Firefighters Battle Blaze At Tinley Mental Health Facility: FD

TINLEY PARK, IL — Firefighters from three departments battled a fire for more than two hours early Friday morning at the property of the former Tinley Park Mental Health facility, marking the second time since April fires have been reported at the site.

Fire crews were called to the abandoned building, which is located in the 8300 block of W. 183rd Street, at 1:10 a.m., fire officials said. Fire Chief Steve Klotz said firefighters discovered a confirmed fire at the facility but said that extinguishing the fire was hampered by overgrowth and a lack of working hydrants.

In a news release, fire officials said the blaze was found on the side sound of the recreational building in the residential area of the campus. "Firefighting operations were hampered by several factors, including poor lighting, no working fire hydrants, very thick overgrowth and the dilapidated and dangerous condition of the abandoned building," the release said.

No firefighters were injured and it took about two hours to extinguish, Klotz said. Firefighters from Orland Park and Oak Forest assisted during this fire, officials said. Klotz, however, said that the campus needs to be secured immediately and that if that did not happen, the fires would continue and put local firefighters at risk.

The fire is the second at the facility since the end of April when firefighters were called to the facility for the report of multiple fires.

Buildings on the property have been vacant since 2012.

In that fire, Tinley Park City Manager Pat Carr said that the State Fire Marshal’s Office was investigating the blaze as suspicious since fires were found in multiple places.

"This is the second significant fire that the Fire Department has responded to on this property within the last six months, with the last one back on April 28," Carr said in a statement. "This property has become a homeless encampment and poses an extremely high danger for these people and our firefighters due to the poor condition of the property."

The property has remained vacant as both the Village and Park District have made efforts to purchase the land.

In December 2022, the Park District unveiled a preliminary rough plan for the property, with hopes of developing the 90 acres of land. The park district envisions transforming the long-vacant property into a hub of athletic fields, track and field facilities, a domed sports complex, and open recreational space to meet the needs of the Tinley Park community and expand opportunities for neighboring communities, it said in a news release at the time.

Village officials expressed surprise at the move, telling Patch previously that they were caught off guard by the park district's plan to purchase the property.

In August, Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed a bill allowing the park district to purchase the property.

Patch Editor Lauren Traut contributed reporting.