Why would a city buy a health club only to close its pools? Crystal Lake is under contract to buy the shuttered Northwestern Medicine Health and Fitness Center on Congress Parkway, and none of the city's three plans for the building keeps the indoor pools or the outdoor pool. The reason starts at the library on West Paddock Street.
The proposal is mainly about the library. All three concepts move the Crystal Lake Public Library into the old HealthBridge building and add community space around it. Seen that way, the plans are the lowest-cost versions of a library project Crystal Lake has been debating for more than twenty years. Leaving the pools out is one of the main ways the price stays down.
What the City Agreed to Buy in April
On April 21, 2026, the City Council approved a purchase and sale agreement with Northern Illinois Medical Center. The price is $4.2 million for the 8-plus-acre HealthBridge property and two nearby vacant parcels of roughly 4 and 2 acres. The building opened in the early 2000s, closed in late 2022, and has 85,000 square feet.
The agreement includes a 180-day feasibility period for building, site, environmental and legal reviews. If the city backs out before that period ends, the contract terminates and any refundable deposit is returned. The city's project page says no final decision has been made on how the property would be used. It also says that if the inspections go well, the purchase could close in fall 2026.
The Library's Repair Bill Came First
The library at 126 W. Paddock St. is about 40,000 square feet. It combines the original 1965 building with additions from the 1980s and 1990s. Over the past nine years, the library has spent more than $4.5 million on capital maintenance and improvements. This year alone, it paid more than $31,000 after losing air conditioning in part of the building and finding a sinkhole in the parking lot.
The library gave the City Council a fuller picture at the October 6 meeting. Its architect described problem soils, accessibility challenges, and a crack between building sections that is being monitored, with no change observed. The library director then laid out the finances.
"There are $7.7 million in needed repairs for the library building to keep it open, to keep it safe."
The library does not levy taxes for its building. It pays for major repairs from a special reserve, which usually receives about $300,000 a year. If repairs start in 2027 under the library's capital maintenance plan, the director said costs would pass available funds in 2028, leaving a projected gap of $3.3 million. The director also described space limits. The building has one enclosed study room, one meeting room, and no dedicated areas for teens, tutoring, group work or remote meetings.
So the current building has costs of its own. The question for the city is which option to pay for.
Four Prices for One Library
The city's cost summary puts four options side by side, all in 2029 dollars. The $4.2 million property price is counted separately. The estimated tax impact sheet shows what each option would add to a yearly property tax bill, assuming 20-year bonds.
| Option | Estimated cost | $300,000 home | $400,000 home | $500,000 home |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1: HealthBridge reuse, community-center focus | $44M | $207/yr | $276/yr | $344/yr |
| 2: HealthBridge reuse, keeps indoor walking track | $44M | $207/yr | $276/yr | $344/yr |
| 3: HealthBridge reuse, elevated walking track | $52M | $244/yr | $326/yr | $407/yr |
| New library on the current site | $58M–$75M | $352/yr at $75M | $470/yr at $75M | $587/yr at $75M |
These are the city's estimates for its own planning. They are not a bill or a final levy. The building concepts differ mostly in how they handle the walking track. Options 1 and 2 would each use about 83,360 square feet. Option 3 would grow to about 97,800 square feet to fit an elevated track. For comparison, the city puts the current library at 40,657 gross square feet. Its needs analysis sketches future library sizes of 65,250, 72,609 and 85,523 square feet.
That puts the HealthBridge building in the size range the library says it needs. And on the city's numbers, every HealthBridge option costs less than a new library on Paddock Street.
Why the Pools Don't Make the Cut
The pools are where the savings show up. In the city's words, the existing indoor and outdoor pools are "not a good long-term fit for a community center strategy."
The city's indoor pool review says the current pools are too specialized in size and layout. It compares them with what it would want instead, a 25-yard lap pool with six to eight lanes plus a separate recreational pool. The outdoor pool has less than 5,000 square feet of water surface, holds 462 people, and may need major renovation. The city's target for an outdoor facility is 15,000 to 18,000 square feet of water and room for 600 to 800 people.
If the community wants an outdoor pool, the city estimates a new one on one of the vacant parcels would cost $12 million to $20 million. That cost would come on top of the $44 million to $52 million already in the table. Council member Denise Smith has described the building as one that already fits the community-center idea: "Why build a brand-new library when we can repurpose a building that has everything we need: a community center along with a library." The pools are the one part of that building the city has said it would not reuse.
The Vote Crystal Lake Has Already Taken Twice
Voters rejected a library referendum in 2004. In 2016, a $30 million proposal for a new building on the current site failed 55.6% to 44.4%. The Northwest Herald reported that opponents of the purchase have pointed to those two results.
The library's FAQ page explains that 2016 was an advisory referendum, and that the City Council said then it would not issue bonds for a new library building without a "yes" majority. No one has yet said whether that standard applies here. As of the September 16 Northwest Herald report, it was "unclear" whether the community-center bonds would need a referendum. A resolution in the October 6 council packet identifies Crystal Lake as a home-rule municipality. That document does not say whether these bonds could be issued without a vote.
Mayor Haig Haleblian has made the same point. "This isn't a done deal by any stretch," he said in August while asking for public input.
The Calendar From Here
- October 6, 2026: The council unanimously approved an amendment to the purchase agreement as part of the consent agenda, 7–0. City materials describe it as a clarification identified by legal counsel and agreed to by the seller. They do not give a new deadline.
- October 18, 2026: This is 180 days after the April 21 approval. City materials have not confirmed whether the amendment changed that date.
- October 20, 2026, 7 p.m.: The next City Council meeting.
- October 21, 2026, 7 p.m.: Library Board meeting.
- Fall 2026: When the purchase could close, if due diligence goes well.
- 2027 to 2028: More public input and final design, then construction in 2029 and an opening in 2030 or 2031. The city calls this schedule "subject to change."
Some questions are still open in public records. The Library Board's formal position on moving has not been published in the materials we reviewed. Neither has any plan for the Paddock Street property if the library leaves it. The city held an open house at City Hall on September 9, and the coverage we reviewed reports no tally of the public input gathered there. If you want to weigh in or watch the next step, the October 20 council meeting is the next public session after the agreement amendment.
Civic projects like this can show up on a property tax bill years before anything opens. If you own in Crystal Lake and want to know how a possible new levy fits into a sale or purchase timeline, Renee Clark Homes can walk you through what is known today and what is still being decided. Let's connect.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.
