I spoke with Dick Wagner at some length today. The Wagners were pleased to receive my letter, and will pray. They are certainly open to The Greenhouse … especially if there is an offer on the table! Dick Wagner thinks very highly of Margaret; the whole episode with Resurrection was spiritually significant for him.
There were a number of important things that came out of the conversation:
1) This spring they plan to work aggressively on selling the property. Dick’s sister Barbara Fosnot (73) is very anxious to sell. Dick is 70, and his brother in TN is 68. They want to get this done. (Barbara’s son Tom is the realtor.)
2) A group of the Wagners’ friends have talked about turning the property into a retirement community (with shared pond, few golf links, a train for the grandkids). He doesn’t know whether anything will come of that.
3) No one else has expressed an active interest in the property.
4) He suggested subdividing the parcel, putting up several 1-2 acre homes, and then reserving the rest for the school.
5) Other interested parties from the past include:
- Forest Preserve – said it was a done deal, then offered half the appraised price.
- DuPage County – walking paths and to help with water-control issues on Roosevelt Road
- University of Illinois & COD extension – experimental agriculture, garden plots for seniors, etc.
6) Dick believes that both the Forest Preserve and the County have some ongoing interest in the property.
7) Right now the facilities would need on-site septic and a well. Estimates for getting water, which is ¼-mile away on Roosevelt have ranged from $500K - $1.5M.
8) The neighbors to the east (and some on Purnell) were opposed to having a church on site, and had council people in their back pockets.
9) The current Winfield village president (Deborah Birutis) seems more open to development than her predecessors, which may simplify getting the property developed, and possibly getting water and sewer.
More history:
1) Dick’s Dad lived there from 1956-1997 when he died. He would be honored to have children on the property.
2) The land has been used for fundraisers for missions. They once did a one-day event that raised $13K for a group nuns to buy a bus.
3) There have been weddings and renewal of wedding vows up on Holy Hill.
Conclusion:
I told him that it this point we have only a small team carrying on the exploration with the expectation that the whole Board will be informed shortly. I told him that we have nothing to bring to the table at this time. We simply wanted to be sure that what we might propose doing with the property is not something that he would be uncomfortable with. At the end of the conversation he said, “It was a pleasure to meet you by phone, I look forward to meeting you in-person one of these days.” From his end, there is clearly an invitation to continue the exploration.
Tom
