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TO: Mayor Richard C. Irvin
FROM: Richard J. Veenstra, Corporation Counsel
DATE: May 8, 2018
SUBJECT:
A Resolution authorizing the execution of a Settlement Agreement and General Release in the matter of the City of Aurora v. Broadway Limited of Aurora, LLC, et. al. Circuit Court of the Sixteenth Judicial Circuit, Kane County, Case No. 2011 CH 448.
PURPOSE:
To resolve the ongoing litigation between the City of Aurora and the owner of the real property commonly known as 512 N Broadway.
BACKGROUND:
In 2011, the City of Aurora brought an action in the Circuit Court of Kane County to foreclose on liens it filed against the property related to environmental clean-up costs incurred by the City in 2007 and 2008. In the fall of 2017, the parties began settlement negotiations and eventually reached a tentative agreement whereby the City would acquire the property for $550,000. The agreement specifically requires the property owner to remove all personal property from the site prior to and as a condition of the City's acquisition.
DISCUSSION:
The Council is aware of the long history associated with this property that significantly predates the filing of the present litigation. As with any settlement agreement, this proposed settlement represents a compromise that takes into consideration the potential outcomes of the litigation as well as the length of time and expense required to achieve the ideal result and the likelihood of achieving that result. In this case, the settlement ends seven years of litigation and gives the City control of a significant property on its riverfront that has long been an eyesore.
IMPACT STATEMENT:
Other than the cost of acquisition, the City can expect to incur costs associated with the removal of the existing buildings on the site. Depending on the property's eventual use, further environmental remediation will be necessary.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
I recommend that the City Council approve the settlement agreement.
CITY OF AURORA...
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