Larger facilities needed for police, village hall

Peering into the distant future, Mokena officials foresee the need for expanded facilities for its police, emergency services and village hall. During a Monday night work session, the board agreed by consensus to explore the option of combining the police department with the Emergency Services and Disaster Agency in one new location, and expanding or building a new village hall on its existing site. Earlier this year, the board hired YAS Architecture of Evanston to develop a 40-year facility plan for the village. Stephen Yas evaluated the current space in the village hall, police department, ESDA, public works and the waste water treatment plant, and interviewed staff and residents for input. Mayor Joe Werner said it has been one of his goals to get the police and emergency services into "the right kind of facility," and to get a "good start" on plans for the village hall. All board members agreed that they want to keep the village hall where it is, on a two-acre site on Carpenter Street, near the downtown area. Yas agreed, saying that allows the village to have more interaction with the public. The size of the site is adequate to expand the current structure or to build a new one. The village hall is 9,168 square feet, and according to industry standards, should be about 20,600 square feet to accommodate future needs. Yas suggested two 1,500-square-foot wings could be added on to the existing building. The village could also renovate the existing gymnasium on the east side of the building, which is now being used by the park district. "I would like to preserve this piece of history at village hall. There's a lot that can be done with the building," Trustee Jane McGinn said. The structure, built in 1926 as a school, became a village hall in 1975 and was expanded in the mid-1990s, said Kirk Zoellner, assistant village administrator. Both the police station and the village hall also were renovated recently. Remodeling of the police facility on Front Street provided an extra 1,500 square feet of space, giving it a total of 5,800 square feet on three-tenths of an acre. Yas calculated that 20,100 square feet would be needed by the police and 12,400 square feet by ESDA, which now is housed in a 2,800-square-foot building on Front Street. Trustee John Mazzorana suggested they "move quickly" on a new police/ESDA facility. Trustee Laura Rusiniak said she was "aggravated" that money was spent to renovate the police department when a new combined center with ESDA is needed "now." The purpose of that addition was "to get us through the next few years," Police Chief Randy Rajewski said. The facility plan is for 40 years. New buildings won't happen for a few years, officials said. "We're just getting started," Zoellner said. According to the consultant, there is adequate space for the public works department and the wastewater treatment plant. Once the current renovations are completed at the public works facility, it will have 17,600 square feet, close to the recommended 17,800 square feet. While the 5,600-square-foot wastewater plant is adequate, additional space may be needed, but would fit on the existing 23-acre site. Susan DeMar Lafferty may be reached at slafferty@starnewspapers.com or (708) 802-8805.