District 200 Sells Hubble

After more than a decade of discussions, District 200 has answered the question of what will happen to the old Hubble school property.

The District 200 board of education passed a resolution Thursday to accept an offer for $5,000,200 from Bradford Equities, LLC for the old Hubble school property.

Board member Andy Johnson said he thinks the sale is "a good deal for everybody," after recalling discussions in the late '90s about what would happen to Hubble. "It's great to finally be here," he said.

Board member Barb Intihar commended the board and district administrators for their work in selling the property. She said that looking back at the Hubble timeline, "I realized we started to sell and market this property in earnest in December of 2010 ... in six months, in a down market, you've (superintendents) done a remarkable job ... I'm very pleased we're here and I fully intend to celebrate."

Bradford will give its earnest money payment of $200,000 and has seven months to investigate the property, conduct due diligence and obtain any necessary government approvals, according to a District 200 press release. Further, Bradford will not solicit or accept any tax increment financing in connection with the redevelopment of the site.

Bradford Equities first emerged publicly as a factor in the property's future when the Wheaton Park District released its letter of intent May 16 purchase the property and sell a portion of it to them. The letter included plans for Bradford to partner with Roundy's Supermarkets to bring a Mariano's Fresh Market to the site.

Mike Benard, executive director of the Wheaton Park District, said May 16 that in an ideal situation, Mariano's could open by early 2013.

Rosemary Swanson, president of the District 200 board said Thursday, "Hopefully, a grocery store seems to be in everybody’s interest … hopefully that will have a chance of going forward." 

She added that the sale reflects, "how good people—being persistent about what's best for the community, from many different perspectives—can come together and have a more elegant solution to a problem that at first seems like it's a little hard to figure out."