Construction crane topples, strikes Palatine village hall

Workers stand near a construction crane which slowly toppled over Monday, striking the Palatine village hall at 200 E. Wood St., which is undergoing a $12.7 million renovation. Photo courtesy Village of Palatine

A construction crane slowly toppled over Monday and struck Palatine village hall, which is undergoing major renovations.

Village Manager Reid Ottesen said no one was injured and that the early indication is the building did not sustain any structural damage.

"It just slowly started to sink down (on one side)," Ottesen said. "As it is sinking down toward the building the other end's coming up, and it slowly toppled."

He said the outriggers on the crane that help it to remain stable were placed on an area of backfill made up of crushed-up building materials, like concrete and brick, from the old village hall.

"(The backfill) settles over time, which is why we were trying to get it in now so it could settle over the winter," Ottesen said.

In the spring, the village announced that using the crushed-up building materials as backfill would save around $100,000 because they wouldn't need to haul away the heavy concrete and bricks.

Ottesen said all that was supposed to go on top of the backfill-supported area was landscaping.

He said another crane will be brought in Tuesday morning to pick up the crane that fell. He said they would like to pick up the crane later in the morning so as not to disrupt the morning commute and school rush.

He said the village will have an engineer on the scene Tuesday to investigate if the structure sustained any damage.

Work crews are in the middle of a $12.7 million renovation project on the 63-year-old building, which once housed Palatine High School. The building, located at 200 E. Wood St., houses both the village hall and the Palatine Park District. The drab concrete that currently tops the building will be covered by aluminum panels, and its brick exterior also will receive a facelift. Work began late last year and will run through next spring.

During the renovations, the village is operating out of a temporary location at 150 W. Wilson St., just south of the railroad tracks.