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Oak Brook ends battle with Westmont Park District over S-curve property
Updated: December 23, 2012 6:11AM
OAK BROOK — Village Board approval Nov. 13 that gives ownership back to the Westmont Park District of the S-curve property near 35th Street and Cass Avenue should be the final action in arguments over the property.
Oak Brook and the Westmont Park District settled a March 2012 lawsuit filed by the park district. The settlement called for Oak Brook to again de-annex about 0.75 acres that is part of the nearly three-acre S-curve parcel.
In return, the park district has agreed to abide by the original stipulation to keep the land for “passive park purposes,” said Peter Friedman, Oak Brook’s attorney.
Oak Brook, Westmont, DuPage County and the estate of Paul Butler entered into an agreement in 1984 providing for the reconfiguration of the intersection at 35th Street and Cass Avenue, Friedman said. The reconfiguration created a small parcel of land, which became known as the S-curve.
The S-curve was deeded in 1987 to Westmont by the Butler estate, with the restriction the land be used only for “passive park purposes.” While the land was given to Westmont, it was located in Oak Brook. Westmont officials transferred title of the S-curve property to the Westmont Park District shortly after the village received the deed to the property. The park district still owns the property.
The Oak Brook Village Board adopted an ordinance Sept. 14, 2010 to disconnect the parcel from the village. However, the Village Board repealed that ordinance in 2011 after learning that the Westmont Park District wanted to sell the land to a developer, which would have violated the stipulation of keeping it only for “passive park purposes,” Friedman said.
“That basically means open space,” Friedman said. “Selling it to a developer definitely would have violated that.”
The Westmont Park District filed a lawsuit in March 2012, against Oak Brook, asking DuPage Circuit Court to rule that the repeal ordinance was void.
“The terms of the settlement are what the agreement was supposed to be in the first place,” Friedman said.
