The 8-ft. tall statue of the first mayor of Rosemont, the late Donald E. Stephens, father of current Mayor Brad Stephens, will be moved to the village’s planned new village hall by the time it opens in about a year.
The bronze statue, which has been located in front of the Rosemont’s longtime village hall on Devon Avenue west of River Road since June of 2016, depicts Stephens facing west with his hands cupping the village’s famed red and white rose water-tower. On each side of the statue are many of the landmarks Stephens was responsible for developing since Rosemont was founded in 1956 including Allstate Arena and the Rosemont Theater. Donald E. Stephens served as Rosemont’s only mayor until his death in 2007.
Brad Stephens said Monday that it’s likely that when the move to the new four-story, 120,000 sq. ft. village hall occurs the statue will be located inside on the first floor within a 7,000 to 8,000 sq. ft. area. The first level will also house the Donald E. Stephens Hummel Museum and a Rosemont history room. The village’s public safety booking area, jail cells and the room where village board meetings are held will also occupy space on the first floor.
Plans also call for some space on the building’s third floor to be dedicated for use by the BIG 10 conference, which needs more room. It has been operating in a building it owns within the village’s entertainment district. At minimum the BIG 10 wants approximately 6,500 sq. ft. of extra space for its room where football games are viewed by officials who may be called upon to overturn a referee’s decision, and for determining how referees handled themselves and game situations. An entrepreneurial center will also be established on the third floor to attract future business leaders with the intention of bringing additional large companies to the village.
The building’s second floor will be reserved for public safety administration offices. The fourth floor will include space for lawyers who have been leasing space in the current village hall for years, for Mayor Stephens political office as Leyden Township Republican committeeman, and the mayor’s office.
