Construction crews are hard at work along Lynn Boulevard in Sterling this week, building a pickleball court, a basketball court, a back patio and a short walking path at the township's consolidated office and youth center. The project, expected to wrap by the end of October, marks the second phase of Sterling Township's years-long effort to turn a former children's bounce-house facility into a hub for both government business and after-school programming.
The site at 505 W. Lynn Blvd. already houses the township's administrative offices, the assessor and the Elevate Youth Center, according to Shaw Local. Township offices were previously scattered across three separate locations in downtown Sterling before moving to the current site about two years ago, and Supervisor Angie Schneider has said she wanted one building to meet all of the township's needs. The property had formerly operated as Fun Jump, an indoor bounce-house and family recreation business, before the township acquired it in 2022 to consolidate its offices.
Once construction finishes, the walking path will run along the edge of the property and around the basketball court, looping roughly one-tenth of a mile without connecting to the existing walking path already on Lynn Boulevard. The path and courts sit at the back of the property, adding recreational offerings to a youth center that provides area students with free after-school activities and homework help, per Sterling Township's own description of the program.
Phase Two Prioritizes Parking and Outdoor Space
The building renovation that brought the youth center, offices and assessor together under one roof was completed as the township's first project at the site; this second phase focuses on developing the additional land that came with the office building, prioritizing more parking for the facility alongside the new courts and patio. The community garden and pollinator garden currently on site will need to move to make room for the new construction, with that relocation planned to begin in 2027, moving the gardens to a spot south of the parking lot. Township officials say that shift will make the gardens more accessible, letting gardeners walk directly from their cars to their plots.
In 2025, the township also partnered with the Lee/Ogle/Whiteside Regional Office of Education #47 to provide after-school activities at the youth center, according to Shaw Local. The new outdoor courts and walking path are designed to complement that program.
How the Township Is Paying for It
The land purchase behind the project cost $675,000 and was funded by state tax revenue, specifically personal property replacement taxes, rather than property tax dollars earmarked for other purposes. Schneider has emphasized that Sterling Township is a separate taxing body from the Sterling Township Highway Department, meaning the road district's funding for repair and maintenance was not touched by this spending.
Replacement taxes were enacted by the Illinois General Assembly in 1979 under Governor James R. “Jim” Thompson to replace revenue local governments lost when business personal property taxes were eliminated in 1970, according to the Illinois Department of Revenue. The state distributes that corporate tax revenue to local governments and townships statewide, and the Sterling Township Highway Department separately relies on its own share of replacement taxes for road work and its operating fund. Statewide, an April 2025 report by the Civic Federation found that state-administered revenues, including personal property replacement taxes, made up $206.5 million, or 23.3%, of total township revenues in fiscal year 2023, underscoring how significant that funding stream is for capital projects like Sterling's.
Township services include General Assistance for indigent residents, assessing real property, maintaining roads outside municipal limits and youth services. Replacement taxes are distributed to local governments and townships statewide.
