven-story building that would house 141 apartments, a restaurant and retail space. The project would cost an estimated $60.5 million, with the developer not seeking any incentives from the city.

At a special St. Charles City Council workshop meeting July 25, alderpersons reviewed four proposals for the site. The majority of alderpersons at that meeting voiced their preference for the proposals put forth by Murphy Development Group and Frontier Development.

St. Charles Economic Development Director Derek Conley had told alderpersons at the Dec. 12 committee meeting that a feasibility study or studies would look at things such as traffic and utility concerns and environmental considerations.

“Staff is supportive of gathering more information and bringing it back to City Council,” he said. “What is the capacity of the site? How much can it hold as far as traffic goes and as far as utilities and things like that.”

Second Ward Alderperson Rita Payleitner previously had proposed that alderpersons vote on a motion directing staff to do a feasibility study of the former police station site. In addition, she had said the City Council should vote on the disposition of the existing proposals, with an invitation to resubmit, along with any other new proposals once new guidelines on feasibility have been developed.