Glen Ellyn regains oversight of College of DuPage

The DuPage County Board, College of DuPage and village of Glen Ellyn have signed a new intergovernmental agreement transferring the authority to perform building, zoning and liquor inspections at COD back to the village.

The County Board on April 11 signed the agreement after the COD Board of Trustees approved it March 16 and the Glen Ellyn Village Board approved it March 13.

“We are thrilled to usher in a new era of cooperation among the county, College of DuPage and the village of Glen Ellyn," DuPage County Board Chairman Dan Cronin said in a statement.

COD board Chairwoman Deanne Mazzochi agreed.

“We appreciate that the County Board approved this last needed step for the College of DuPage and the village of Glen Ellyn to move forward, return to a more productive relationship and restore administrative oversight to the unit of local government most vested in ensuring the college does things right," she said in a statement. "We believe this agreement reflects a commitment by the college and Village of Glen Ellyn leadership to keep relationships complementary, not contentious. We look forward to finding new opportunities to collaborate with Glen Ellyn to find mutually beneficial savings and synergies. DuPage County was a useful intermediary in the past, and we look forward to partnering with it in the future if and when the need arises."

In March 2012, Glen Ellyn trustees approved an agreement that transferred certain regulatory control over the COD campus to the county, following ongoing disputes between the college and village over regulations such as building and sign codes and zoning.

At one point, COD had threatened to de-annex from Glen Ellyn.

The new agreement will take effect July 1.

Glen Ellyn Village President Alex Demos previously had voiced support for the new agreement.

"We are a college community," he had said. "The College of DuPage is an asset in the form of economic development."