It took a few years, but plans for the expansion of Elfstrom Stadium, home of the Kane County Cougars, have been finalized with the approval by the county’s Forest Preserve District of a $10.69 million contract with Skender Construction of Palos Hills.

The agreement calls for construction to start after the 2008 season on expansion of the 7,300-seat stadium. New features will include an upper deck with enclosed suites and an open sky deck.

The 15 luxury suites and one super suite located behind home plate and two rooftop patio areas (one at each end of the upper deck) will result in an additional 1,200 seats.

The latest development puts the focus on two economic trends: the ripple effect on other local businesses in the Geneva area and what a contractor called the “very active market” for various types of recreational buildings throughout the suburbs.

The ripple effect continues the wave into the 2008 season when the 8 millionth fan will come into the stadium sometime during the coming months. Cougars General Manager Jeff Sedivy said that 7,648,768 fans have attended Cougars games in the past 17 seasons.

That is good news for the owner of the stadium, the Kane County Forest Preserve District.

“We are very pleased that we were able to bring the cost down and that we now have a commitment for another 20 years from the Cougars which has provided a major economic benefit to for businesses in the area,” said John Hoscheit, president of the Forest Preserve District.

He said neither the Park District nor the Kane County board has done an economic analysis of the impact of the team on local businesses, but it obviously brings in tourism. Hoscheit noted that baseball fans eat at area restaurants and buy gasoline for their vehicles.

An executive with the Geneva Chamber of Commerce also pointed out the positive impact of the minor league baseball team.

“We are thrilled that the construction will be going ahead,” said Geneva chamber president Jean Gaines. “We have supported the team since it first came here in 1991. We are happy that expansion plans can now move forward.”

The Chamber did not have any economic impact figures.

Overall figures for Kane County came from the Northern Illinois Tourism Development Office in Belvidere:

• Travel expenditures of $372.91 million which included money spent by travelers on such things as public transportation, food service, auto transportation, lodging, retail and entertainment/recreation.
• Payroll of $93.75 million which includes wages and salaries paid directly to employees directly serving the traveler in such areas as public transportation, good service, lodging, entertainment; recreation, travel planning, retail and auto transportation.
• Employment of 4,130, which is the actual number of jobs supported by tourism. Jobs vary from executive/management to service-oriented occupations.
• Total tax receipts of $24.99 million which included $16.83 million in state tax receipts and $8.16 million in local tax receipts.

The fourth bidding process for the Elfstrom stadium renovations included contract estimates from three companies other than Skender: R.C. Wegman of Aurora for $11,420,000; Lamp, Inc. of Elgin for $11,533,473; and Burling Builders of Chicago for $11,831,000.

Previous bids over the last two and one-half years were a few million dollars higher, according to Robert Quinlan, director of financial services for the Park District.

“Now we have it down to a livable amount,” he said.

The Park District, which owns the stadium, will sell $8 million in bonds to be paid by revenue from the team. The Cougars are also providing another $2.5 million.

“There will be absolutely no cost to the taxpayers,” Quinlan added.

The Cougars stadium expansion is the first one of this type for Skender, according to Damion Eallonardo, executive vice president of the company’s Facilities Group, which was recently formed as a part of the 53-year-old construction firm.

Eallonardo said the new group aggressively pursued the Cougars expansion and will continue to do so for various types of recreation buildings, municipal facilities, schools and churches.

“This is a very active market,” he said. “We are pursing other projects but since they are not under contract, it would be premature to talk about them.

“I am proud to work on the Cougars’ expansion. I live in Yorkville, so the stadium is a place where I have taken my family.”

Work on the stadium will begin soon on some concrete foundation changes before the season starts in April. Also, during the season, construction will begin on a new single-story, 10,000-square-foot administration building. The architect for the project is Ream-Hauser Architects of Aurora.

A new upper deck will not be started until the 2008 season is over. It will extend along the third base side behind home plate and along the first base side of the field. The concession areas, gift shop and locker rooms will be reconfigured after the season. Work is scheduled to be completed before the 2009 season.

The overall space, Eallonardo said, will look virtually identical to the designs in the previous higher bids.

“We nipped at the edges to change some of the building materials and finishes.”

Sedivy said expansion Elfstrom has been one of his long-term goals.

“We are excited about finally starting the project which has been a goal of mine since 2000. It ensures that the Cougars will be in Kane County for the next 20 years,” he said. “The team will be contributing $2.5 million on top of the $8 million in bonds. There will be no cost to the taxpayer.”

Other features of the renovation include:

• Upper level commissary
• Upper level conference center
• Additional men’s and women’s restrooms located behind home plate and along the first base line

The stadium and the surrounding events center are located on Kirk Road, south of Illinois Highway 38. When the stadium opened in 1991 it seated 2,600 and cost $3.5 million. Several expansions have increased the capacity to 7,300. Attendance has topped 14,000 at some games with lawn-chair seating and the picnic area on the party deck.

The Cougars, which are a Class A minor league team affiliated since 2003 with the Oakland Athletics, play in the Midwest League.

“We are the only minor league baseball team that is professionally affiliated, meaning that our players are under contract by a Major League team,” Sedivy said. “We are the oldest minor league organization in the Chicagoland area.”

The franchise was located in Wausau, Wis. from 1975-90 and in Decatur, Ill., from 1952-74.