McHenry County Blog

It won’t be on watershed of Crystal Lake watershed at McHenry County College.

But it will be just up the road across Route 12, north of Centegra’s Woodstock hospital.

It will include a minor baseball stadium.

But, it will not it will not cost county taxpayers any money.

And, it won’t be just for baseball. Being promoted are lacrosse, soccer, football, concerts, trade shows, antique shows, car shows and festivals.

And the same guys who fleeced McHenry County College taxpayers are apparently among the driving forces behind the proposal.

Mark Houser and Pete Heitman building a sports facility without a public subsidy.

The 250-acre site will preserve 53 acres of wetlands and 22 acres of oak savannah, seen to the right of the stadium. Click to enlarge.

The area is also being held out as a possible new home for the McHenry County Fair. More specifically, most of the land between the railroad track, Lily Pond Road, where I lived for a while, and Route 14.

The site is also being promoted as a place for not-for-profits and service agencies to locate.

Victor Narusis has been the glue that has put this idea together for the McHenry County Community Foundation. When he told me at the Pro-Life Pig Roast at the end of June that he had several million dollars committed and that there would be no tax dollars involved, I wished him luck.

“We are proud to present this project with no request for public funding,” Narusis said (with my piecing together parts of two sentences from the press release.)

He said the site selected “rose to the top of the list” because it is “located in the central part of the county and along a regional traffic corridor” providing “convenient access for all county residents.”

The sports stadium will sit 6,500 or 10,000 with lawn seating.

The land is being donated and graded by Rick Zirk of Woodstock’s Merryman Enterprises. After site preparation, the remaining land will be made available to the Foundation and the McHenry County Fair Board.

“This approach supports smart land use, economic resource planning, wise budget practices and would provide numerous resources with the many benefits of tourism,” McHenry County Community Foundation Board Chairman Mark Ehlert.

You can read the MCCF press release here.

It won’t be on watershed of Crystal Lake watershed at McHenry County College.

But it will be just up the road across Route 12, north of Centegra’s Woodstock hospital.

It will include a minor baseball stadium.

But, it will not it will not cost county taxpayers any money.

And, it won’t be just for baseball. Being promoted are lacrosse, soccer, football, concerts, trade shows, antique shows, car shows and festivals.

And the same guys who fleeced McHenry County College taxpayers are apparently among the driving forces behind the proposal.

Mark Houser and Pete Heitman building a sports facility without a public subsidy.

The 250-acre site will preserve 53 acres of wetlands and 22 acres of oak savannah, seen to the right of the stadium. Click to enlarge.

The area is also being held out as a possible new home for the McHenry County Fair. More specifically, most of the land between the railroad track, Lily Pond Road, where I lived for a while, and Route 14.

The site is also being promoted as a place for not-for-profits and service agencies to locate.

Victor Narusis has been the glue that has put this idea together for the McHenry County Community Foundation. When he told me at the Pro-Life Pig Roast at the end of June that he had several million dollars committed and that there would be no tax dollars involved, I wished him luck.

“We are proud to present this project with no request for public funding,” Narusis said (with my piecing together parts of two sentences from the press release.)

He said the site selected “rose to the top of the list” because it is “located in the central part of the county and along a regional traffic corridor” providing “convenient access for all county residents.”

The sports stadium will sit 6,500 or 10,000 with lawn seating.

The land is being donated and graded by Rick Zirk of Woodstock’s Merryman Enterprises. After site preparation, the remaining land will be made available to the Foundation and the McHenry County Fair Board.

“This approach supports smart land use, economic resource planning, wise budget practices and would provide numerous resources with the many benefits of tourism,” McHenry County Community Foundation Board Chairman Mark Ehlert.

You can read the MCCF press release here.

I thought the following, sent out by the McHenry County Community Foundation, might be of interest:

A steering committee was created to provide additional channels of communications throughout the County; and a work group naturally formed with interested professionals able to move the process in a more expedited fashion. Such professionals include public and private land owners, investors, land planners, developers, business leaders and representatives from two groups that would be considered the anchors in a multi-phased development of the venue: the McHenry County Fair and McHenry County Baseball.

The process continues into summer 2008 with the highest priority being to locate land for the first phase. The McHenry County Community Foundation will continue to facilitate the process. This involves further involvement of interested parties through a thorough evaluation process and networking relatable resources. And unique to other participants, MCCF will continue to educate the County about the Foundation’s special role: the means to leverage financial support and grow investments through the creation of a legacy endowment to provide funds for the venue from creation through years of maintenance support.

Planning Team

Mike Baumstark, Cornerstone
Dick Crone, McHenry County Fair Board
Mark Ehlert, McHenry County Community Foundation
Kate Halma, McHenry County Community Foundation
EnRico Heirman, Continental Amateur Baseball Association (CABA)
Pete Heitman, McHenry County Baseball
Victor Narusis, McHenry County Community Foundation
Barbara Wheeler, McHenry County Board

I thought the following, sent out by the McHenry County Community Foundation, might be of interest:

A steering committee was created to provide additional channels of communications throughout the County; and a work group naturally formed with interested professionals able to move the process in a more expedited fashion. Such professionals include public and private land owners, investors, land planners, developers, business leaders and representatives from two groups that would be considered the anchors in a multi-phased development of the venue: the McHenry County Fair and McHenry County Baseball.

The process continues into summer 2008 with the highest priority being to locate land for the first phase. The McHenry County Community Foundation will continue to facilitate the process. This involves further involvement of interested parties through a thorough evaluation process and networking relatable resources. And unique to other participants, MCCF will continue to educate the County about the Foundation’s special role: the means to leverage financial support and grow investments through the creation of a legacy endowment to provide funds for the venue from creation through years of maintenance support.

Planning Team

Mike Baumstark, Cornerstone
Dick Crone, McHenry County Fair Board
Mark Ehlert, McHenry County Community Foundation
Kate Halma, McHenry County Community Foundation
EnRico Heirman, Continental Amateur Baseball Association (CABA)
Pete Heitman, McHenry County Baseball
Victor Narusis, McHenry County Community Foundation
Barbara Wheeler, McHenry County Board