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A Resolution Approving a Professional Services Agreement with Johnson Lasky Kindelin Architects, Inc. for Schematic Design of the Police Department at 11 Madison and Village Hall at 123 Madison, in an Amount Not to Exceed $1,685,000 and Directing Staff to Prepare the Necessary Budget Amendment
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Introduction
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As part of the Oak Park Municipal Campus Project, Johnson Lasky Kindelin Architects will present a final iteration of conceptual designs with the intent for the Village Board to choose one to advance to schematic design. Johnson Lasky Kindelin Architects have provided a proposal for schematic design architectural services should the Village Board choose to advance a concept to schematic design, at this time.
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Recommended Action
Adopt the Resolution.
Prior Board Action
• On December 3, 2024, the Village Board approved a resolution authorizing a professional services agreement with Johnson Lasky Kindelin Architects for schematic design architectural services for the Oak Park Municipal Campus in an amount not to exceed $1,850,000 (RES 24-358).
• On November 21, 2024, the Village Board approved the Motion to direct staff to negotiate a professional services agreement with Johnson Lasky Kindelin Architects, Inc. for schematic design architectural services for the Oak Park Municipal Campus (MOT 24-269).
• On July 30, 2024, Village staff brought forth a resolution for an amendment to the professional services agreement with Johnson Lasky Kindelin Architects, Inc. for additional conceptual solutions for village facilities. The Village Board denied this resolution and instead came to a consensus to move forward with the original Option 3, to build a new police station on the existing site and make renovations to the existing Village Hall. The Village Board directed staff to work through the process of choosing an architect to set the project’s budget and prioritize the Village’s needs (RES 24-261).
• On May 28, 2024, Ludwig Speaks facilitated a discussion with the Village Board to affirm their priorities as they relate to the Police Station Improvement Project in an effort to ensure that future Village Board actions align with their values (ID 24-287).
• On April 9, 2024, the Facility Review Committee, with the support of Johnson Lasky Kindelin Architects, Inc., provided a presentation to the Board on the feasibility of renovating Village Hall to meet the needs of modern governance for the Village while maintaining its historic integrity (ID 24-200).
• On October 30, 2023, the Village Board approved a Professional Services Agreement with Johnson Lasky Kindelin Architects, Inc. for historic preservation architectural services (RES 23-298). The Village Board also approved a resolution creating a Facility Review Committee for the Oak Park Village Hall Facility Renovation Evaluation Project and appointed its members (RES 23-309).
• On July 31, 2023, the Village Board approved an amendment to the Professional Services Agreement with FGM Architects, Inc. for additional conceptual solutions for Village facilities (RES 23-239). The Village Board also directed staff to engage a separate architectural firm with experience in historic preservation to evaluate the viability and cost of renovating the Village Hall facility to meet the goals of the Village.
• On July 5, 2023, the Village Board approved a motion to advance the Police Station Improvement Project Option 4 (Rebuild the current Village Hall Campus with a new Village Civic Center that meets the current and potential future service needs of the Village including, but potentially not limited to, current Village Hall services and Public Safety and facility parking needs) to schematic design (MOT 23-67).
• On April 24, 2023, the Village Board approved an amendment to the Professional Services Agreement with FGM Architects, Inc. for additional conceptual design options for the Police Station Improvement Project (RES 23-138). At this meeting, the Village Board also approved a task order for Professional Engineering Services with Cordogan Clark & Associates, Inc. to conduct condition assessments and complete energy audits for Village Hall (RES 23-132).
• On February 18, 2020, the Village Board approved an Agreement with FGM Architects, Inc. for Architectural and Engineering Schematic Design Services for the Oak Park Police Department in an Amount Not to Exceed $322,600 (RES 20-093).
• On November 19, 2018, the Village Board approved an Agreement with FGM Architects, Inc. for a Space Needs Assessment for the Oak Park Police Department in an Amount Not to Exceed $53,680 (RES 18-1050).
• On January 22, 2013, the Village Board approved the Historic Preservation Commission’s 2013 Work Plan, allowing the Historic Preservation Commission to pursue listing the Oak Park Village Hall building on the National Register of Historic Places. The application was accepted, and the building was listed on August 25, 2014.
Background
Village staff prepared and publicly advertised an RFQ for “Project 24-130 Schematic Design Architectural Services for Oak Park Municipal Campus” on October 2, 2024. The RFQ prepared by Village staff prioritized the main goals associated with this project, including:
• Maintain the historical aspects of the existing Village Hall facility.
• Meet established sustainability goals outlined in Climate Ready Oak Park (CROP).
• Retain the architectural design elements exercised throughout the community.
• Meet or exceed current building codes and address life safety issues.
• Create accessible and inclusive spaces for all visitors and staff to enjoy.
• Meet modern standards for policing.
• Make the existing facility functional as a modern Village Hall.
Staff received eleven submittals from the following firms: Cordogan Clark, FGM Architects, the HOH Group, JLK Architects, Kluber, Krueck Sexton Partners, Ross Barney, Snow Kreilich, Studio GC, Williams, and Woolpert. An internal team composed of the Village Planner, Urban Planner: Historic Preservation, Public Works Director, Deputy Public Works Director, and Deputy Village Manager reviewed and scored the submittals based on the criteria outlined in the RFQ posting. The three highest-scoring firms were invited for interviews the week of November 4th, 2024.
Based on their project approach, selected personnel and collaborators, credentialing, past experience with this project, and general enthusiasm for the project, staff recommended pursuing a professional services agreement with Johnson Lasky Kindelin Architects, Inc. for Schematic Design Architectural Services. JLK Architects, serving as the prime firm on this project, has put together an exceptional team to tackle the priorities of this project:
• Dewberry will provide programming and design for public safety and bring full-time sustainability subject matter to ensure that the project meets the sustainability goals set for by CROP.
