Elmhurst Eyes Tax Hikes For New Police Station

Crime & Safety

Elmhurst Eyes Tax Hikes For New Police Station Property taxes and vehicle sticker fees are listed among the ways to pay for the project.

ELMHURST, IL – An Elmhurst City Council committee on Monday plans to look at ways to raise taxes to pay for a new $48 million police station.

City staff has prepared a memo for the finance committee on options for tax increases.

According to the memo, raising $3.5 million more in property taxes annually would amount to a $195 increase in taxes for a median value home of $500,000.

Another option is vehicle sticker fees. A household with two cars now pays $36 for each car annually, totaling $72. If the city raised the rate to $156 per car, two vehicles would mean $312 for the city, an increase of $240, the memo said.

The latest memo gives information on selling the city's property at 180 Park Ave. as a way to help pay for the police station. It is expected to sell for $5 million, with the city assuming that luxury apartments would be built.

The memo includes no information about selling the city's parkland between Schiller and Third streets, at the end of Second Street and Elmhurst Avenue.

That may be a relief for the parkland's neighbors , who have been campaigning to keep it as is. The city has noted the parkland in previous memos about ways to pay for the station.

Residents have questioned why Elmhurst even needs to replace the 34-year-old police station.

But the city has listed problems with the current building , particularly with its security. And officials say the station is far smaller than those in other towns when measuring square footage per officer.

The police station isn't the only large Elmhurst project in the works. The city also wants to replace the Metra train station. That is now estimated to cost $47 million – $35 million of which is expected to come from federal and other grants.

The finance committee meets at 7 p.m. Monday at City Hall.