In a split vote, the Kane County Board has delayed a decision on funding a new $30 million headquarters for the county’s health department, with some board members saying they want more information before taking a final vote.
The three agenda items that would fund the new health center, which county staff have proposed moving from Aurora to St. Charles, were pushed to a meeting in mid-March by a narrow majority at the board’s meeting on Tuesday. Kane Board Chair Corinne Pierog had to vote to break a tie on two of the three items.
The issue was originally set to be discussed by the board at its Feb. 13 meeting, but that meeting went long and was continued on Tuesday.
The proposed Kane County Health Center has been controversial among board members and members of the public who have attended board meetings to voice their concerns, primarily because of its federal funding source and location.
County staff have proposed using $18 million in American Rescue Plan Act, or ARPA, funds for the project. The money was given to the county by the federal government to mitigate the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The county is required to commit all of its ARPA funds to projects before the end of the year, and any uncommitted dollars will be given back to the federal government, officials said.
Staff members have said using ARPA funds will allow the county to build the new center without raising taxes or taking on debt. Critics, however, have said that using the federal dollars is risky because the county may have to pay the money back to the government if the project does not meet the criteria for use of ARPA funds.
Some have also said that the center should not be moved out of Aurora, since it would be inconvenient for residents of the south end of the county to travel to the proposed location at the Kane County Judicial Center site in St. Charles.
However, county staff have argued that the proposed location is more centralized within Kane County, which would help save money on maintenance and transportation, more effectively use staff’s time when they need to travel around the county and better connect the health department to other county departments.
A new health department building is needed because the current building at 1240 N. Highland Ave. in Aurora is too small for the department’s needs and is in poor condition, county staff members have said.
Board members who are critical of the plan, such as District 8 board member Michelle Gumz, have agreed that the department needs a new building.
“I’m not prepared to gamble that money, but I do not want people to think that I am not supportive of this idea,” Gumz said of a new health center. “I just do not believe this is the funding source.”
At the meeting on Tuesday, Kane County District 24 board member Jarett Sanchez said the board should vote to delay the decision on funding for the new health center because county staff needs more time to respond to issues that have been raised, specifically the eligibility of the project under ARPA and the county’s long-term planning related to the project.
“We’ve got about 10 or 12 people that are working on this to put together the information for the county board so that when we do get to that discussion and final vote, everyone on the board is fully informed on the matters and issues,” Sanchez said. “We’ll have our own opinions at that time, but we’ll be fully informed rather than only partially informed.”
Gumz said board members have had enough time to do their own research, and said she has personally spent many hours researching the project on her own. She voted against delaying the decision.
The board, though, voted to delay the decision on funding for a new health center.
rsmith@chicagotribune.com