• Architectural Consulting Engineers (ACE) will work collaboratively with Dewberry as building systems engineers to study existing and proposed facilities and develop creative solutions for the municipal campus.
• TYLin/Silman Structural Solutions will serve as the team’s structural engineer with experience designing sensitive solutions for historic buildings.
• Middleton Construction Consulting (MCC) will provide cost estimates.
• Carnow Conibear (CC) will serve as the team’s environmental engineer should the need arise to address hazardous materials sensitively.
• Site Design Group (SITE) as the project’s landscape architect.
A professional services agreement with Johnson Lasky Kindelin Architects was approved at the Village Board meeting on December 3, 2024, and Village staff began working with them and the schematic design team to further develop goals for the Oak Park Municipal Campus. In February 2025, as the design team refined the program and budget, a nearby property became available for purchase, providing the Village with a unique opportunity for potential cost and space savings associated with the Police Department portion of this project. At that time, the Village requested that the design team explore an option that relocated the Police Department to the nearby property at 11 Madison to potentially relieve both physical and financial constraints related to the existing site at 123 Madison. The JLK and schematic design teams developed and presented two conceptual design options on November 20, 2025, with the Village Board ultimately choosing to further explore the Multi-site option.
Johnson Lasky Kindelin Architects will present a final iteration of conceptual designs with the intent for the Village Board to choose one to advance to schematic design at the Village Board meeting on Tuesday, February 10, 2026. Johnson Lasky Kindelin Architects has provided a proposal for schematic design architectural services should the Village Board choose to advance a concept to schematic design at this time.
Timing Considerations
As has been discussed in the past, in relation to this project and others, the longer a project is delayed the more likely it is for the total project cost to increase. Village staff requested that the design consultants quantify those increases, for both the Police Department and Village Hall, based on a one-year (Q1 2028), three-year (Q1 2030), and five-year delay (Q1 2032). Those delays would cost the Village an additional 5.5 percent, 12.5 percent, and 21 percent, respectively. An increase to the overall cost of the project would also result to an increase in cost of design services since design costs associated with large-scale projects are typically a percentage of the total cost of the project.
Budget Impact
Schematic design is the first phase of construction design and often results in 30% plan documents. Design costs associated with large-scale projects are generally a percentage of the total cost of the project. Therefore, schematic design would be a portion of those overall design costs. In the event that significant changes are made to the scope of the project during the schematic design phase that affects the total cost of the project, those changes to scope would also affect the cost of design.
Historically, funds for this project have been budgeted to the Building Improvement Fund Account Number: 3012-43790-101-540673 allocated for the “Police Department - Construction of a Replacement Station: Design.” Since a concept design had not been chosen by the Village Board prior to budget season, Village staff were directed to hold off on budgeting funds for schematic design as part of the 2026 fiscal year budget. In order to cover costs associated with schematic design architectural services for this project, Village staff would need to prepare a budget amendment for Q1 2026 to be approved by the Village Board in March 2026.
Operating Impact
There is no operating impact associated with this item. The item aligns with the department’s core service delivery.
DEI Impact
There is no DEI impact associated with this item.
Community Input
There has been no community input given in relation to this item.
Staff Recommendation
Approve the Resolution.
Advantages:
• By approving this professional services agreement and advancing a concept to schematic design, the Village Board would be able to gain further clarity on budget expectations once layouts, materials, and costs are identified in further detail in the next phase of design.
• During the schematic design phase, while further details are being explored, the Village Board could use the additional cost information to explore financing options and delivery methods.
Disadvantages:
• Approving the professional services agreement for schematic design could create momentum for the project that will be hard to slow down.
• Schematic design requires additional consultant time and, in turn, additional fees. Should the project pause of slow down during or after schematic design, some of those fees may be lost due to the need to repeat work to develop a different vision for the project.
Alternatives
Alternative 1:
The Village Board can delay action to gain additional information.
Advantages:
• Taking additional time to design and further develop the Board’s vision for the project could result in a different approach than currently represented by the Board’s goals. A different approach to the project would ultimately result in a different cost associated with schematic design.
• A delay could provide time to address any additional concerns articulated by the Village Board, further review or securing funding mechanisms, or pursuit of potential municipal partnerships.
Disadvantages:
• By delaying action to gain additional information, the Village Board could unintentionally delay the project, causing additional costs to incur both as part of the design and construction phases.
Alternative 2:
The Village Board can provide direction to Village staff to pause the project indefinitely.
Advantages:
• No additional staff or financial resources would be committed to this project until otherwise directed by a future Village Board.
• Staff or financial resources could be directed to other priorities.
Disadvantages:
• Delaying this project indefinitely could make it difficult to recruit and retain valuable Village and Police Department staff to develop, implement, and manage Village programs and services that directly benefit community members.
• The Village Board goal to ensure a healthy working environment would be further deferred.
• A priority recommendation from the Berry Dunn Community Safety Study would be delayed indefinitely.
Anticipated Future Actions
Village staff plan to return several times over the coming year to gain additional feedback on the schematic design process and to discuss financial considerations and delivery methods for the project.
Prepared By: Erin Duffy, Deputy Public Works Director
Reviewed By: Rob Sproule, Public Works Director
Approved By: Kevin J. Jackson, Village Manager
Attachment(s):
1. Resolution
2. Professional Services Agreement
3. Johnson Lasky Kindelin Architects Proposal